Just arrived

[Vincent Blackburn]

Hello there folks

I have just joined this great web site after watching from the sidelines for many years.

Im just about to start the new Macchi MC.200 Saetta from Italeri.

Looking forward to some feedback.

Regards Vince

[Editor]

Welcome aboard Vince!

I look forward to following along on your Italeri 1/32 Macchi C.200 build.

[Vincent Blackburn]

I hope to do this one

[Editor]

A photo of C.200s belonging to 372a Sq. 153 Gr. CT, 54o Stormo. This is an interesting photo. I'm assuming you're modeling either 372-2 or 372-7. ADI 8 says the photo was taken sometime 1940-1941. The dark yellow nose-band however indicates that the photo was probably taken at least from April 1941. 372a Sq operated from Brindisi (the heel of Italy) at the start of the Greek campaign and together with the whole Gruppo used 38 MC.200s and some CR.42s during the short Yugoslavia campaign that began on April 06 1941, the Gruppo then moved to North Africa starting in late April - the photo was most probably taken at Castelbenito, Tripolitania in the Spring-Summer 1941. 372-6, 372-2 are Breda built machines and probably 372-7 was too. The Serie Mimetica (i.e. pre-Tavola X colors) apply here. 372-6 shows the three tone pattern (a yellow base and green and brown) while 372-2 and 372-7 appear to be in the dense two tone pattern (two greens) but more probably the same (and more common after Jan 1941) three tone pattern: See

Stefano's article on this subject.

Finally the yellow band on the nose of these aircraft is the dark tone type, see Stefano's Vito Charts on this topic:
search in the link below: "Chip (27) and COLORE 7" - FS.33538.

Vito Charts - Stefano Lazzaro

[Vincent Blackburn]

Wow thanks for the information it would be cool if 372-6 had a yellow nose

I was going by the information given by Italeri

[Editor]

Yellow markings were applied from April 1941 - Nov 1941 (when the Germans appeared in the area), see the link below (read: Yellow cowls):
Stormo Color Guide - Dircetives

Examples of the light and dark colored yellow cowls can be seen in Img. 30 in Stefano’s VitoCharts (scroll down the article):
Stefano Lazzaro - Vito Charts

The image you posted here is cutoff on the right, a wider image of the one you posted (the same photo with ground crew working on 372-2) is in ADI# 8 and shows another C.200 just ahead of the SM.82 with the light colored yellow engine cowl. This squadron was operational at the time the photo was taken so it's unlikely 372-6 wasn’t marked like the others or if it was it was, only briefly. I would not have chosen 372-6 as a subject from this photo unless Italeri have another complete photo of this plane - 372-2 and 372-7 were better candidates. Another note regarding this photo is behind the two hangars appear to be mountain ranges and it is for this reason I don’t think the photo was taken at Brindisi because mountains are not visible from Brindisi, although the ADI photo looks a little different in this respect; regardless from about April 1941 and even earlier in some cases, RA planes began being painted with yellow noses to avoid friendly fire - primarily from German planes that now operated in the same airspace. Another note is the blue trim around the unit badge "Asso di Bastoni" does not look like light-blue and neither does the stenciling on the fin (black) - in orthochromatic film blue and green colors appear in lighter tones. For example compare the outline of the unit badge on 372-2 (light blue) and on 372-7 (the same as 372-6).

Also check the wing markings from Stefano's article for accuracy:
C.200 - Wing insignia

One final note, from the photo above it's clear the greens and browns on 372-6 are more dense than the Italeri profile suggests, giving a darker impression of the plane.

I hope this helps.

[Vincent Blackburn]

Thank you very much
That's very helpful