1-300 WWI USA Expeditionary Force Decals
These 1-300 WWI USA Expeditionary Force decals reproduce the distinctive red, blue, and white concentric roundel carried by American aircraft operating on the Western Front during the final year of World War I. The marking used a white center surrounded by blue and red rings, giving U.S. aircraft a national insignia more closely aligned with the roundel-style markings used by the other Allied air forces in Europe.
Decal Information
The sheet includes WWI USA Expeditionary Force markings suitable for use on 1-300 scale aircraft miniatures.
They are printed on clear-background waterslide decal paper. They need to be individually cut out. Apply over a properly prepared and gloss-coated model surface using normal waterslide-decal techniques.
Key Historical Details
Region / Nation: USA Service: United States Military Aviation Time Period: World War I Primary Marking: Aircraft Identification Markings Scale: 1-300 Application: Historically appropriate aircraft and aviation subjects
Historical Information
The United States originally entered the war using a white star with a red center disk on a blue circular field. In February 1918, however, American aviation forces in Europe adopted the tricolor roundel to reduce the chance of confusion with enemy markings and to conform more closely with Allied identification practices.
The new roundel was used by the Air Service of the American Expeditionary Forces during the intense final campaigns of 1918. American pursuit, observation, and bombardment units operated largely with French- and British-designed aircraft while rapidly expanding in strength and experience.
Representative aircraft carrying U.S. Expeditionary Force markings included the SPAD XIII, Nieuport 28, de Havilland DH-4, Salmson 2A2, and Breguet 14. Marking proportions and placement could vary according to aircraft type, manufacturer, and field application.
Following the Armistice, the roundel remained in use only briefly. In 1919, U.S. military aviation returned to the familiar star-based national insignia, making the 1918 tricolor roundel a distinctive marking for American aircraft of the closing months of World War I.
