B-24 (8 Viewers)

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I haven't found anything better that the view at the decal marking and three additional B&W shots.

The_Squaw_c.jpg


The_Squaw_b.jpg

The_Squaw_e.jpg
 
And one detail more ... please make a focus on the small art on the left side of the squaw's fugure. It is a dog's paw print in my opinion. The doggie seems to be named Joe and was a mascot of the crew or squadron. Therefore there is it's name Joe and in parentheses, the word MASCOT written with smaller white font. The small inscription is omitted usually.

The_Squaw_a1.jpg
 
Well... I think I'm done with this.
I have some doubts about the base color: judging by the photos, the yellow either faded significantly during service, or the colors were that pale to begin with.
41-11761-B-24D-Liberator-12AF-98BG343BS-R-The-Squaw-North-Africa-15th-Sep-1943-02.jpg
 
Well... I think I'm done with this.
I have some doubts about the base color: judging by the photos, the yellow either faded significantly during service, or the colors were that pale to begin with.View attachment 896559


Looking nice. But the title of the Soldier's Medal wasn't on the black background with the white font but just like othe nemes of the medals there. Regarding the plane colour .. yes it was painted Desert Sand. The paint was getting the pinky tone due to the sunlight called the Desert Pink.
As memo serves the US paint name was ANA616 Sand. The faded paint is suggested being the FS 30279.
 
Yes, I noticed; that's an error with the black-and-white mask.
I think I made it as close to the original as possible; I avoided making it overly white, kept slight yellow undertones, and gave it a soft pink hue.
 
Looking nice. But the title of the Soldier's Medal wasn't on the black background with the white font but just like othe nemes of the medals there. Regarding the plane colour .. yes it was painted Desert Sand. The paint was getting the pinky tone due to the sunlight called the Desert Pink.
As memo serves the US paint name was ANA616 Sand. The faded paint is suggested being the FS 30279.
Amazing.
 
Next on the agenda B-24 Liberator 453rd BG, US Eighth Air Force, 1944.
1790403053241.png
 
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I'm late to this one, but I'm pretty sure it should say CREW WEIGHT. I can't read what weight is listed, but that marking being much lower than a normal combat crew is not uncommon.

I believe the last line is SUITABLE FOR AROMATICS, as in aromatic fuels. While it's a different aircraft, two of the B-26 drawings in my collection mention to write either SUITABLE FOR AROMATICS or NOT SUITABLE FOR AROMATICS on the technical data block depending on whether the entire fuel system is capable of handling those types of fuel or not.

Hi,

Here is a simple table of USAAF WW2 period Avgas from the internet. It is not from a known source, but I think it reflects the basics. You would have to dig deep to find the fuel details as they varied during the War.
Overall, the "Aromatic" compounds in the high-Octane fuels were damaging natural rubber etc and the aircraft and engines had to be builts with resistant synthetic rubbers to resist the aromatics.


Summary Table of USAAF Fuel Grades

USAAF GradeMain Additives / CompositionHigh-Aromatic Variant?Primary Use Case
Grade 91/96Lower lead, paraffin-dominatedNo (Strictly limited pre-war)Training aircraft, transports, and early-war bombers
Grade 100/130Alkylate base with up to 20%+ aromaticsYes (Later wartime blends)Standard combat fuel for fighters and heavy bombers
Grade 100/150Iso-octane, xylidine, toluene, and xyleneYes (Highly aromatic)Late-war front-line fighters (Eighth and Ninth Air Forces)

Also, just to note that where the table refers to "paraffin", it is using the chemistry term for a medium Octane type refined constituent of oil, not the popular "PARAFFIN" used in oil lamps etc.
Overall, the chemistry of fuels is complicated.

Eng
 
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I think I'm done with it. I decided not to use a black outline for Mate Katt; I made it red instead, as I felt that looked more striking and attractive.
 
The only thing I didn't understand was what was written on the line in front of the bombs.

And I'm not sure about the color under the belly, either :/
 
The only thing I didn't understand was what was written on the line in front of the bombs.

And I'm not sure about the color under the belly, either :/


The words are "PAST FIFTY" what means "after 50" and reffers to the number of missions. These bombs above the line are markings of the 50 missions done. So those below the rest of missions the bomber participated in. The picture you posted initially shows the number 35+50 while the one I attached presents 42+50.

past fifty.jpg



What the belly?
 

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