Famous Battle of Britain fighter, preserved in its original wartime OTU livery.
Suspended by cables from ceiling.
Category: world war two
AEC Matador and 5.5″ Gun
I have written before about the influence of Matchbox and Airfix and the impact it has on the models I buy for gaming.
When I was young, before I started this wargaming lark, I use to make up plastic kits. In the main these were the pocket money kits I could buy from my local model shop and these were manufactured by Airfix and Matchbox. I recall preferring the Matchbox kits as they came with a piece of scenery.
…I have started to realise how much my knowledge of World War Two vehicles and armour has been skewed by making those plastic kits all those years ago. They have also influenced what models I am buying and which ones I like.
A similar thing can be said when it comes to looking around Museums and seeing vehicles and aircraft. So it’s no surprise when I saw the AEC Matador and 5.5″ Howtizer at the Land Warfare Exhibit at the Imperial War Museum Duxford, the first thing that came to mind, was the classic Airfix kit.
The Airfix model scene is from Europe, however the actual truck on display at Duxford is painted in desert colours.
The AEC Matador was a heavy 4×4 truck and medium artillery tractor built by the Associated Equipment Company for British and Commonwealth forces during the Second World War.
This truck served on Malta with the Royal Malta Artillery during World War Two.
The BL 5.5 inch Gun was a British artillery gun introduced during the middle of the Second World War to equip medium batteries.
This example, a Mark III, served with 25 Field Artillery Battery, RA (V), Hertfordshire and Bedfordshire Yeomanry, being withdrawn in 1977 after the barrel had fired over 1500 rounds.
37mm Pak 36
Of all the anti-tank guns used during the Second World War, the 37mm Pak 36 was the most widely encountered. This one is displayed in the Land Warfare Exhibit at Duxford.
Developed in 1933 and issued to the German army in 1936, with 9,120 being available by the beginning of the war in September 1939 and a further 5,339 produced during the war.
I remember having a 1:76th version (20mm) because I had the Matchbox Krupp Kfz 69.
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.
Morris CS8 Compressor Truck 4X2
Morris CS8 Compressor Truck 4X2 on display at the Imperial War Museum Duxford in their Land Warfare exhibition. British WW2 4×2, 15-cwt truck, powered by Morris 6-cylinder petrol engine, fitted with an air compressor for operating air tools.
Vickers Mk VIA Light Tank and Polish 3.7cm Bofors Anti-Tank Gun
The Vickers Mk VIA Light Tank was a British WW2 light tank, crew of 3, powered by Meadows 6-cylinder petrol engine, armed with two machine guns.
This one is on display at the Imperial War Museum Duxford. It was one of 11 sent to Australia in 1941 for training purposes Standard British light tank till 1941.
The Mk VI Light Tank was the sixth in the line of light tanks built by Vickers-Armstrongs for the British Army during the interwar period. The company had achieved a degree of standardization with their previous five models, and the Mark VI was identical in all but a few respects. The turret, which had been expanded in the Mk V to allow a three-man crew to operate the tank, was further expanded to give room in its rear for a wireless set.
The British Army lost 331 Mark VI light tanks in the Battle of France of 1940.
The Mk VIB was also used in the North African campaign against the Italians late in 1940 with the 7th Armoured Division.
Here are some 15mm Flames of War Light Tank VIs and a metal 15mm one of mine, which is badly painted.
In front of the tank is a Polish manufactured 3.7cm Bofors Anti-Tank Gun.
The 3.7 cm Bofors Cannon M/36P anti-rtank gun was a Swedish design that was developed in the mid-1930s, and was also manufacured in Finland. During the Second World war, it was used by Polish, Danish, and Finnish armies as well as the British. Captured examples were also used by the German Army, who designated it the 3.7 Panzerabwehrkanone 36(p) oder 157(d).
Behind the tank is a 1912 Italian – Fiat 15 ter 1.5 ton Light Truck.
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.
Morris Commercial 15-cwt R-Type Truck
This is the Morris Commercial 15-cwt R-Type Truck on display at the Imperial War Museum Duxford in their Land Warfare Exhibit.
Served with 20 Company Royal Army Service Corps in the late 1930s, early part of World War Two. The vast majority of R Type trucks were lost at Dunkirk.
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.
Quick Fire 25 pounder Mark II Gun on a Mark I carriage, 1942.
This Quick Fire 25 pounder Mark II Gun on a Mark I carriage was on display at the Imperial War Museum in London. This 25 pdr field gun was used by 11 Field Regiment, Royal Artillery, when it fought at Ruweisat Ridge on 2 July 1942.
The idea of combining the dual role of gun and howitzer arose in 1918, and was developed between the two World Wars. A pilot model was built in 1930, the first 25-pounder appeared in 1935 and the final stages of development were hastened by the outbreak of the Second World War. Initial production was slow, but by 1945, over 12,000 had been manufactured. The 25-pounder was probably the most outstanding field artillery piece used by British and Commonwealth forces in the Second World War, being durable, easy to operate and versatile. The Army’s basic close support artillery weapon, it doubled as an anti-tank gun in the North African Campaign, and was also employed in jungle, airborne and mountain roles. The 25-pounder remained the standard British divisional field gun until 1967, but the type saw service in the Indo-Pakistan War of 1971, in the Middle East in 1973 and was still in widespread use in the mid-1970s.