At the start of the 1940s the RIWAF had modernised and had largely moved onto monoplanes. The Spitfire, Hurricane and similar planes were entering more wide-spread service, the start of the 40s saw the Imperial Northern Air Force fighting the second half of the Third Snow War, which ended at the end of January 1940.
There was peace for a year and a half until mid 1941, when trouble flared up in Saqa again, a mercenary air force, on the pay roll of several former leaders of the 1933 Saqan Uprising, launced an attack against IDAF (Imperial Desert Air Force) bases in Saqa, the mercenaries were beaten, the traitorous rebel leaders were then killed when the RIWAF found their base and bombed it.
In mid 1942 a new aircraft marking set was adopted due to reports of friendly fire incidents in which the RAF roundel had been mistaken for the Hinomaru, whilst adoptng to the 1920 experimental roundel was considered, this roundel was rejected due to having a significant amount of red in it. Instead, what was adopted was the
Type 1942 Aircraft Markings set. This set was simply a modified Type 1937 set with the red removed from it. Two variants of the 1942 markings are the
Type 1942B Aircraft Markings set and the
Type 1937/42 Aircraft Markings set, this was the designation given to the same modification of the Type 1937B set.
The Type 1942B Aircraft Markings set.
In 1944 Wardland introduced a new aircraft marking set, which was based on the Type 1942B set, but was made to look like the late-war CSAAF/CSN Pacific Theatre roundel.
On the 25th May 1942 Japan, one of Wardie land's closer allies, attempted to launch an invasion, which both shocked and saddened the public of Wardland, who considered Japan one of their closest allies. The RIWAF launched heavy bombers, medium bombers, dive bombers and torpedo bombers against the invasion fleet, some bombers were shot down by AA fire.
During 1942-1945 the RIWAF took part in the Pacific War, in both the Pacific and in the South-East Asian theatres, the RIWAF received several different models of captured Japanese aircraft during the war, some of which went on to see active military service, such as in Korea, for example. Whilst the more obsolete models served in passive roles, such as training, such as the Mitsubishi Ki-21. Because Japanese uses a completely different writing system to Western languages Japanese language experts had to translate the instrument panels, typically a translation was stuck over the Japanese writing, though on occasion entire instrument panels were taken out and refitted with ones produced with English writing and imperial units, though this was less common.
During the second half of the 1940s the RIWAF was increasingly looking at jet aircraft, though many remained unconvinced, and propeller aircraft remained the most common until the 1960s. The RIWAF received its first jet in 1946, when it received some Gloster Meteors, this was soon followed by some Lockhead P-80A Shooting Stars.
In 1940 both the Jezik 1MB and Moscuvoy 1QB entered service, which were Ilyushin DB-3s and Tupolev SBs, respectively, that had been captured from Snow Land, they were named after the two towns of Jezik and Muscovy in Snow Land. There were two main variants of Jezik and Moscuvoy bombers, the Jezik 1MB.I, which was the Ilyushin DB-3, the Jezik 1MB.II, which was the Ilyushin DB-3F/Il-4 the Morscuvoy 1QB.I, which was the SB-2M-100A, which had Klimov M-100A radial engines, and the Moscuvoy 1QB.II, which was the SB-2M-103, and had Klimov M-103 inline engines. Both bombers served in the Saqan Mercenary War, and during the Pacific War. They were obsolete by this time, and often took casualties to Japanese fighters, following this the majority of the remaining Moscuvoy bombers were sold to Qara, who used them into the second half of the 1940s. They were also uses by the Republic of Telmansk Air Corps from 1943 to 1952.
Following obsolescence both bombers often served as training aircraft or as transports, a dedicated transport variant being the Moscuvoy 1C, which had its gun turrets removed, in the post-war period the Moscuvoy was often used as a transport in the colonies, where they were used as such into the 1960s, for this service they are particularly famous for flying in supplies for isolated communities in the colonies, a particularly well known user of the Moscuvoy 1C for this purpose was Imperial Qijati Air Freight, the largest air freight company in the Western Colonies.
A Moscuvoy 1QB.I cockpit photo
A Moscuvoy 1QB.I of the Imperial Home Air Force, ca. 1940
A Moscuvoy 1QB.I of the Imperial Desert Air Force, ca. 1941
A Moscuvoy 1QB.I of the Republic of Telmansk Air Corps, ca. 1948
In addition to the Tupolev SB Wardie land also made use of other aircraft captured from Snow Land, with example from mainly Polikarpov types, such as the Polikarpov I-15bis (
Snub 2F.II), Polikarpov I-153 (
Chaika 2F), Polikarpov I-16 Type 5 (
Fly 1F.I), Polikarpov I-16 Type 6 (
Fly 1F.II) and the Polikarpov R-1, the majority of these aircraft were given to Wardie land's allies, such as the Snowlandian Imperial Air Force and the Qaran Air Force, though the RIWAF made use of the Fly 1F.II as a night fighter until late 1942, when the last of them were passed to Wardie land's allies.
A Fly 1F.II night fighter cockpit
A Fly 1F.II night fighter, ca. 1941
In 1940 the RIWAF exhibited an interest in the Dewoitine D.520 and the Bloch MB.152. The RIWAF purchased a hundred of each, though only fifty of each were delivered after the Fall of France. The D.520 was designated the
Dordogne 1LF.I, they served in the Capital Islands and in the Western Colonies.
A pilot's eye view of the Dordogne 1LF.I cockpit
An early Dordogne 1LF.I shortly after being delivered, wearing the prototype paint scheme.
A Dordogne 1LF.I of the Imperial Desert Air Force, ca. 1941
At a very similar time the RIWAF expressed an interest in the Amiot 354 and Lioré et Olivier LeO.451 bombers, thirty of each were purchased. LeO.451s in Wardian service were designated the
Larktreesham 1MB.I. The Wardian examples were refitted with English language dials in the Imperial measurement system. Two variants included the experimental
Larktreesham 1HFB.I, a Heavy Fighter-Bomber variant with a solid nose containing six .5 calibre Browning M2s or four 20mm Hispano cannons (Larktreesham 1HFB.I and 1HFB.I*, respectively), and the
Larktreesham 1C.I, a dedicated transport variant which removed the bomb aimer's station and the gun turrets and replaced them with extra cargo space, the Larktreesham 1C.I served with both RIWAF Transport Command and private owners, especially after the military examples were sold off in the 1950s.
The first Larktreesham 1MB.I received by the RIWAF, tested by the XCAD in prototype markings, ca. August 1940
A Larktreesham 1MB.I of No. 940 (Bomber) Squadron RIWAF, based at RIWAF Gruntal, ca. October 1941
Also in 1940 Wardland purchased two examples of the Bf-110C-4, the aircraft had their guns replaced with more available standard issue ones, the machine guns were replaced with .5 M2 Brownings and the cannons were replaced with Hispano-Suiza HS.404s. They were designated the
Dragonfly 1HF.I.
A Dragonfly cockpit photo
One of the two Dragonfly prototypes operated by B Flight, No. 350 Squadron, Experimental and Captured Aircraft Division, ca. 1940
Also in 1940 the RIWAF purchased a batch of two hundred Fiat CR-42s and Reggiane Re-2000s, which were designated the
Goshawk 2LF.I and the
Falcon 1LF.I, respectively, which were re-equipped locally with Imperial system measurement gauges and English language dials. Both served in the Saqan Mercenary War, before being retasked with second-line combat roles, night fighting, and as advanced trainers in late 1941.
A Goshawk 2LF.I cockpit photo, featuring a pre-modification cockpit panel:
A Goshawk 2LF.I of an Imperial Home Air Force home defence flight, ca. 1943
Two Goshawk 2LF.Is of an unkown Imperial Night Fighter Corps flight, ca. mid 1942
Another Goshawk 2LF.I of an unidentified night fighter unit, ca. September 1942
A Falcon 1LF.I cockpit photo
A Falcon 1LF.I of the Imperial Home Air Force, 1941
A Falcon 1LF.I of the Imperial Desert Air Force, ca. 1941
In the early 1940s the 1930s passenger plane, the
Dragon Rapide entered service with the RIWAF, RIWAAC and RIWFAA as the
Dominie, the Dominie in RIWAF and RIWFAA service was called
Dominie 2CC(C) (denoting Communications and Transport), however in RIWAAC service the Dominie was known as the
Dominie 2AL, the Dominie was largely used for liaison and casualty evacuation.
The Dominie was developed into a transport bomber, and a recon plane. Dominie recon planes and transport bombers were frequently used in the colonies, and some are still in use.
A Dominie of A Flight, No. 1599 (T) Flight of RIWAF Transport Command, based at RIWAF Castle Jenner on South Island, ca. 1941
A Dominie of C Flight, No. 1666 (T) Flight of the Imperial Southern Air Force, RIWAF Transport Command, based at RIWAF Jalakata, ca. 1942
In 1941 Wardie land began received the Westland Lysander, famous for its short take-off and landing capabilities, the Lysander was exceptionally regarded and extremely popular amongst pilots in the colonial environments, such as the Pacific island colonies, where landing strips were off rough stretches of dirt, some Lysanders were fitted with bombs and used as ground attack aircraft.
In late 1941 Wardie land received the licence to produce Vickers Wellington bombers, the Wellingtons served primarily with the Imperial Independent Night Bomber Force and RIWAF Coastal Command, but also saw service with the Imperial Home Air Force and the Imperial Oriental Air Force in the day bomber role.
Around the same time Wardie land also purchased a licence to build Armstrong Whitworth Whitley bombers, Wardie land produced the Whitley Mk I as the
Whitley 1MB.I, the Whitley Mk V as the
Whitley 1MB.II and the Whitley Mk VII as the
Whitley 1ASW.I, the Whitley was mostly used by the Imperial Independent Night Bomber Force, but was also used by Coastal Command and as a day bomber in the colonies.
In 1940 the decision to buy the A6M Zero was reached, the
Zero 1F.I, as the A6M2 was named in Wardie land service, was both a carrier fighter for the RIWFAA and a land-based fighter for the RIWAF, the RIWFAA also used a seaplane variant. The RIWAF Zeroes were supplemented by another Japanese fighter design, the Ki-43
Oscar, in 1941. Some Zeroes were later captured during the Pacific War, especially during the latter part of it, when Japan was forced to fly them from land bases due to the lack of carriers. A few RIWAF Zeroes saw limited action in the Korean War, primarily in the fighter-bomber role, they also conducted strafing runs against light vehicles and airbases. Wardian Zeroes had their wing-mounted cannons replaced with Hispano-Suiza HS.404s, the standard aircraft cannon used by Wardland, and typically had their nose guns replaced with 0.303 Brownings, though the
Zero 1F.I* variant had these replaced with .5 M2 Browning machine guns for extra firepower.
A photo of a Zero cockpit
A RIWAF Zero 1F.I of the Imperial Home Air Force, ca. 1941, note camo and pre-war roundels
Throughout WW2 Wardie land captured some A6M2-N "Rufe" seaplanes, they were most often used by RIWAF Coastal Command, though some were also used by the Royal Imperial Wardie land Navy, in RIWAF service they based at Coastal Command installations or isolated seaplane bases, in Naval service they were deployed from naval land-based installations, but they were also deployed from seaplane carriers, this example was captured in 1944, note the unusual US-style roundels, in order to avoid confusion with the Japanese Hinomaru.
In 1941, Wardland purchased some Nakajima B5N2 "Kate" carrier bombers, the Kates were used by the both the Fleet Air Arm - who used them as both carrier aircraft and coastal bomber, and RIWAF Coastal Command, who used them in much of a similar manner to the coastal-based Fleet Air Arm ones.
The cockpit of the Kate 1TB.I
A torpedo-armed Kate 1TB.I of Coastal Command, ca. 1941
A Kate of the Imperial Desert Air Force, ca. 1941
Also in 1940 Wardie land purchased some Mitsubishi G4M1s, Wardie land liked the range and speed of the G4M, though the RIWAF crews didn't like the lack of armour or self-sealing fuel tanks, RIWAF crews began calling the G4M by its popular Allied nicknames - "Betty" and the "
One-Shot Lighter". Despite its cons the G4M remained in service, G4Ms torpedoed the landing ships that attempted to invade Wardie land, and bombed Japanese island bases, one positive of using the G4M was that the Japanese often did not realise that the G4M force was not Japanese until it was too late, on the flip side of the coin Wardie land G4Ms were occasionally attacked by friendly ground forces or fighters.
During the war several G4M2s were captured at bases in the Pacific and South-East Asia, the G4M2 had revised armament which meant that the defensive guns were more effective. Both G4M1s and G4M2s served in the Pacific War and, in limited numbers, in Korea. The G4M1 was designated
Betty 1MB.I, whilst the G4M2 was designated
Betty 1MB.IIA cockpit photo of a Betty bomber.
A
Betty 1MB.I of an unidentified Bomber Command unit, ca. 1944 - note the usage of
Type 1942B roundels.
In late 1941 Wardie land purchased 20 Nakajima Ki-43-Ia
Oscar fighters, these were designated
Oscar 1F.I, this was equipped with 2x 7.7mm (0.303) Type 89 machine guns, a copy of the Vickers Type E machine gun, and used a round almost identical to the 0.303 British round, Wardie land's most common round. Later, some Ki-43s were captured in South-East Asia, these were of three different variants, the Ki-43-Ic (designated
Oscar 1F.II), the Ki-43-IIa (designated
Oscar 1FB.I) and the Ki-43-IIb (designated
Oscar 1FB.II). A few of the captured
Oscars later served in Korea as fighter-bombers.
The Ki-43 was popular for its speed and manoeuvrability, as well as its light weight and easiness to fly, however it was criticised for its lack of armour or self-sealing fuel tanks, as was a common complaint about Japanese aircraft.
A photo of an early model Oscar's cockpit
An Oscar 1F.I of the Imperial Home Air Force, ca. late 1942
A photo of a late model Oscar's cockpit
An Oscar 1FB.II of No. 352 (Enemy Aircraft) Flight RIWAF, XCAD, ca. 1944
A Japanese plane captured in South-East Asia and put into service was the Kawasaki Ki-45, this main variant that was captured was the Ki-45-Kai-Ko, designated
Nick 1HFB.I, this was followed by the Ki-45-Kai-Hei, designated
Nick 1HF.II, of which a dozen were captured from a large supply of abandoned Ki-45s in Singapore in September 1945. Both variants of the Ki-45 saw limited action in the Korean War, primarily as a second-line bomber interceptor, though also serve as a frontline interceptor in less hostile regions, where interception by North Korean fighters was unlikely. A few also served as light ground-attack aircraft, used for strafing enemy troop formations and light vehicles. The Nick 1HFB.I was used as both a heavy fighter-bomber and bomber interceptor in the Home Islands/Pacific and the Western Colonies.
Two Nick 1HFB.I cockpit photos
A Nick 1HFB.I of the Imperial Home Air Force, ca. 1943
A Nick 1HFB.I of the Imperial Desert Air Force, ca. 1943
In 1943 Wardland captured some early model KI-61-I-Ko Hien ("Tony") fighters, these were shipped back to the Home Islands and tested by the Experimental and Captured Aircraft Divions (XCAD).
Two Tony cockpit photos taken by the XCAD
A
Tony 1FB.I (Ki-61-I-Ko) of the XCAD, ca. 1943
Kawasaki Ki-48, some Ki-48 light bombers were captured in South-East Asia, they served in WW2 and even in Korea in limited numbers, they served as trainers into the late 1950s.
In 1942 Wardie land received some Mosquito B Mk IVs as the
Mosquito 1MB.I, these were followed in late 1942 by the Mosquito FB Mk VI as the
Mosquito 1HFB.I. Owing to the issues facing Mosquitos in the Pacific, they only saw a short service life outside of the Northern Colonies, all Mosquito squadrons having being transferred to the Imperial Northern Air Force by mid-1944. Wardland preferred to use the Beaufighter in the Home Islands, as well as in the Southern and Oriental colonies, thanks to the survivability of its all-metal airframe in the Pacific climate.
A photo of a Mosquito 1HFB.I cockpit
A Mosquito 1HFB.I of the Imperial Home Air Force, ca. 1942
The Douglas Boston (A-20 Havoc) entered service in 1940 with the RIWAF, the first variant to enter service with the RIWAF was the
Boston Mk III (DB-7B), as the
Boston 1LB.I, this was followed by the
Boston Mk IIIA (A-20C), which entered service as the
Boston 1LB.I*. Following the British designation system, night-fighter variants were referred to as the
Havoc. Bostons acted as both level bombers and heavy torpedo bombers. Whilst all types could be used in the torpedo bomber role it was solid-nosed A-20Gs (
Boston 1LB.IIs) which often served as dedicated Boston torpedo bombers later in the war, there was a specialised torpedo bomber variant of the 1LB.II - the
Boston 1TB.IIDespite the Havocs being dedicated heavy fighters, there were cases of Bostons acting as fighters as well, such as during the attempted Japanese invasion of the Home Islands in May 1942, some Boston 1LB.I*s used their appreciable speed to hunt down Japanese bombers which were on their way to bomb Capital Bay following the expenditure of their ordnance, the Boston's four 0.303 Browning fixed forward-firing guns were found to be particularly successful against the Aichi D3As and Nakajima B5Ns.
A photo of a Boston cockpit
A Boston 1TB.I* of No. 290 (Coastal Bomber) Squadron of RIWAF Coastal Command during torpedo bomber training, ca. 1941
A Boston 1LB.I* of the Imperial Oriental Air Force, ca. 1943 - Note the elaborate camouflage scheme
A Boston 1LB.I* of the Imperial Desert Air Force, ca. 1943
In 1941 the Bristol Beaufighter Mk IF entered service as the
Beaufighter 1HNF.I, this was followed by the Beaufighter Mk VIF as the
Beaufighter 1HNF.II, next came the Beaufighter Mk VI (ITF) as the
Beaufighter 1HTF.I, after this came the Beaufighter TF Mk X as the
Beaufighter 1HTF.II, finally came the Beaufighter Mk 21 as the
Beaufighter 1HTF.III, the 1HTF.III also saw action as a fighter-bomber and a night fighter.
A cockpit photo of the Beaufighter
A prototype of the Beaufighter 1HTF.III, ca. early 1944
A Beaufighter 1HTF.III of the Imperial Home Air Force taking off to perform bombing practice, ca. mid 1944
A Beaufighter 1HTF.III of Imperial Coastal Command conducting torpedo bomber training, ca. 1944.
In mid 1941 the first examples of the Consolidated Liberator entered RIWAF service, these were 5 LB-30A/YB-24s, which were designated
Liberator 1HB.I, these pre-production Liberators were declared unfit for combat and were soon withdrawn from frontline combat roles, though they saw very limited action in the Saqan Mercenary War, they were either passed to RIWAF Transport Command to serve as long-range armed transports, the
Liberator 1C.I, or to Coastal Command, where they became a dedicated heavy anti-submarine aircraft, the
Liberator 1AS.I. The Liberator was less robust than the Fortress, but still rather well regarded by their crews. The B-24C was designated
Libertator 1HB.II, the B-24D was designated
Liberator 1HB.III, the C-87 derivative of the B-24D was designated
Liberator 1C.II.
Two photographs of a Liberator cockpit, the second one was taken in a night bomber
A rare colour photo of a Liberator 1HB.I.
A Liberator 1HB.III of RIWAF Coastal Command, ca. 1942
A Liberator 1HB.III of the Imperial Independent Night Bomber Force, ca. 1942
A Liberator 1HB.III named "
Lady Libby" of No. 39 (Bomber) Squadron RIWAF, based at RIWAF Clearing, ca. 1943
A Liberator 1HB.III named
"S" For "Strut" of No. 398 (Bomber) Squadron RIWAF, based at RIWAF Uluripuri, ca. 1943
In 1941 both the RIWAF and RIWFAA introduced the SBD Dauntless, the original model was the SBD-3, which was introduced as the
Dauntless 1DB.I, this was followed by the SBD-5 as the
Dauntless 1DB.II. Aside from being used as a dive bomber the Dauntless also saw usage as an anti-submarine aircraft and even as a fighter.
A Dauntless 1DB.I cockpit photo
A Dauntless 1DB.I of the RIWAF, ca. 1941
A Dauntless 1DB.II cockpit photo
A Dauntless 1DB.II of the Imperial Southern Air Force, ca. 1943
In 1944 the RIWAF purchased a 30 examples of the MC-205 fighter to evaluate them. They were mostly operated by the XCAD, though a few entered squadron service. They were referred to as the
Greyhound 1LF.I.
A Greyhound 1LF.I cockpit
A Greyhound 1LF.I of the Imperial Home Air Force, ca. 1944
The Fokker G.IB entered service as the
Reaper 1HF in 1940, the G.I was best remembered for having an armament of eight forward-firing machine guns in the nose, 1 in the rear turret, and an optional 880 lbs of bombs. When Holland was invaded by Germany in May 1940 the order was cancelled, as Holland took over the order in order to boost their own fighter defences, following the occupation Wardland's embassy in Germany asked to continue the order, Germany agreed, thus Wardland received the Reapears in mid-1940, and then produced locally-made copies of the design.
The Curtiss Hawk 81A-1 originally entered service in 1940 as the
Tomahawk 1LF.I, these were replaced in frontline service by the Tomahawk Mk IIA entered service in 1941 as the
Tomahawk 1LF.I*, the Tomahawk served in all of the different Air Forces, from the Northern Colonies in Winterland, to Selaspurbang in the Southern Colonies. The P-40E later entered service in 1943 as the
Tomahawk 1LF.II.
A cockpit photo of a Tomahawk 1LF.I*
A Tomahawk 1LF.I* of the Imperial Home Air Force, ca. 1941
A Tomahawk 1LF.I* of the Imperial Desert Air Force, ca. 1941
Entering service in 1940 was the Curtiss Hawk 75A-3 and A-4 as the
Mohawk 1LFB.I and
Mohawk 1LFB.II, respectively, the Mohawk was much liked by their pilots, Mohawks are famous for their role in stalling the Japanese aerial campaign during the Western Kiritaris Campaign of 1942, in which they fought a defensive action against the Japanese whilst being pushed back across the Western Kiritari archipelago.
Many squadrons based in the Southern and Eastern colonies which were using Buffaloes during the outbreak of the Pacific War had their aircraft replaced by Mohawks due to the Buffalo's ineffectiveness and its poor performance against its contemparies, a swap they were only too happy to receive, the poor combat record of the Buffalo in the Pacific, including the RIWAF squadrons unfortunate enough to be stuck with the Buffalo during the Japanese suprise attack of May 1942, proved to the RIWAF general staff that their decision to replace the Buffalo with better aircraft to be correct, the Buffaloes that remained were either scrapped, given to training squadrons, or palmed off to RIWAF and SLIAF squadrons in the Northern colonies, where they would later be slaughtered by Japanese fighters during the Winterland Campaign, the final nail in the coffin for the Buffalo in RIWAF combat service.
A Mohawk 1LFB.I cockpit
A Mohawk 1LFB.I of the Imperial Home Air Force, ca. 1942
In 1942 Wardland began receiving the B-25 Mitchell bomber, the original received variant was the B-25C, which entered service as the
Mitchell 1MB.I, this was followed by the B-25D as the
Mitchell 1MB.II, and the B-25J as the
Mitchell 1MB.III. Some Mitchells were converted into torpedo bombers, the
Mitchell 1TB.I.
A Mitchell cockpit photo
A Mitchell 1MB.III of the Imperial Home Air Force, ca. 1944
In 1943 the RIWAF purchased some P-51Bs, which entered service as the
Mustang 1LFB.I.
A Mustang 1LFB.I cockpit photo
An early Mustang 1LFB.I of an unidentified fighter training squadron, ca. 1944
In mid 1941 the RIWAF received the Bell P-400 Airacobra, as the
Airacobra 1LFB.I (this variant effectively being a P-39D with 0.303 Browning guns instead of 0.30 Brownings, as well as a 0.79 inch Hispano cannon firing through the propeller hub, rather than the 1.46 inch cannon), though the Airacobra had problems with high-altitude dogfighting, due to the lack of a supercharger, the Airacobra served well enough at low level, early first-generation Airacobras received by the RIWAF served in the Saqan Mercenary War, where they gave a rather good account for themselves, they also served in the Pacific and Far Eastern theatres in WW2, Wardie land also received the P-39N-1 as the
Aircobra 1LFB.II, as well as the P-39Q-1 and P-39Q-10 as the
Airacobra 1LFB.III and
Airacobra 1LFB.IV, respectively. The RIWAF was sufficiently impressed with the Airacobra to order Bell's improved model, the P-63 Kingcobra.
A pilot's-perspective photo of an Airacobra cockpit.
An early Airacobra 1LFB.I of the Imperial Home Air Force, ca. 1941.
An Airacobra 1LFB.I of the Imperial Southern Air Force, ca. 1942. Note the shark mouth nose art.
An Airacobra 1LFB.I of the Imperial Oriental Air Force, ca. 1943 (Note the unusual usage of pre-1942 markings)
In 1942 the RIWAF was supplied several hundred C-46 "Commando" transports, the
Commando 1C was very popular across the RIWAF for its ruggedness, and for being able to carry twice the amount of cargo as the Dakota, these qualities means that the Commando is a still a very popular transport aircraft, especially in the colonies, where rugged aircraft are much preferred over fragile technologically-advanced aircraft. A paratrooper variant of the Commando, the
Commando 1A.I, was also used by the RIWAF, the Commando 1A was invaluable for dropping paratroopers on both isolated islands and to serve as a forward force in order to capture the beaches targeted for landings ahead of the main landing force, the use of paratroopers to capture isolated islands and to make havoc for the enemy prior to the arrival of the main force was a large part of Wardie land's island-liberating tactics. Commandos were also supplied by Wardie land to the
Fuerza Aérea Qaraña.
A Commando 1C.I of ET 14 (Escuadrón de Transportes 14; Transport Squadron 14) of the Qaran Air Force, based at BA San Teresa, ca. 1949
Also in 1942 the Lightning became to enter service, the first model to enter service was the P-38F, which was designated the
Lightning 1FB.I, this was followed in 1943 by the P-38J as the
Lightning 1FB.II.
A Lightning cockpit photo
A Lightning 1FB.II of the Imperial Southern Air Force, ca. 1943
A Lightning 1FB.II of the Imperial Oriental Air Force, ca. 1943
A Lightning 1FB.II of the Imperial Desert Air Force, ca. 1943
Another Lightning 1FB.III of the Imperial Desert Air Force, ca. 1943
In early 1944, the RIWAF received some P-63As, which were designated the
Kingcobra 1LFB.I, later in 1944 the RIWAF received the P-63C-5, which was designated
Kingcobra 1LFB.II, a local variant, the
Kingcobra 1LFB.II*, had a 0.79 inch Hispano cannon installed in the propeller hub, rather than the 1.46 inch M4 Cannon. The Kingcobra was rather well liked by pilots. A local experimental variant was the
Sea Cobra 1LFB.I, this was a 1945 prototype for a carrier-borne Kingcobra, the experiment went no further than a couple of test flights, it was decided that the Sea Cobra was in no way better than the Seafire already in service, and the project was cancelled, the Sea Cobra later served with land-based No. 10 RIWFAA squadron until 1948. The Kingcobra also saw limited service in Korea, primarily in the ground attack role.
A Kingcobra cockpit photo
A Kingcobra 1LFB.II of the Imperial Home Air Force, ca. 1944
Another Kingcobra 1LFB.II of the Imperial Home Air Force, ca. 1944
Later in 1944 the Hawker Tempest, both the Mk II and Mk V, began to enter service as the
Tempest 1HFB.II and
Tempest 1HFB.I, respectively, the Tempest was much loved by pilots for its power, speed and handling characteristics, Tempests served into the early 1960s as fighter-bombers, some continue to serve as personal mounts of high-ranking air force personnel.
Two Tempest cockpit photos
One of the first Tempest Mk. Vs purchased by the RIWAF, ca. September, 1944. Note the prototype paint scheme and marks.
Two Tempest Mk. Vs of the Imperial Northern Air Forca, ca. 1945
Another plane entering service in 1941 was the Handley Page Halifax, which entered service in May 1941 as the
Halifax 1B, the first model to enter service was the Halifax Mk I, which entered service as the Halifax 1B.I, this was followed by the Mk II (Halifax 1B.II) and, in 1943, the Mk III (Halifax 1B.III), which introduced rectangular fins and a more aerodynamic Perspex nose, then came the Halifax Mk V (Halifax 1B.IV) and the Halifax GR.V (Halifax 1B.V) for RIWAF Coastal Command. There were numerous transport and specialised variants.
Some Halifax cargo conversions remain in use with civilian light cargo transport companies, some Halifaxes have also been converted to passenger planes and are used by smaller airlines in the Home Islands and the colonies.
Also entering service in 1941 was the Avro Manchester, a twin-engine medium bomber and predecessor to the Lancaster heavy bomber which entered service the following year, the Manchester entered service in early 1941, a few months after entering RAF service, the Manchester 1MB.I was equipped with Rolls-Royce Vulture engines, which were unreliable and underpowered, so the engines were upgraded to Napier Sabre or Bristol Centaurus engines for the Manchester 1MB.II, the Manchester 1MB.III was equipped with 4x Rolls-Royce Merlin engines, and was the first prototype for the Lancaster, the II and III models were far superior to the original variant, and were well-regarded by their crews, Manchesters served in all four corners of Wardie land and the Empire.
In early 1947 the RIWAF received some P-80A shooting stars as the
Shooting Star 1LF.I, the Shooting Star served in Korea, in both ground attack and aerial combat roles.
A Shooting Star cockpit photo
A RIWAF Shooting Star 1LF.I, ca. 1947
In 1947 the RIWAF negotiated the purchase of two Me-262A-1as from the USAF and the RAF, these two examples were copied and a production run began, these used 20mm Hispano cannons in place of the 30mm cannons of the original, for logistical reasons, the copies also used English language and Imperial unit cockpit panels and dials, this was followed by a run of copied Me-262A-2as, the Me-262A-1a copies were designated
Swallow 1F.I and the Me-262A-2a copies were designated
Swallow 1FB.I, both variants served in Korea.
A Swallow cockpit photo
A Swallow 1F.I of the RIWAF, ca. 1947