1-600 WWII RAF Type B Roundels Decals
These 1-600 WWII RAF Type B Roundels Decals provide red-and-blue type b roundels for 1-600 scale aircraft miniatures representing Royal Air Force. The subject covers Interwar / World War II / early postwar; select the marking combination appropriate to the aircraft being modelled.
Decal Information
The sheet provides WWII RAF Type B Roundels markings for 1-600 scale aircraft miniatures.
The red-center to blue-field diameter ratio is 2:5.
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: United Kingdom Service: Royal Air Force Time Period: Interwar / World War II / early postwar Primary Marking: Red-and-blue Type B roundels Scale: 1-600
Historical Information
The Type B roundel consisted of a red center surrounded by a dark blue outer field, traditionally described in a 2:5 red-to-blue diameter ratio. Its origins predated World War II: a red-and-blue form was used on some British night-flying aircraft during the First World War and later became associated with RAF night bombers finished in dark NIVO camouflage during the interwar period.
As the RAF returned to widespread camouflage during the late 1930s, the Type B became useful as a reduced-visibility national marking. During the 1938 rearmament and camouflage transition it appeared on camouflaged aircraft in several positions, although fuselage markings increasingly changed to more conspicuous forms such as the yellow-bordered Type A-1 as wartime identification requirements evolved.
During World War II, the Type B became especially characteristic of upper-wing surfaces. Removing the white ring reduced the contrast of the marking when viewed from above while still retaining the RAF's red-and-blue national identification colors. This combination made the marking particularly well suited to the dark green, dark earth, and later grey-green camouflage schemes carried by operational RAF aircraft.
Type B upper-wing roundels remained in widespread service even after the introduction of the Type C and C.1 family in 1942. They could therefore be seen on RAF aircraft through much of the war and continued on the upper surfaces of many British aircraft into the immediate postwar period.
The marking was also used in specialized applications. Photo-reconnaissance aircraft finished in overall PRU Blue, including reconnaissance Spitfires, could carry Type B roundels on the fuselage and upper wings, and similar low-visibility red-and-blue markings appeared on some high-altitude camouflage schemes later in the war.
