The Aérospatiale Gazelle is a French five-seat helicopter, commonly used for light transport, scouting and light attack duties. It was designed by Sud Aviation, later Aérospatiale, and manufactured in France and the United Kingdom through a joint production agreement with Westland Aircraft.
XW855 Westland WA.341 Gazelle HCC.4 is on display at RAF London.
In the UK, the Gazelle saw service with the Royal Navy, the RAF, and is still in service with the Army Air Corps.
It was announced in January 2022 that the rest of the British Army’s Gazelles will be phased out by March 2024 to be replaced by Airbus Helicopters H135.
Once the model was dry I drybrushed the model. I first used some Dawnstone Dry Paint and then a lighter drybrush of Terminatus Stone.
These photographs don’t really show the finished model, so I think I will need to retake them. This one taken with a phone does show off the drybrushing much better.
When I ordered it I did think initially about following the paint scheme on my other Imperial armoured vehicles, which is a desert brown colour.
Reflecting on my purchase I did think if I should follow one of the original Rhino colour schemes. Or even paint it as an Imperial Guard Rhino.
Then I thought about going or legit on the fluff and actually paint it as a Legion Rhino, if so which Legion? Well I do like the Imperial Fists colour scheme (as seen here on this Golden Demon winning entry of the “modern” Rhino).
The Bristol Type 192 Belvedere is a British twin-engine, tandem rotor military helicopter built by the Bristol Aeroplane Company. It was designed for a variety of transport roles including troop transport, supply dropping and casualty evacuation.
This Bristol Belvedere was in display at RAF London.
It was operated by the Royal Air Force (RAF) from 1961 to 1969. The Belvedere was Britain’s only tandem rotor helicopter to enter production, and one of the few not built by Boeing or Piasecki.
The RAF Belvederes were involved in combat in Aden Emergency and Borneo.
I got a couple of Ruined Factorum sprues that came with Warhammer 40000 Imperium 34. The ruins are from the The Battlezone: Manufactorum – Sub-cloister and Storage Fane kit. There are going to be further releases of these ruin sprues in later issues of Warhammer 40000 Imperium.
One I am going to paint in the same manner as the first Ruined Factorum I got, the second I am intending to follow the (white and red) paint scheme as outlined in Warhammer 40000 Imperium.
I sprayed the model a few more times with the Corax White spray. I then, following the instructions painted the doors and window frames with Mephiston Red base paint.
The model has two pieces, a larger ruined building and a smaller ruined corner.
The next step will be to wash the model with Nuln Oil Shade.
This Supermarine Stranraer was on display at RAF London.
The Supermarine Stranraer was a flying boat designed and built by the British Supermarine Aviation Works company at Woolston, Southampton. It was developed during the 1930s for the RAF.
First flown on 24 July 1934, the Stranraer entered frontline service with the RAF during 1937; most examples of the type were in service by the outbreak of World War II.
In addition to the Tiger Moth’s principal use for initial training, the Second World War had RAF Tiger Moths operating in some other capacities and roles. These roles included maritime surveillance and defensive anti-invasion preparations; some aircraft were even outfitted to function as armed light bombers.
This got me thinking about how the RAF might have used Tiger Moths during a successful Operation Sealion. The usual factor for a successful invasion of England by Germany in 1940 was the destruction of the RAF during the Battle of Britain. Of course there are all the naval challenges as well in crossing the channel, but for the sake of argument, let’s say that they were resolved. So would the RAF use them in the defensive anti-invasion role?
Then I did some research and found that the Air Ministry back in 1940 had similar thinking and came up with Operation Banquet.
Operation Banquet was a British Second World War plan to use every available aircraft against the planned German invasion in 1940, the German code name was Operation Sealion.
Operation Banquet was planned, as after the Fall of France in June 1940. The British Government needed to make urgent anti-invasion preparations, as the Royal Air Force engaged the German Luftwaffe in a struggle for air superiority in the Battle of Britain. This included building defences, bunkers, setting up auxiliary units and training the Home Guard.
At the time the threat of invasion was very real and having lost a significant amount of military hardware in the fall of France, the British military were rightly concerned about defending the country against a German invasion. A successful German invasion was dependent on destroying much of the RAF capability, hence the , by the British, to utilise all available aircraft in the event of German troops landing on the beaches on the South coast.
In May 1940, the Air Ministry had started to realise that beyond the normal fighter aircraft reserves of the RAF, it may be necessary to throw every serviceable aircraft into the battle. On 17 May, an Air Ministry meeting outlined ambitious plans to make use of various aircraft in the event of an invasion. This would include transport and training aircraft. Early in July 1940, about 1,000 aircraft, from Tiger Moths to Wellington bombers, at training schools, were ready for anti-invasion operations, with hope of another 1,000 aircraft when the scheme was complete.
Among the Banquet plans was Banquet Light which would see the formation of striking forces composed of De Havilland Tiger Moth biplanes and other light aircraft of Elementary Flying Training Schools. De Havilland put forward plans for converting the Tiger Moth into a bomber by equipping it with eight 20lb bomb racks beneath the rear cockpit. The Banquet Light strike force would be used for Army co-operation, bombing concentrations of airborne troops or soldiers landing on the beaches. If the Germans had adequate air defences, then the plan wouldn’t work, but the thinking was that in the confusion of an amphibious landing they would not have the time or the capability to set up effective air defences.
The use of slow aircraft for ground attack operations was not new and not without precedent, Netherlands Fokker C.Xs, German Henschel Hs 123 and British Hawker Hector biplanes had operated on the continent without unsustainable losses; against advanced troops without time to establish adequate air defences. Slow, highly manoeuvrable aircraft could make accurate ground attacks and escape destruction. This would be a military need in the event of Operation Sealion.
This could make for some interesting scenarios and games.
Having converted and constructed the Ruined Factorum into two different ruins, the next stage was giving them a white undercoat. The next step was painting them and giving them a wash.
I had got a couple of Ruined Factorum sprues that came with Warhammer 40000 Imperium 34. The ruins are from the The Battlezone: Manufactorum – Sub-cloister and Storage Fane kit.You get two more corner ruins, all coming on a single sprue. I did manage to pick up a second magazine and decided that I would convert them. It was a relatively simple conversion swapping over the corners.
I gave the ruins a base coat of Mechanicus Standard Grey Spray. The ruins were then given a wash of Nuln Oil Shade.
The Lockheed Hudson was a military version of the American Lockheed 14 Super Electra airliner and was ordered for the Royal Air Force in June 1938.
Hudsons entered service with Coastal Command in 1939. Used extensively over United Kingdom waters on anti-submarine and general reconnaissance duties, Hudsons were also used overseas.
