Siege of Malta 1942 Allied/Axis Paint Schemes

Hi everyone,

I'm new here and I hope you don't mind a newb's questions.

I'm trying to determine the proper paint schemes for planes involved in the Siege of Malta. Of the Allied planes, I understand that none of the Hurricanes used a tropical paint scheme, nor did the first shipment of Spitfire MKVB's of Operation Spotter on 7 March 1942. However, did later shipments of Spitfire MKVC's use the tropical paint scheme?

I'm also wondering about the Axis planes, specifically the JU-88A-4 and Messerschmitt BF 109 F-4, given that they were re-routed to Malta from the eastern front - were also given a tropical paint scheme upon arrival in Malta? Does anyone know a good source to find this info?

Any info would be greatly appreciated. Thanks, guys.

 

Hi,

The USS Wasp shipment were actual painted a bright blue (as this restored one shows):



but the later general camo was more like this:



When I have a little more time later I shall dig out some other pictures, unless someone else finds some before.

 

Ahhh, okay, I saw that blue paint used in the model set that's available on the Merlins Over Malta site and wasn't sure which period that was from. But the Spitfires launched from the HMS Eagle on 7 March 1942 were Battle of Britain camoflage, right?

 

General European camo, yes

 

And were the Wasp Spitfires the only ones that had the blue camo?

 

There still seems to be some debate about exactly why the blue was used. The generally accepted version seems to be that the original paint didn't fair well on deck and the available paint was blue.

Apart from PRU aircraft I'm not aware of any other aircraft being painted blue on Malta.

 

Okay, understood.

Now what about Axis aircraft? Given that they came from the Russian Front, they probably weren't in any kind of camouflage upon arrival, right? That was something undertaken while in Sicily, as well as filters over the engines for dust?

 

I'm afraid I'm not very strong on the Luftwaffe but I would highly recommend on this forum, especially the Luftwaffe/Axis section - so real experts and even some authors. And have a look at their books section for suggestions:

Luftwaffe and Allied Air Forces Discussion Forum - Powered by vBulletin

 

I'll definitely give that forum a shot. Thanks for your help, Kyt.