Reviewed by Steven "Modeldad" Eisenman

HyperScale is proudly sponsored by Squadron.com

The de Havilland Mosquito is one of my favorite aircraft and holds great appeal for many modelers. But one of the problems of modeling this aircraft is the limited number of camouflage schemes that can be applied. With this new release from Scale Aircraft Modeling as part of their Combat Colours series, modelers and those interested in camouflage development can get new insights into the various schemes with which the RAF experimented.

Some of the various schemes brought to our attention are quite interesting and would make for a very different Mosquito model: PR schemes in Olive Gray, Medium Sea Gray and Sky Blue or Sky Gray, Dark Slate Gray and Sky Blue; bomber schemes in Dark Green, Dark Earth and Azure Blue; and finally a “Highball” equipped B IV (Special) serving in the Far east in Dark Green, Medium Sea Gray and Azure Blue with a four-bladed prop and an arrester hook for carrier landings. Paul Lucas, the author of this monograph, provides evidence of all these schemes. The evidence ranges from eyewitness accounts to RAF documentation, and is quite persuasive. Of course, acceptance of the proof presented rests with the reader. I for one may be willing to accept even the weakest of documentation merely to do one of these interesting experimental schemes.

Paul does describe the more traditional making and color schemes and discusses the variation within them, such as the shifting demarcation line on Mossies with black undersides. He also discusses and raises a number of questions about Canadian produced Mosquitos - did they have the ANA colors applied? Finally, the red and red striped tails, great looking and prevented PR Mossies from being shot down by P-51s.