[AIR) Australian Mosquito color

I wouldn't assume that an RAAF colour would be the same as a British colour. ISTR a guide to Aussie colurs somewhere in my references but I have no idea where at this point. Sorry I'm not much help to you at this point.

Bill Banaszak, MFE Sr.

Is this a drawing or a photograph?

Main Australian production was the FB40, based on the FBVI, so has short nacelles, and a solid nose unlike most other PR Mosquito's. A52-6 would be the sixth aircraft produced at Bankswood.

The PR40's were unlike any other PR Mosquito, having been adapted from the FB fuselage by removal of the nose armament, vertical camera's in nose and bomb-bay and two oblique cameras, one in the rear fuselage with a sliding door.

Azure Blue is a very specific colour, and I would think that it means the same colour as the RAF used. 618 Squadron, the RAF Highball squadron, when based in Australia, had Azure Blue undersides. The Australian colour scheme for the FB40's was to have been Foliage Green and Earth Brown over Sky Blue, but this changed as the first aircraft were delivered to Foliage Green overall, and later to Aluminium overall. These are not the same as any colour used by the RAF.

There is a colour sideview drawing in the Osprey book Combat Aircraft 13 showing A52-6 coloured blue overall, a paler blue than PRU Blue, which could represent Azure Blue. This drawing also shows what looks like a green camouflage pattern showing through the blue. Bowman claims to have researched every colour picture from primary sources (air or ground crew or contemporary photographs).

References: Osprey Combat Aircraft 13, Mosquito Photo-Reconnaissance Units of World War 2, Martin Bowman SAM Datafile 1, The De Havilland Mosquito. A Comprehensive Guide for the Modeller, Richard A. Franks

Aussie RAAF expert in his book of RAAF Camouflage & Markings says he has paint chips of both RAF PRU blue and RAAF Azure blue and they are the same colour, if that helps.

regards from downunder