The Little World

You might wonder a bit at the presence of a Bell P-39 Airacobra with red stars in a white circle appearing at an Alberta RCAF station in the 1940’s. The explanation is simple – the Northwest Staging Route flowed right through RCAF WET DOG as soon as Lend-lease was established and there were enough aircraft to send from the USA to the Soviet Union.

They were completed and in many cases painted for the USSR at the American aircraft plants and then sent to Great Falls, Montana. From there it was a flight route up through Calgary, Wet Dog, Edmonton, Dawson Creek, and further north to Ladd AFB in Alaska. The Soviets sent officers and pilots to Ladd to take them further on to bases in the Soviet Union – and they had a system of sending pilot groups who knew one particular route to their own separate bases. They seem to have been led by navigation ships – often a B-25 – and accompanied at the rear by Douglas Havoc attack planes to assist the stragglers. I suspect the Havocs were to assist the flyers should they decide to peel off and head back for Edmonton. The assistance would have been a hail of bullets…but then that’s the USSR for you.

The planes here are fresh – when they get to the USSR the white and red transport roundels might be overpainted with other VVS insignia and the US serial numbering on the tail taken off, Then either Soviet serials or unit numbers would go on. In some cases there might be a complete repaint to a lighter Russian green colour. In any case the fresh olive drab paint would quickly fade and scuff and the uniform appearance would start to disperse.

The finish here is wartime matte – done with Testor’s Dullcote. I am mightily impressed with this material right now.