RAF sky blue "or light blue I should say"

For a Mk.1 I would go with "Sky Type S" or something along those lines (the pale greenish colour) Tamiya XF-21 or similar

I think it may mean "Sky". It is a common color on the underside of WWII British aircraft. In Tamiya acrylics it is "XF-21". It is actually a very light gray with a green tint to it.

I used Model Master Acryl 4840 RAF Sky Type's' ANA 610 for my Spit and I really like the color. Not sure if  its an exact match to what was used but it looks good.

Sky Blue is NOT, Sky Type S or Duck Egg Blue.

There are two types of Sky Blue that appeared on Some RAF Fighter Aircraft at the beginning and early part of the Battle of Britain.

They are

BS 381c (1930) No. 1 Sky Blue  

and

Air Ministry Sky Blue  or AM Sky Blue

This colour Chart will give you an idea about the BS 381c no. Sky Blue (first one on chart)

www.e-paint.co.uk/BS381%20Colourchart.asp

This link gives you AM Sky Blue,  as you can see it could vary

1.bp.blogspot.com/.../RAF+Sky+Blue.png

This link to a discussion on Britmodeller (bit of reading) may help you?

http://www.britmodeller.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=54264

Hope that hepls you?

Regards

Alan

Hey Randy, I just finished the above Spit Mk I using an Xtradecal sheet (probably the same one you're using).  According to my research for this build, early Spits and Hurricanes were "Sky Type S" then changed to a bluish-green they called "Duck Egg Blue" towards the later part of the Battle of Britain.  I'm more partial to the earlier Sky which I made my own concoction.  Its Tamiya XF-21 Sky mixed with a smidgen of XF-3 Flat Yellow.   I think I got it fairly close, at least to my eye.  If you prefer Model Master paints, they make both of these colors. 

Hope this helps,

Joe

I think you will find that 'Sky" in early to mid 1940 was the same as "Duck Egg Blue".

Duck Egg Blue AKA Sky then, was a Blueish/Greenish colour which existed in that form till later modified to the Sky (mid -late 41-42), which we know now as the Greenish/Greyish colour, also found on Post WWII British Military aircraft also.

Regards

Alan

nope, not Sky S.  it's more into the bluish side.

LDS got it right.

thanks for the help everyone!!!

Looking at those plates of AM Sky that were posted, it looks quite similar to the MM Sky S out of the bottle.

I encountered this color in one of my builds, "azure blue" which is a bit more blue. I think they used it in their desert camo for Hurricanes and Spitfires.

Jester75

Looking at those plates of AM Sky that were posted, it looks quite similar to the MM Sky S out of the bottle.

I agree. I tried to match my old Model Master bottle of Sky S with Tamiya colors.  i came up with XF-21 Sky and a dash of of XF-3 flat yellow.  It looked dead on to me.  Just paint it so it looks right to your eye.  This practice has been working for me so far.  Truthfully, once its cleacoated, decaled, panel line washed, dullcoated etc...(if your so inclined) the color is going to change anyways.   

Joe

Very true Joe.

... hmm, well the research is out there if you are interested.  The one thing you have to be open to is during 1940 there were several standard colours used, not to mention the use of paints mixed at squadron levels.  Factories also had to make do with what was at hand until supplies of Sky Type S became available.   As has been said before, Sky Type S was pretty much standard issue by mid-September, and would continue to be used until the advent of the Day Fighter Scheme, around the middle of August 1941.

As far as sky blue is concerned,  Alan has kindly provided the two options that were standard colours back then.  BS 381c no.1 Sky Blue (also refered to as duck egg blue) is a deeper blue/green colour.  Am Sky blue in much lighter, with a hint of blue, unlike Sky Type S which is a grey/green colour - there is a noticeable difference when compared side by side.

Azure blue doesn't enter the picture here, it was a colour introduced for tropical based aircraft.

regards,

Jack

constructor

I encountered this color in one of my builds, "azure blue" which is a bit more blue. I think they used it in their desert camo for Hurricanes and Spitfires.

Azur Blue did not exist at the time of the BoB, not being  invented and named until December 1940.

LDSModeller

I think you will find that 'Sky" in early to mid 1940 was the same as "Duck Egg Blue".

Duck Egg Blue AKA Sky then, was a Blueish/Greenish colour which existed in that form till later modified to the Sky (mid -late 41-42), which we know now as the Greenish/Greyish colour, also found on Post WWII British Military aircraft also.

Regards

Alan

There were no later, earlier, darker, lighter, upside-down, inside-out, or any other variation of Sky. The colour remained the same throughout its use. First used by the PRU it was adopted in the beginning of 1940 by bomber command for the undersides of day bombers. When it was adopted throughout the RAF in June 1940 it was in short supply and consequently a number of similar colours were substituted. Sky did not become common until September 1940. BS381c Sky Blue was one of the substitute colours used. The Sky Blue in the current version of BS381c is slightly different from the 1930 edition. Best described as a pale Aquamarine.

There never was a colour in use by the RAF called Duck Egg Blue. Duck egg blue was first used by an AM official in response to a question as to what Sky was. After that that duck egg blue became a commonly used alias for Sky. Previously Sky was usually described, more accurately, as a duck egg green colour. In recent years some authors have used duck egg blue as a sort of collective term for BS381c Sky Blue and similar colours that were used as substitutes for Sky. Duck egg blue is an accurate description for the pale Aquamarine colour of BS381c Sky Blue.

It is sometimes said that there was no colour Duck Egg Blue. Not entirely true as the RNZAF used a colour called Duck Egg Blue 33B/N.90, S13-909. The RNZAF used the same 33B Stores Reference   as the RAF. The letter N indicates that the colour was locally produced and S13-909 is the paint manufacturer’s code. The colour did not match Sky. Most similar are BS381c Sky Blue or BS381c Pale Blue. It was the standard under surface colour for Harvard, Hudson, Kittyhawk and Ventura.  The also seems to have been a deeper, richer variant similar to BS381c Verdigris Green used on Vildebeeste, Vincent, Oxford and communications aircraft.

White Ensign Models have both BS381 (1930) Sky Blue and AM Sky Blue in their Colorcoats range, ACRN29 and ACRN24 respectively.

I wrote a detailed post on the history of Sky and Sky substitute colours with photographs of examples here (my last post near the bottom):

http://cs.finescale.com/fsm/modeling_subjects/f/2/t/140999.aspx

It is very likely that Xtradecal used as reference one of the more recent publications such as The Battle of Britain Camouflage and Markings 1940, Peter Scott and Gary Madgwick, The Aviation Workshop Publications. The Sky Blue they refer to will almost certainly be BS 381c (1930) Sky Blue.

Certainly the term 'Sky" was in use early on in the peace (pre war), and early WWII.

However not all, is so simple, as there were other colours in the melting

pot so to speak, such as 'Eau De Nil" and terms as Camotint, which existed

also and had more of a direction to the eventual "Sky Type S" as we know it.

I would suggest reading this article, the gentlemen who writes this blog is very

well researched and in my opinion quite authoritive.

amair4raf.blogspot.co.nz/.../blue-skies-and-duck-eggs.html

With respect to the references to the RNZAF, not so cut and dry.

The RNZAF had two versions of Duck Egg Blue

1) (NZ) Duck Egg Blue:  BALM S13-909.  33B/N.90

2) (NZ) Duck Egg Blue (this one darker than the previous)

In his book  'We Also Served",  WWII veteran Wally Ingham (RNZAF Air frame fitter) made mention that parked out on the strip, there were many aircraft all  Quote" painted in Duck Egg Blue,

like the RAF" end quote.

As to the P 40's and Venturas and Hudsons wearing Duck Egg Blue, many of the

early  P 40's (E version and some M versions) Hudsons and Ventura's arrived from the United States in US "RAF" versions of Camouflage being Dark Earth/Dark Green/Sky.

To make understanding easier, I will deal with the P 40 E's, but comments for Hudsons etc will be similar.

In early 1942 the RNZAF received a shipment of P 40E's from British Stock held in the USA.

The Aircraft were painted in RAF colours using DuPont paints that were a version of RAF colours, being Top: Dark Earth/ Dark Green and Sky lower (per Curtiss documents held by RNZAF Museum).

The DuPont colour for Sky (US version) was DuPont 71-021 Sky Type S Grey.

This paint was a Bluish/Greenish colour with a grey tint and was colloquilally called Duck Egg Blue in the US and would have for the RNZAF as well.

This restored P40E shows how the aircraft would have looked circa 1942, note the lower colour

i40.photobucket.com/.../FILE0263copy_zps5a2334d5.jpg

The Duck Egg Blue  (manufactured either in New Zealand or Australia under the BALM series)

would have been close to the US version for repairs etc.

The RNZAF did use Sky for Spinners and aircraft codes, some of it's aircraft for example No. 14

Fighter Squadron P 40E's, had "Sky" spinners and Codes. Ths 'Sky" would have been very similar

to RAF Sky AKA Duck Egg Blue.

Later in 1942-43 RNZAF Aircraft began to be camouflaged in New Zealand colours of NZ Blue Sea Grey/Foliage or Dark Green/Sky Grey. This generally only applied to New Zealand based aircraft.

Later toward the wars end, in New Zealand, aircraft began to be painted in Foliage Green/Sky Grey.

(this also applied to returning P 40's from the Operational areas  used for training)

(NOTE: Other lend lease aircraft, wore what ever colours they arrived in, in the forward operational areas (TBF-1's P 40(M-N) SBD's F4U's etc)

The Sky Grey, interestingly had a similar hue to the Original Sky Type S - Grey, that the previous US built aircraft wore on arrival.

Videbeests/Vincents/Oxfords ect, would have worn Duck Egg Blue.

The only other green (non camouflage) found on WWII era RNZAF aircraft was a matt green for ID purposes.

Harvards wore either Trainer Yellow or Dark Earth/Dark Green/Yellow.

Regards

Alan