I am not really too clued up on what happened with the aircraft drawings as such, but I wonder, as well as the factories that were manufacturing an aircraft type, where else would a full set of drawings also have been supplied to?

Did the RAF maintenance units that did overhauls, etc., get a set of manufacturer’s drawings for reference? Or, as different types of drawings would probably be used for maintenance as opposed to manufacture, would there not have been copies made for the RAF?

I just want to add, Jonathon, I’m sure most will agree when i say you’re a most welcome new poster to this forum. I am certain that with your enthusiasm and helpfulness, and the fact that you can provide first-hand information from within the IWM, many people will be enjoying your contributions. It is great to see.

Well I have read of two instances during the war where aircrews in training used flour bombs here in NZ. And they of course were almost all training to become part of Bomber Command. One of these instances was in the book by the lady I mentioned earlier whom I spoke with a few weeks back, Nona Morris. The other I am still trying to remember exactly where I read it, but it was also in the South Island, Wigram I think, and it was Harvards used I think. I have also read of prewar RNZAF (or maybe the earlier NZPAF) dropping flour bombs on an exercise instead of practise bombs.

So in a round about way, yes Bomber Command aircrew trained with flour bombs, but maybe or maybe not in Briatain. Definately in NZ under the Empire Air Training Scheme.

Incidentally in the early part of the war NZ had plenty of flour. Later on we were exporting loads of it to Britain, and the RNZAF and NZ Army troops formed special units during the summers of 1943/44 and 1944/45 to harvest the wheat as labour was so scarce!

Let’s not forget that there is a third Spitfire with the unit marking either removed or half-applied, the US one that began this thread. It is all quite a mystery.

VoyTech,

On that photo of Closterman’s Spitfire taken side on, how do you explain the red of the roundels and finflash being so dark if the camera filter has eliminated the red of the lion? It simply makes no sense to me, sorry. I am convinced that the unit crest markings were removed physically with white paint.

These two shots were two consecutive frames (still photography) from a 35 mm film. The same session included other such sequences were virtually the same scene was shot several times with various filter sets.

Was this information recorded by the photographer about different filters being used, or is this a deduction on your part (this is not meant to read as me being aggro or nasty, I’m just curious as to how you know this).

Interesting photos. Thanks for sharing.

I’ve never heard of this place. Is it in England? Or France? And I assume the aircraft are GRP replicas?

It is British. Order your’s here

http://www.coinwatch.co.uk/award/bomber_order.htm

Official site and photos here

http://www.awardmedals.com/award/awardfrm.htm

(click on the New Catalogue Now Available link, then scan down left hand frame to Bomber Command Medal. These pics from the site)

As mentioned on the most recent Bomber Crew thread by me, there was a medal struck. But they made them pay for it, so most said sod off.