1:48 US National Insignia 1919-1942

The star with a red center, the insignia of interwar America

The insignia the sheet covers accompanied American military aircraft for over two decades. It was made up of a blue disc with a white five-pointed star and, in the middle of it, a red dot. It was introduced in August 1919 and lasted until May 1942, so it was carried by machines from the fabric biplanes of the 1920s through all-metal monoplanes with fixed landing gear to the first modern fighters and bombers that were entering service on the threshold of the war.

The end was brought by the fighting in the Pacific. At a distance the red center merged with the Japanese red disc, and in tense situations fractions of a second decided, so in May 1942 it was ordered painted over. From that it follows that models of machines of the first months of the war have the insignia in both forms, and the date on a photograph decides which is the right one.

The sizes on the sheet

The sheet offers the insignia in nine diameters, specifically 20, 24, 30, 35, 40, 45, 50, 55 and 60 inches in reality. The range is chosen so as to cover both the small fuselage of a trainer and the large areas of multi-engine types.

The smallest diameters belong on the fuselage of light types, the largest on the lower wing surfaces of bigger aircraft, where the insignia was to ensure recognition from the ground as well as from altitude.

A practical note

Large diameters are harder to apply than small ones, because a bubble easily stays under an extensive film. It works to let more water under the insignia, settle it in the middle of the area and press the air out from the center toward the edges.