{"id":1598716,"date":"2024-06-13T18:03:03","date_gmt":"2024-06-13T16:03:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/armahobbynews.pl\/?p=1598716"},"modified":"2024-06-24T08:55:39","modified_gmt":"2024-06-24T06:55:39","slug":"the-four-citizenships-of-z2585-model-70045","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/armahobbynews.pl\/en\/blog\/2024\/06\/13\/the-four-citizenships-of-z2585-model-70045\/","title":{"rendered":"The Four Citizenships of Z2585"},"content":{"rendered":"

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At first glance, Hurricane Mk IIa Z2585 does not stand out particularly from the seven different paint schemes available in the new \u201cEastern Front\u201d kit. What makes it utterly unique is only revealed upon a closer inspection of the aircraft’s history. For apart from Z2585, how many fighters distinguished themselves by serving with four (!) different Air Forces during the war? A remarkable achievement, indeed, but by no means the only fact that makes this aircraft most interesting.<\/p>\n

For England!<\/h2>\n

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Z2585 was built at Hawker\u2019s mother factory in Kingston in February 1941, and towards the end of the month was sent to No. 56 Squadron RAF stationed at North Weald. The fighter was first mentioned in the documents of the unit\u2019s A Flight on 25 February 1941, when Sgt Peter Robinson took it on a flyby. The first weeks of service were filled with training flights, patrols as convoy cover, and \u201cX-Raids\u201d \u2013 flights to intercept radar-detected, unrecognized aircraft. On 16 April, Sgt George Hoyle, flying on Z2585, and P\/O Thomas Guest, on Z2405, intercepted and shot up a Bf 110 during an X-Raid. Having expended their ammunition, they began to observe the German aircraft, which was now flying low over the water and billowing white smoke from both engines. However, they did not see it crash into the sea, and so only reported a \u201cprobable\u201d kill.<\/p>\n

New Uniforms<\/h2>\n

What is most interesting from a model-maker\u2019s point of view, as it allows us to recreate the appearance of Z2585, began the following month, when No. 56 Squadron RAF commenced trials with a new camouflage that was more suited to offensive tasks. Yes, our Z2585 was also unique because of its non-standard colour set, which was the result of experiments conducted by the Air Fighting Development Unit (AFDU) at Duxford. We will describe the details of these tests and their results in another article, which will be published soon.<\/p>\n

For Our Freedom and Yours!<\/h2>\n

In the last decade of June 1941, the aircraft, still wearing an experimental paint scheme, was transferred to No. 316 (Polish) Squadron RAF, where it was assigned the code letters SZ-X. One of the more important actions in which it participated was Operation Sunrise, launched on 24 July 1941 with the objective of eliminating the battleship \u201cGneisenau\u201d and cruiser \u201cPrinz Eugen\u201d, both located in Brest, and the battleship \u201cScharnhorst\u201d, which was in the harbour of La Pallice on the west coast of France. The Polish pilots, who flew out to meet the Hampden bombers of Nos 44 and 144 Squadrons RAF returning from Brest, most probably clashed with Erg\u00e4nzungsgruppe JG53, which lost one Bf 109E-7. The victory was credited to S\/Ldr Julius Frey and F\/O Aleksander Gabszewicz, while the latter also reported damaging a second German fighter. Also involved in the battle was Z2585, piloted by Sgt Pawe\u0142 Gallus. The Polish fighter pilots broke up the Messerschmitt attacks, and the Hampdens reached England without loss.<\/p>\n

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