FAA (FALKLANDS/MALVINAS) 1970S-1990S

Machines of the South Atlantic in a desert and green pattern

The Argentine Air Force entered the 1970s with equipment carrying camouflage derived from the American pattern for Southeast Asia. A dark sand brown, a forest green and a second, cooler green covered the upper surfaces, while the undersides stayed in a light gray. Machines flew over the South Atlantic in this combination twenty years later still.

The four shades correspond to the standards FS 30219, FS 34079, FS 34102 and FS 36622. You will use them on the A-4 Skyhawk attack aircraft, on the twin engine turboprop IA-58 Pucará of domestic manufacture, on the Mirage and Dagger fighters and on the Canberra bomber, that is on practically the whole list of types committed in 1982.

The package is interesting for builders outside the South American subject as well. A number of other users of American equipment carried the same tones, so the bottles will not be left standing unused on a shelf after a single model.

Inside there are acrylic paints from a line focused on fidelity to the tones of the period, each in a ten milliliter bottle. They thin with water as well as with the company product and are built above all for an airbrush. Once dry they stay matte, which on aircraft operated in a harsh coastal climate matches reality.

For the build it is useful to know that these machines took off from extensive mainland airfields far from their target and carried conspicuous drop tanks and external stores. That has an effect on the look of the camouflage: the surfaces above the wing tend to be faded by strong sun, whereas the underside stays considerably cleaner and more even. The difference between the upper and lower part is worth indicating on a model, otherwise the finish looks too new.