Hataka Hobby HTK-AS97 Modern Royal Air Force paint set vol.5

Since the early 1950s until the end of the Cold War the RAF operated a fleet of "nuclear delivery aircraft" - high altitude, high speed bombers capable of carrying nuclear weapons deep into enemy territory. Commonly known as the "V-bombers" they included the Vickers Valiant (introduced in 1954, the first to drop a nuclear bomb), the Handley Page Victor (introduced in 1957) and the Avro Vulcan (introduced in the same year). Most of the early days service saw the Valiant wear an overall aluminium livery; soon (1957) it was replaced by a so-called "anti-flash white" paint (gloss bright white when freshly applied, weathering quickly towards a very light pearl grey). A change of tactics to low-level penetration in 1964, led to gradual application of camouflage to the whole V-bomber fleet.
HTK-AS97 include standard colours of RAF V-bombers since the 1950s.

The sets contain:

• HTK-A003 – Silver - Overall colour of the RAF "nuclear delivery fleet" in the early / testing period. Also used on Vickers Valiants during Suez Crisis in 1956

• HTK-A322 – RAF Anti-Flash White – Since 1957 the overall colour of the nuclear delivery fleet (also of the TSR2 prototypes). Later on lower sufraces of camouflaged planes

• HTK-A141 – BS Medium Sea Grey – BS381C:637, used since the mid-1960s on upper surfaces in low level strike scheme of the V-bombers and in wraparound camo of Vulcan

• HTK-A143 – BS Dark Green – BS381C:641, used since the mid-1960s on upper surfaces in low level strike scheme of the V-bombers and in wraparound camo of Vulcan

• HTK-A217 – BS Light Aircraft Grey - BS381C:627, used since mid-1960s on the lower surfaces in low level strike scheme of the V-bombers and of the Victor tankers (in Hemp)

• HTK-A144 – BS Dark Sea Grey - BS381C:638, used on the lower surfaces of RAF Avro Vulcan during Operation "Black Buck" (during the Falklands / Malvinas conflict)

• HTK-A262 – BS Camouflage Beige - BS381C:389, also known as "Hemp", used in the 1980s/90s on upper surfaces of air-to-air refuelling Handley Page Victors (over LAG)

• HTK-A100 – Jet Black / Night - Exact match with BS381C:642, standard colour of anti-glare panels on various aircraft, including the RAF V-bombers fleet