Trumpeter 1/48 Vickers Wellington Mk.III

[Lucky13]

Well, it arrived today! Bl**dy fast delivery if you ask me!

[Wurger]

Looking good. But could you tell me what for you have created the thread if you had already posted the note in the "Recent Purchases" thread?

[Lucky13]

Sure Wojtek.... Just for questions etc, squadrons and so on, you know, the usual stuff.....

[Wurger]

I see....

[Crimea_River]

What's on the blue box?

[Lucky13]

This is what's the blue box....

[Lucky13]

Well, when time comes....the Wimpy will become a No. 9 Squadron lass.
Seem to have been a rather busy squadron, didn't know that!

First World War
No. 9 Squadron was formed and disbanded twice during the First World War. The first incarnation was formed on 8 December 1914 at Saint-Omer in France from a detachment of the RFC HQ to develop the use of radio for reconnaissance missions; this lasted until March 1915.

Re-formed at Brooklands on 1 April 1915 under the command of Major Hugh Dowding (later commander of RAF Fighter Command during the Battle of Britain) as a reconnaissance squadron, No. 9 returned to France in December 1915, flying Royal Aircraft Factory B.E.2s. It flew reconnaissance and artillery spotting missions during the Battle of the Somme in 1916. It re-equipped with R.E.8s in May 1917, using them for artilley spotting and contact patrols during the Battle of Passchendaele, during which it suffered 57 casualties, and carrying out short range tactical bombing operations in response to the German Spring Offensive in March 1918.[3] While it started to receive Bristol Fighters in July 1918, it did not completely discard its R.E.8s until after the end of the war. It was disbanded again in December 1919.


Between the wars
The squadron's life as a bomber unit began on 1 April 1924, reforming at RAF Upavon, quickly moving to RAF Manston, with the Vickers Vimy. Less than a year later, the squadron re-equipped with the Vickers Virginia heavy bomber, occasionally supplemented by Vickers Victoria transports, which it retained until this was replaced by the Handley Page Heyford in 1936. In 1939 it became the third RAF squadron to receive the modern Vickers Wellington monoplane.


Second World War
World War II began with the unit one of the few equipped with modern aircraft, the Vickers Wellington bomber, flying out of RAF Honington; the Wellington later gave way to the Avro Lancaster, with which the unit would complete its most famous sorties.

On 4 September 1939, the squadron’s Wellington aircraft and crews were the first to hit the enemy, the first to get into a dogfight, possibly the first to shoot down an enemy aircraft, the first to be shot down by one and, towards the end of the war, the first to hit the German battleship Tirpitz with the Tallboy 12,000 pound bomb, an achievement by the crew of a Lancaster on her 102nd operation with the squadron.

No. 9 fought with RAF Bomber Command in Europe all the way through World War Two, took part in all the major raids and big battles, pioneered and proved new tactics and equipment, produced several of the leading figures in The Great Escape, as well as Colditz inmates - including the legendary 'Medium Sized Man' Flight Lieutenant Dominic Bruce OBE MC AFM originator of the famous 'tea chest' escape; they became one of the two specialised squadrons attacking precision targets with the Tallboy bomb, and led the final mainforce raid, on Berchtesgaden, 25 April 1945.

The battleship Tirpitz had been moved into a fjord in Northern Norway where she threatened the Arctic convoys and was too far north to be attacked by air from the UK. She had already been damaged by a Royal Navy midget submarine attack and a second attack from carrier born aircraft of the Fleet Air Arm. But both attacks had failed to sink her. The task was given to No. 9 and No.617 Squadrons who, operating from a base in Russia, attacked the Tirpitz with Tallboy bombs which damaged her so extensively that she was forced to head south to Tromsö fjord to be repaired. This fjord was in range of bombers operating from Scotland. There in October from a base in Scotland she was attacked again. Finally on November 12, 1944, the two squadrons attacked the Tirpitz and she capsized. All three RAF attacks on the Tirpitz were led by Wing Commander JB "Willy" Tait, who had succeeded Wing Commander Leonard Cheshire as CO of No. 617 Squadron in July 1944.

After the War, the Lancasters were replaced by Avro Lincolns until 1952, when the Squadron re-equipped with English Electric Canberra jet-bombers. These aircraft were used during three months of operations in Malaya in 1956 and during the Suez Crisis.

In March 1962, the squadron converted to the Avro Vulcan and became part of the V-Force of RAF Bomber Command. Their Vulcans were equipped in late 1966 with WE.177 laydown nuclear bombs at RAF Cottesmore in the low-level penetration role and assigned to SACEUR, before spending six years in the same role 1969-74 at RAF Akrotiri, Cyprus, as part of the Near East Air Force Wing (NEAF) where the squadron formed part of the United Kingdom's commitment to CENTO. The years 1975-82 were spent based at RAF Waddington, again assigned to SACEUR, and still equipped with WE.177 nuclear laydown bombs in the low-level penetration role before disbanding in April 1982.

[Wayne Little]

Got the 1/72 scale version....assume it is a scaled down version and identical in components?

[Lucky13]

Would think so....done that before haven't they? Btw, feel like jumping back on Udo's '88, but woke up at 3pm today! Just get it out anyway and get on with it tomorrow me think...

[Maglar]

The old laddy itself.. I scoped that kit for awhile but never got it. It struck a peculiar appeal that always made me want to make it. Have the money but not the time (like all of my modeling ). Have fun with it!