Silver painted Brewster with white tail surfaces...text "Tre Bröder".
The paint scheme of BW-367—a
Brewster B-239 Buffalo (known simply as the "Brewster" or
"Taivaan Helmi" in Finland)—evolved significantly during its service with the Finnish Air Force (
Ilmavoimat) during World War II. [
1,
2,
3]
Because three Swedish brothers funded the purchase of this specific aircraft, it was individually named
"Tre Bröder" (Three Brothers). Its appearance changed across three distinct periods: [
1,
2,
3]
1. Delivery & Early Service (Spring 1940 – Mid-1941)
When BW-367 was assigned to
Lentolaivue 22 and later transferred to
Lentolaivue 24 at Malmi, it wore a clean, uncamouflaged look: [
1]
Base Color: Overall aluminium lacquer (silver) paint. [1, 2]
Markings: The text "Tre Bröder" was painted on the side of the fuselage. [1, 2]
National Insignia: Standard Finnish blue hakaristi (swastika) on a white circular field. No tactical fuselage numbers were initially present. [1]
2. The Continuation War Camouflage (Mid-1941 – 1942)
By July 1941, as the
Continuation War began, the aircraft was repainted into the standard
FAF operational camouflage pattern, and the "Tre Bröder" inscription was removed: [
1,
2]
Upper Surfaces: Splinter camouflage pattern of Olive Green and Black.
Lower Surfaces: Maintained its original Aluminium/Silver finish on the underbelly. [1]
Quick Identification Markings (Axis Axis): Bright Yellow bands painted around the rear fuselage and on the undersides of the wingtips. [1]
Tactical Numbers: Serving with 2/LeLv 24 (2nd Flight), it featured a White "7" on the rudder. By August 1941, the squadron emblem (a lynx/cat profile) was added to the fuselage. [1, 2]
3. Late War Transition (Late 1942 – 1943)
In November 1942, the aircraft was transferred to 4/LeLv 24: [
1]
Tactical Numbers: The rudder was painted fully White featuring a Black "6". [1]
Underside Update (1943): The lower surfaces were eventually stripped of the silver finish and repainted in the standard DN-Color (Light Blue), a shade closely resembling German RLM 65. [1]
If you are a scale modeler or skin creator, let me know if you need specific
paint brand color matches (like Vallejo or Tamiya) or the
exact squadron layout for a particular year.
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