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Low Level Raider Building Tamiya's Outstanding Mosquito FB VI 1/48th Scale
Kit: Tamiya TM61062 Mosquito FB Mk VI/NF Mk II

Accessories: True Details TD48489 Mosquito FB Mk VI Cockpit

Paint: Tamiya (TM) Gunze Sangyo (MAH)

Decals: AeroMaster AN48427 'Mosquito Collection Part 3 		References: Mosquito in Action, Part 2, SS1139, squadron/signal publications, 1993
Mosquito Bomber/Fighter-Bomber Units of World War 2, 1942-45, OS5004, Osprey Publishing Ltd., 1997
The De Havilland Mosquito: A Comprehensive Guide for the Modeller, SA6509, SAM Publications, 1998 		Colors: TM81320 Medium Grey
TM81001 Black
TM81019 Smoke
MAH012 Flat Black
MAH073 Dark Green
MAH319 Light Green
MAH084 Mahogany
History:
By the first flight of the Mosquito prototype (W4064) in 1940, the Royal Air Force knew it had a winner ­ a little wooden twin-Merlin-powered bomber with the performance of a fighter. The majority of the first order for the Mosquito was changed from bombers to night fighters. Soon after the introduction of the Mosquito NF II, these aircraft were used on intruder missions over occupied Europe. The idea of a dedicated fighter-bomber led to the creation of the Mosquito FB Mk VI, the most-produced version of this aircraft. The FB VI, with the 'universal wing,' first entered operations in the summer of 1943. With 2TAF:
The Mosquito first found fame with the series of low-level daylight raids led by Wing Commander Hughie Edwards with 105 and 139 Squadrons, the first units to take the Mosquito B Mk IV into combat. Their raids against Gestapo headquarters became the stuff of legend. Indeed, what could be more dramatic than flyers hurtling at rooftop height across Europe, their only defense being their high speed and the penalty of a moment's inattention was becoming a fireball in the European countryside? Their objective was saving men and women brave enough to confront the Nazi evil to free their countries. Just prior to the introduction of the FB VI in 1943, 105 and 139 Squadrons were absorbed into Bomber Command's pathfinder force, 2 Group. This group became the basis of Second Tactical Air Force (2TAF) in July of 1943, with the objective of supporting the invasion of Northwestern Europe. The unit's commander, the legendary Air Vice Marshal Basil Embry, moved heaven and earth to re-equip 21, 464 (Royal Australian Air Force), and 487 (Royal New Zealand Air Force) squadrons ­ then flying the truly wretched Lockheed Ventura ­ with the new Mosquito FB VI fighter-bomber variant. The three squadrons would be joined in December by 613 'City of Manchester,' 305 (Polish), and 107 squadrons. It was these Mosquitos which would become the real nemesis of the Gestapo in the months leading up to and following the invasion. The first of these famous missions was the Amiens Prison raid on 18 February 1944, in which 12 FB VIs from 464 and 487 Squadrons breached the walls of the prison exactly at noon while the guards sat down to lunch. In the confusion, 255 of the 700 prisoners ­ 90 of whom were scheduled for execution the next day ­ escaped. The Germans later recaptured 187 of the escapees and guards killed 37 other while attempting to escape. The raid also killed 50 prison guards. The RAF lost one of its best leaders when Group Captain Peter Pickard ­ who wasn't required to be there, but who led the mission because of the appalling weather it was flown in ­ was shot down and killed with his navigator by a Fw 190 of I/JG26. The Amiens raid was followed by the raid on the Kleizkamp Art Gallery in The Hague, the Netherlands on 11 April 1944. This gallery was used to house the Dutch Central Population Registry along with duplicates of all legally issued Dutch identity papers. Wg Cdr Bob Bateson led the raid, in which the building and the majority of the identity papers were destroyed; 61 nearby civilians were killed and 24 seriously injured.

The Mosquitos next went to Denmark's Aarhus University, which housed the Gestapo Headquarters for the whole of the Jutland Peninsula. The attack force consisted of 25 FB VIs from 21, 464, and 487 squadrons, escorted by eight Mustang IIIs of 315 Squadron. Battle of Britain Hurricane ace Grp Cpt Peter Wykeham-Barnes, who had taken the first Mosquito unit overseas to Malta in 1943, led the raiders. Inside one of the Gestapo buildings, Danish Pastor Peter Sandbak had survived 39 continuous hours of interrogation and expected to die in the next session. When the bombs fell, the Gestapo interrogator fled in terror, followed by his assistants. They went out the door and turned right, while Sandbak turned left. The Gestapo men all died in the explosion of the bomb which destroyed the building, while Sandbak escaped through the hole blown in a wall. Among the 175 Germans killed by the Mosquitos was "Kriminal rat" Schwitsgiebel, head of the Gestapo in Jutland. The most famous of all of these raids was OPERATION CARTHAGE, flown to Copenhagen on 21 March 1945. By this point, the Gestapo knew they were in 2 Group's sights; they installed cells in the top story of Shellhaus, which they were using for their headquarters, and placed 26 resistance and political prisoners there. The Danish Resistance informed the RAF the prisoners preferred to be killed by RAF bombs than shot by the Gestapo. The force of 18 Mosquitos were again led by Wg Cdr Bateson and was escorted by 28 Mustangs. Air Vice Marshal Basil Embry flew the mission, like he had on several other important Mosquito attacks, acting the role of Bateson's element leader. While they roared over the rooftops of Copenhagen, one Mosquito struck a light pole, reared up and crashed. Bateson's five aircraft and the six Mosquitos following his successfully put their bombs into Shellhaus, destroying the Gestapo records and allowing 18 of the 26 prisoners to escape. The attack killed 26 Nazis and 30 Danish collaborators. Unfortunately, the Mosquito which crashed did so close to the Jeanne d'Arc School. The last flight of six Mosquitos, approaching from a different direction than the previous 12, became confused at the two smoke palls over the city and five of the six Mosquitos bombed the school. Inside the school during the attack were 482 children and adults; 86 children and 16 adults were killed, while 67 children and 35 adults were wounded. Four Mosquitos and nine aircrew perished in the raid. Modeling the 'Mossie':
If the Mosquito had flown only these missions during its entire career, it would be a legendary aircraft. I like recreations of aircraft flown either by famous pilots or on famous missions in my model collection. Thus, I was most happy AeroMaster has one of the participating 'Mossies' on their available decal sheets. 484 (RAAF) Squadron's FB VI 'S- Sugar,' HR352 ­ one of the attackers at Aarhus University and Shellhaus ­ is found on 'Mosquito Raiders Part III.' It also helped I had just received an example of the new True Details Mosquito FB VI cockpit.
The author hand-painted the canopy frames from the inside before installing the canopy onto the model. Dry brushed light brown paints were used to 'muddy' the wheels. The cockpit access hatch was installed during final assembly. Oil and exhaust stains on the upper wings were added using a mix of rubbing alcohol, Gloss Black, and semi-gloss Mahogany. Smoke paint, lightly applied on top of the staining, completed the effect.

Construction:
The Tamiya Mosquito is one of the easiest-assembled models ever created. All a modeler needs to do is follow the instructions. Modelers complained at first about how the bomb bay fuel tanks in the fighter-bomber kit are for the bomber version. With the breeches of the four 20mm cannon blanking-off the forward bomb bay, this fact is not easily observable once the model is complete. The only other complaint anyone has ever really had against the new Tamiya kits of the past seven to eight years is against the cockpits; they could be more highly detailed. The True Details cockpit solves this. With interior detail sanded off of the plastic kit parts, the TD cockpit slips right in with no problem. The clean resin castings provide all the detail a modeler could want. I spent half the construction time on this kit painting and assembling the cockpit, an activity which was worth every second when the kit was finally completed. With regard to the resin cockpit for the fighter-bomber version, the primary visual difference between this and the kit-supplied cockpit is the inner walls provided by True Details, including the electrical cables which snaked around the sides of the cockpit. The seatbelts are molded on to each seat and looked good when painted and detailed. When complete and assembled, the canopy is clear, and after it is dipped in Future floor wax the cockpit interior is easily seen. Painting:
The cockpit was painted Light Green. For the FB VI fighter-bomber, I did the standard scheme of disruptive Dark Green upper pattern over overall Medium Sea Grey. I shot the aircraft overall Medium Grey, which is perfect for World War II Medium Sea Grey. I then created the camouflage pattern with drafting tape, running thread 1/16" in from the edge to lift it and allow a slight 'scale overspray' without any paint buildup which happens when the tape is directly on the surface. I then sprayed Dark Green on the upper surfaces and painted the propellers Flat Black. Decals:
Following the decal placement guides in the AeroMaster sheets, I applied the decals. (The decal placement guides are all the AeroMaster profiles should be used for, since these are not strictly accurate drawings of a particular sub-type.) I used the kit decals for the stenciling and followed the kit's decal guide for placement. Weathering:
Once all the decals were dry and the gloss and final flat coats had been applied to protect the decals, I began weathering. The Mosquito was made of wood and operated in northern Europe, where they were highly unlikely to become sun-faded. Thus, the now popular 'shadow shading' of camouflage might result in an inaccurate look; however, leaving each aircraft in 'solid' color doesn't look great, either. The solution to this is weathering. When you look at photos of Mosquitos, you see a lot of oil and exhaust smear on the cowlings and lower wings. Additionally, there is coolant smear on the upper wing surfaces aft of the radiators, especially right after a mission where they have flown at low level at maximum revs. This is the look I was going for ­ just after the end of a mission.
Oil and coolant smears are best applied by brush. I make a wash which is 90 percent rubbing alcohol, with the paint a 50-50 mix of Gloss Black and semi-gloss Mahogany, which gives a sort-of-glossy finish once it dries. Look at the panel lines and apply the oil stains to represent oil which has dripped due to gravity when the airplane is on the ground and oil which is blown back into the slipstream during flight. Don't do a lot; your aircrew won't want to fly in an aircraft whose engines are badly maintained! This should also extend on the lower wing between the engine nacelle and fuselage and outboard of the engine on the outer wing. On the upper surface, do this behind the radiators on the inner wing. Again, just enough wash to be seen discoloring the surface. I then apply a light coat of Smoke over the exhaust area to cover any excessive dryness brought on by the use of alcohol for a thinner and to provide a slightly glossy look, just right for oil and exhaust stains. Let this dry and it will have a different finish than the paint scheme, which will allow it to stand out and look accurate. Mosquitos primarily operated from grass strips, so I 'muddied' the wheels. I used different shades of light browns, and dry-brushed these on while I turned the wheel, which was being held on a craft knife by a #11 blade. I also did a bit of 'mud spray' on the inner wheel well doors and rear of the wheel wells, and over the extreme tail aft of the tailwheel. The 'Mossie' looked much better after it was 'dirtied up.' Final Assembly:
There is a big problem with the Mosquito canopy, which is not all the frames on it were on the outside. Study the photos in the SAMI book and you will see this. The rear stiffeners, other than on the centerline, were all inside and were painted British Interior Green, which can be seen from the outside. My solution is to hand-paint from the interior (I have a steady hand and a very fine-tipped brush). I also hand-painted the exterior stiffeners, first in British Interior Green and then in the appropriate camouflage color. This is a lot easier than masking ­ or at least it is to me. An alternative would be to use one of the new frame sets (TDA1052 Fast Frames for Tamiya Mosquito FB VI) and leave the interior braces alone, since they were plastic and could have been left unpainted on the original. I attached the Plexiglas using a fine-tipped brush and Pro-Weld, and then attached the wingtip lights the same way. The individual landing gears were assembled and fitted in the wheel wells, and gear doors attached. Bomb bay doors were also attached at this time, along with the cockpit access hatch. The FB VI did not have the standard antenna mast and wiring and I made the whip antennas from the high-E guitar string I use for rigging biplanes. Overall:
To me, the Mosquito is one of the most beautiful airplanes ever made and it is even more apparent when you are recreating it from a kit with the accuracy of Tamiya. Tom Cleaver