Need Red Lettering for 1/48 B-29 Flying Night Missions in Korean War

At the risk of sounding like a smart #%*.  Have you thought of doing them yourself?  If not, and you have good reference pics, contact Mist086 by e-mail, PM or through a post here on the forums.  He should be able to help you out.

ipmsfl wrote:

I'm planning on doing a 1/48 B-29 from the 581 Air Resupply and Communications Service that was used to drop agents behind North Korean lines during the Korean War.  It's mostly black with a bit of natural metal on the upper portion of the crew area.  To do this I need some red lettering and numbers (UNITED STATES AIR FORCE and the tail number 462204).  The letters are 18 or 24 inches tall (probably 18 inches). I also need a 13AF insignia for the tail.

Sounds like you and I found the same book.  I got mine from Maxwell.  I just looked at the picture on pages 80-81 and the top of the fuselage really doesn't look like bare metal.  I looks more like an off-white or light gray.  But my eyes aren't what they used to be. ( can't believe i just wrote that-- ) and I could be wrong.  I've had the plane on page 84 in mind for a long time. I like that nose art.

Good luck finding what you need.

 

ipmsfl wrote:

Sounds like you and I found the same book.  I got mine from Maxwell.  I just looked at the picture on pages 80-81 and the top of the fuselage really doesn't look like bare metal.  I looks more like an off-white or light gray.  But my eyes aren't what they used to be. ( can't believe i just wrote that-- ) and I could be wrong.  I've had the plane on page 84 in mind for a long time. I like that nose art. Good luck finding what you need.

If it was "Apollo's Warriors" we did.  I got a couple of copies from Mike Haas, the author, when he was still here at Hurlburt Field. I cut one up and put the pertinent info into the files. The other went into the bookcase.

I think that upper portion of those B-29's is weathered aluminum.  IIRC, aircraft left out in the elements had the aluminum weather to a matte finish over time.  It's not like that lacquer that was used on the KC-135. AFAIK, the "Air Defense Command" grey never made it to the B-29, but I'm hardly an expert on the Superfort. I don't think it's white either; compare the lettering on Flying Nightmare with the upper surface.

The nose art on Flying Nightmare is interesting and, if I could find someone to do it, I'd consider it -- assuming I could come up with the tail number.

I still will need that damned 13AF round insignia for the tail. Not having any luck on that one. 

Fortunately, (?) there's no rush on the B-29. I still have a bunch of Carpetbagger & Air Commando airplanes in front of it: A Carpetbagger B-24 and C-47; John Levitow's AC-47; and 7 Air Commando P-51's (3 x A's, a B, a C and 2 x D's); a 1 ACG B-25H and a 1 ACG R-4 helicopter.

Regards,

Ed Robbeloth

Any time, any place

Yep, "Apollo's Warriors" it is.  I ordered my copy from the Air University Press at Maxwell.  I discovered that retired military can order books from them at no cost.  I found the patches for the 581st ARCW and the 581st ARS at a website for patch collectors.  According to the book,  all planes were assigned to the same squadron.  I haven't found the particular design that was painted on the vertical stab yet. 

FYI, "Apollo's Warriers" is now on-line. The Air University has published it as a PDF.  Looks like it's only in black-and-white though.  http://aupress.maxwell.af.mil/Books/Haas/Haas.pdf

 

Ed