Biggles Second Case

Aircraft name: Tarpon

Kit: Special Hobby Sikorsky S-43

Notes: This was built as per the illustrations only, which clearly show a Sikorsky S-43B. The story describes the Tarpon as a top secret seaplane in development at the end of WW1. The S-43 was a mid 1930s American airliner amphibian. This would _not_ be the basis for a top secret high performance seaplane....

Air Police Stories (All)

Aircraft name: Auster

Kit: Airfix, Auster Antarctic

Notes: The venerable Auster Autocrat is the workhorse of the Air Police. Most duties within the UK fall to the Auster or the Proctor. There are multiple Auster Autocrats in service with the Air Police throughout the stories. This particular scheme was chosen based on the fact that much of the cover art for different stories features yellow Austers. As for the registration lettering, I honestly have no recollection now of why I chose that. I'm sure it was profoundly inspired reasoning at the time...

Aircraft name: Proctor

Kit: Airlines, Percival Proctor

Notes: The other "daily driver" of the Air Police, getting almost as many mentions as the Auster. I decided to build this in a scheme that would make it look like an official police aircraft and set it apart from any civil registered planes. The scheme is entirely my invention, not based on any illustrations. Most postwar RAF Proctors had a yellow underside while police cars of the 1950s were black. I decided to merge these two concepts. This was also a "blitz" build - 24 hour speed built. Scrubbed up alright. It's pictured with a 1950s British police Wolseley (Oxford Diecast)

Aircraft name: Wellington

Kit: Matchbox, Vickers Wellington

Notes: For bigger jobs, the Air Police regularly use a Wellington. I based the scheme on some of the postwar navigation and training Wellingtons (http://img.wp.scn.ru/camms/ar/559/pics/9_36.jpg) but rather than the silver used on these I wanted a more workhorse-looking colour, so I used RAF PRU grey-blue.

Aircraft name: Sunderland

Kit: Airfix, Short Sunderland III 

Notes: The Sunderland featured in various stories, my favourite of which being The Case of the Luminous Clay short story in Biggles' Chinese Puzzle. The Airfix kit builds well but is extremely bare-bones so I scratchbuilt some cockpit detail. The paint scheme is based on the artwork for Biggles Cuts it Fine: http://www.biggles.info/Details/48/48%20Biggles%20Cuts%20it%20Fine.jpg and http://biggles.info/index_files/image053.jpg