++ **** DONE: 1/48 WYVERN S.4 - Military Conflicts of the 1950's

[fubar57]

Username: Fubar57
First name: George
Category: Advanced
Scale: 1/48
Manufacturer: Trumpeter

After much searching I found the S/N to one of the photos Wojtek(Wurger) so kindly posted in the following posts. The aircraft J/371 s/nWN328, shown moments before ejection by Lt. Cdr. "Smokey" Cowling was one of two Wyverns lost during Operation Musketeer, on Nov. 05 1956

 

[fubar57]

....the innards.

 

[Wurger]

Here is a pic of the fright I've found via the net for you.

 

[Wurger]

The number 131 and 132 ... http://cdn-www.airliners.net/photos/airliners/3/0/7/1289703.jpg?v=v20

And here two shots of different kites... the last one is of the VZ782

 

[Wurger]

The Wyvern S4_VZ787 nr.121...

 

[Wurger]

A couple more.... the source the net..

 

[Wurger]

And two more ...

 

[Crimea_River]

Good stuff Geo and nice help from the professor.

 

[Wurger]

And the next one founf on Royal Navy Fleet Air Arm

Westland Wyvern VZ791 number.129 crashed in 1955

 

[fubar57]

Great shots Wojtek. These are the aircraft I am looking for...

HMS Eagle (J)
NAS 830, Wyvern S.Mk.4 (9): codes were overpainted by invasion stripes: VZ758/376, WN325/373, WN328/374, WN330/379, WP337/378, WP338/377

I would have thought there would be more Wyverns involved. I got the info from this site which lists all(?) the aircraft involved during the Suez Crisis, some pretty nifty looking schemes, bookmarked for future reference...

Suez Crisis, 1956: The War of Stripes - www.acig.org

 

[Wurger]

The only pics with Wyverns marked with the yellow-black strips, I've seen so far , are these two.

 

[fubar57]

Thanks you sir. I've learned that the aircraft numbers weren't originally carried as shown in your top photo but added later. The serials under the wings were almost totally obliterated by the wing stripes with only half of the first letter and half of the last number shown. Also note that the thin yellow stripe in the elevator finlet wasn't added and the finlet and prop nose cone were actually maroon and not red as shown in many profiles, models and the kit decal sheet. The kit decals include WN325 but it shouldn't be to hard to make up one of the aircraft with spare decals. In the meantime I'll keep looking

 

[Wurger]

Do you mean the first or second image posted in #11?

 

[fubar57]

The top photo. In the book, "Wyvern, From the Cockpit", it states, ".....all the diagonal 'finlet' stripes (seen here on '373') and call signs would be painted out prior to actual operations....", the reason being that the call signs were under the fuselage stripes Also a photo has '370' and '371' which are not included in the list I posted in #10

 

[Wurger]

I see. It is quite logical if these numbers were overpainted by these strips they repositioned them on the "noses"

The shot with the flight deck of the HMS Eagle is said to be taken durning the Operation Musketeer. The enlarged top left part of it reaveals Wyverns with strips on wing undersides and fuselages and numbers on "noses"

 

[fubar57]

I believe the numbers were only missing for the first mission. I also read that they were in such a rush to get the stripes on that some aircraft only had time to get the yellow stripes painted before they flew the first mission but I don't think it was the Wyverns. I'll check the book again and see if I can find a date that the nose numbers were added. Off to camp now for the first night shift. Have a good week gents.

 

[Wayne Little]

Nice Choice George, an ugly bird that's for sure....

 

[Wurger]

A group of Wyverns of the 830 squadron ..

A shot of the Wyvern 371-J of the 830 squadron while taxing on the flight deck for taking off...

An an interesting image of the Wyvern 379-J of the same squadron taken over the Italy in the April 1956 ..

 

[Wayne Little]

Good on ya Wojtek.

 

[Wurger]

THX.