imperial war museum Archives - Felix's Gaming Pages

Ferret MkII Scout Car

The Ferret armoured car, also commonly called the Ferret scout car, is a British armoured fighting vehicle designed and built for reconnaissance purposes. The Ferret was produced between 1952 and 1971 by the UK company Daimler. It was widely adopted by regiments in the British Army, as well as the RAF Regiment and Commonwealth countries.

This one was at the Imperial War Museum Duxford.

They also had a sand coloured Ferret on display as well.

This Ferret MkII Scout Car in a white UN paint scheme was on display at the Imperial War Museum in London.

There was a similar painted Ferret at the Tank Museum as well.

V-1 flying bomb

This V-1 flying bomb was hanging from the ceiling of the Imperial War Museum in London.

The history of this particular V1 is not known but it was acquired by the Museum in 1946, and retains its original wartime paintwork.

The V-1 was the first of the so-called “Vengeance weapons” series (V-weapons or Vergeltungswaffen) deployed for the terror bombing of London. It was developed at Peenemünde Army Research Center in 1939 by the Nazi German Luftwaffe at the beginning of the Second World War.

V1 Flying Bomb — V1 FLYING BOMB (C 4431) A cut-away and annotated drawing of the Fiesler Fi 103 flying bomb, (also known as FZG 76 or V1 weapon). Copyright: © IWM. Original Source

The Wehrmacht first launched the V-1 to target London on 13 June 1944, one week after (and prompted by) the successful Allied landings in Europe.

Ferret MkII Scout Car

This Ferret MkII Scout Car in a white UN paint scheme was on display at the Imperial War Museum in London.

British post-WW2 4×4 armoured reconnaissance vehicle, crew of 2, powered by Rolls-Royce B60 6-cylinder petrol engine, armed with one machine gun. It was based in Cyprus.

M4A4 Sherman

This M4A4 Sherman tank was on display at the Imperial War Museum in London.

Service history unknow. However, when the object was stripped back for repainting on acquisition by the Imperial War Museum, it was found to be carrying markings commensurate with a tank operating with the Guards Armoured Division in North West Europe, 1944-45.

The M4 Sherman, officially Medium Tank, M4, was the most widely used medium tank by the United States and Western Allies in World War II.

The M4A4 was the most common lend lease Sherman type used by the British Army.

I have posted a few photographs on the blog of Simon’s 15mm British Sherman tanks he has painted for Flames of War.

Supermarine Spitfire Mk IA

Famous Battle of Britain fighter, preserved in its original wartime OTU livery.

Suspended by cables from ceiling.

BAe Harrier GR9

This BAe Harrier GR9 was hanging from the ceiling of the Imperial War Museum in London.

The British Aerospace Harrier II is a second-generation vertical/short takeoff and landing (V/STOL) jet aircraft used previously by the Royal Air Force (RAF) and, between 2006 and 2010, the Royal Navy (RN). The aircraft was the latest development of the Harrier Jump Jet family, and was derived from the McDonnell Douglas AV-8B Harrier II. Initial deliveries of the Harrier II were designated in service as Harrier GR5; subsequently upgraded airframes were redesignated accordingly as GR7 and GR9.

The GR9 was developed via the Joint Update and Maintenance Programme (JUMP), which significantly upgraded the Harrier fleet’s avionics, communications systems, and weapons capabilities during scheduled periods of maintenance in an incremental manner.

The aircraft on display was delivered as a GR5 in 1992 and was subsequently upgraded to a GR7 and then a GR9. It saw service in Iraq, Kosovo and Afghanistan. It was damaged in 2010 in the USA, before being declared as scrap. In 2012 it was offered for sale to the IWM.

FV611A Humber Pig Mk 2

The FV611A Humber Pig Mk 2 was an armoured vehicle based on the Humber 1 ton truck chassis. This one was on display at the Imperial War Museum in London.

Used by the British Army from the 1950s until the early 1990s. The Pig saw service with the Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC) from late 1958 until early 1970. The Pig became particularly well known from its presence on the streets of Northern Ireland during the worst of the Troubles.

I was thinking that some 15mm versions of this would be useful for modern English Civil War games along with the Team Yankee releases available now.

Ford GPW 4X4 Jeep

Red Cross Ford GPW 4X4 Jeep on display at the Imperial War Museum London.

Donated to the Red Cross Home for Officers in Sorrento, Italy in Autumn 1943 on the orders of General Mark Clark (who had been struck by the Homes lack of transport during an official visit.) Later the Jeep was used by the Red Cross Homes in La Selva and Cuvia, Italy and Klagenfurt, Austria. It was also used for delivering supplies to Casualty Clearing Stations in this theatre. At the end of the war the Jeep was written off and The Red Cross were told they could keep it. In 1946 the Jeep and trailer were driven to England by the donor. The Red Cross showed no interest in keeping the vehicle so it passed into the possession of its former driver, Joan Whittington, who had driven it back from Austria.

Mitsubishi Zero A6M3

At the Imperial War Museum there is a Mitsubishi Zero A6M3 in a very decayed state.

The Mitsubishi A6M “Zero” was a long-range fighter aircraft operated by the Imperial Japanese Navy from 1940 to 1945. The A6M was designated as the Mitsubishi Navy Type 0 carrier fighter. The A6M was usually referred to by its pilots as the Reisen (zero fighter), “0” being the last digit of the imperial year 2600 (1940) when it entered service with the Imperial Navy. The official Allied reporting name was “Zeke”, although the use of the name “Zero” was used colloquially by the Allies as well. The Mitsubishi Zero A6M3 was introduced in 1941.

The Zero is considered to have been the most capable carrier-based fighter in the world when it was introduced early in World War II, combining excellent manoeuvrability and very long range.

Humber Super Snipe Staff Car (Old Faithful)

Staff Car employed by Field Marshal Montgomery of Alamein.

This staff car was used by Montgomery as his personal chauffeur-driven transport while commanding the British Eighth Army in North Africa, Sicily and Italy. Attached to his Tactical Headquarters (The Monty Caravans), ‘Old Faithful’ was used by Montgomery to visit the troops in the field, and from it he gave his famous ‘pep’ talks that did so much for morale. When Monty was chosen to command the D-Day landings and returned to the UK the vehicle remained behind and contunued as the pesonal transport for subsequent 8th Army commanders.