RAF colours in North Africa

[sys]

Hello!
I have some questions:
- The RAF P-40's in North Africa had been paint in the Curtiss factory or in Britain/North Africa? Which colours did they wear: the standard RAF colours (Dark Earth/Mid Stone/Azure Blue) in British paints, or other similar US paints?
-The early 'K' versions (with 'dorsal fillet') had yellow stripes on the leading edge? If they had, what was the right position? (I'm interesting in the plane of Haupt-Fleisch, but any other plane is interesting for me.) That plane (DB o H) had british os US type pitot tube?
Thanks for your replies.

[P-40 Admin]

I don't have any specific answers for you, just some general answers.  P-40's for the RAF were painted in those colors at the factory, the factory didn't use specific colors specified by the USAAC or the RAF, they just had their paint supplier get it as close as possible.  They would throw masks over the aircraft which gave a hard paint separation line.  Aircraft was routinely painted in the field as well, so you just need to find out what paint scheme the aircraft were wearing at a particular point.

I haven't seen any pictures of P-40's with a yellow stripe on the front of the wings like Spitfires and Hurricanes used.

[sys]

Hi!
This photo disturbs me.
Sorry, I can't send the picture, but I give a link:
I think this is a factory paint plane, because the British didn't use the yellow stripe in the the MTO.
www.ww2incolor.com/britain/warhawk_and_pilots.html

[Mark Joyce]

Just to elaborate a little on DB-H:  It appears that, based on the photographs I've seen, Hauptfleisch flew at least two Kittyhawks coded DB-H.  The first appears to be a Mk. I (or Mk. Ia, I can't be certain from the photograph) and does not have the famous nose art of the leaping gazelle.  I believe the second, which had the artwork, was actually a MK.I with a dorsal fin and not a MK. III, although from a modeling standpoint they look the same.  I also believe that by this time all Kittyhawks had the straight, US style, pitot tube.

Actually, a lot of Kittyhawks in the MTO had yellow leading wing edges; some spanned the length of the wing while others only a portion of it.  I can't tell if DB-H did because of the angle of the photograph I have of it, but it appears that other No. 2 Sqn SAAF Kittyhawks did...at least later models.

HTH,

Mark

[Terry McGrady]

Hi SYS ,
          Some info for you .
  All P40 delivered to RAF were either in Equivalent Dupont paints ie Dark Green Dark Earth Sky(not RAF type Sky ) or from somewhere in the long fuselage K-10/15 series onwards in Olive Drab/ Neutral Grey
    They were repainted at RAF MU's.
  The A/c flown by Hauptfleish DB*H -the one with the fin fillet was indeed a Kittyhawk IA not a MKIII as so
often depicted . The serial number was EV421, not EW421 as depicted on decal sheets.
 2 SAAF didn't receive any MKIII Kittyhawks until June 43, by July they had gone as the Squadron converted to Spitfires
 HTH
  Cheers
     Terry McGrady