South African Air Force paint set vol. 1

The South African Air Force in six shades

The selection aims at the aircraft that served over the south of Africa from the sixties to the end of the Cold War. The Mirage III, Sabre Mk.6, Impala and the heavy Buccaneers went through two different camouflage patterns during that time and the six bottles cover both.

The tone BS Deep Buff to the standard BS381C:360, nicknamed Kalahari Sand, covered the upper surfaces in the oldest pattern. It is followed by BS Olive Drab (BS381C:298), which from 1975 adorned most airframes in the early and middle period. The lower surfaces received BS Light Admiralty Grey (BS381C:697), on the Mirage III and the Impala just as on the later Mirage F1 and Impala Mk II.

The middle stage is completed by BS Dark Earth (BS381C:450) for the upper surfaces of most aircraft including the helicopter fleet. The last pair belongs to the naval line: BS Dark Sea Grey (BS381C:638), known as Mirage Grey, covered the upper surfaces of the Buccaneers, while BS PRU Blue (BS381C:636) with the nickname PE Blue appeared on the Canberras and on the undersides of the Buccaneers. The two tones also met in the striking diamond pattern on the Mirage F1.

What to keep in mind during the build

The range is put together so that a whole scheme including the lower surfaces comes out of one box, and a separate bottle therefore does not have to be bought. The shades with the BS prefix match the British standard, because South African equipment followed British models even after the change to French machines. The earth pair comes into its own on wheeled equipment in the same theater as well, if you are building a whole scene and not just the airframe alone.