A question about Kotare's 1/32 Spitfire

[LSP_Mike]

Aircraft coded AQ○C

[Jack]

9 hours ago, thierry laurent said:

Well... I was not kidding...

 

oops....i stand corrected, thanks for the info!

[Pete Roberts]

10 hours ago, LSP_Mike said:

Anyone else notice the prybar in the cockpit door?

 

Spitfire P8131 began life as a Mk IIa in May 1941 but was converted to an Air Sea Rescue Spitfire in early 1943 and entered service with 276 Squadron in April 1943. Not sure when the crow bar was added to Spitfire doors - if after May 1941, it looks like P8131 received a new cockpit door with the fit out to ASR standard.

Edited August 7, 2023 by Pete Roberts

[LSP_Mike]

Thanks for the detailed response Pete. Good info 

[CRAZY IVAN5]

This is exactly why I like  this forum ! Lots of great info here, I never knew till now that Spitfires [any] carried flares. Good stuff!

[MikeMaben]

19 hours ago, John1 said:

That's a pretty big flare.  Not sure I'd want that thing a few feet behind my butt on a combat mission! One errant mg round and you've got a real "hot seat". 

 

Just to be clear, those are flare tubes. The flares are inside the tubes and for air sea rescue they were parachute flares

.

Hurricane MkIIs had them (one) too. They were used to signal an emergency (injured pilot for example) so ground crew

(ambulance) could be ready, and also given priority landing.

 

...or so I read in a book.

 

 

 

Edited August 8, 2023 by MikeMaben

[Tolga ULGUR]

2 hours ago, MikeMaben said:

 

Just to be clear, those are flare tubes. The flares are inside the tubes and for air sea rescue they were parachute flares

.

Hurricane MkIIs had them (one) too. They were used to signal an emergency (injured pilot for example) so ground crew

(ambulance) could be ready, and also given priority landing.

 

...or so I read in a book.

 

 

 

 

These are new things for me Mike, thanks

[dennismcc]

An Edgar moment is called for here regarding the crow bar.

The crowbar was not fitted, as standard, until November, 1941, though the fittings went into the Spitfire much earlier (it's possible that, at first, like the Hurricane, the bar was by the seat.) Red appears to be a post-war "Elfin safety" requirement; all evidence that I've seen, says that they were black, natural steel, or (Army) bronze green.
Edgar

Also

It was retro-fitted, to all Marks, but not until those dates.

Edgar

 

Cheers

 

Dennis

[LSP_Mike]

Thanks Den, that was the reference I was trying to remember.

Ok on a Mk Vb, but not red. Maybe black as a wee detail.

[MikeC]

1 hour ago, dennismcc said:

Red appears to be a post-war "Elfin safety" requirement;

 

Slight diversion, but this seems to no longer apply: certainly the item on our Vc at Shuttleworth is steel grey.

 

[Pete Roberts]

14 hours ago, MikeMaben said:

 

Just to be clear, those are flare tubes. The flares are inside the tubes and for air sea rescue they were parachute flares

.

Hurricane MkIIs had them (one) too. They were used to signal an emergency (injured pilot for example) so ground crew

(ambulance) could be ready, and also given priority landing.

 

...or so I read in a book.

 

 

 

 

From what I have read, those two containers were food and a dinghy (for ASR Spits)

 

Edit - note the Universal stores rack (that carried smoke canisters) under the port wing inboard of the radiator

Edited August 8, 2023 by Pete Roberts