lightweight Posted May 4, 2011 Share Posted May 4, 2011 The paint has flaked off my bonnet and revealed that it had a blue circle with the white star in the middle on it. Anybody know the significance? Also, the vehicle number is in blue - why so? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jessie The Jeep Posted May 4, 2011 Share Posted May 4, 2011 Blue circle and white star; possibly Army Air Force? I've seen a few, particularly just pre-war which had the blue circle, white star and the red dot in the centre. As for the blue numbers, I've seen a number of jeeps with pale blue numbers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jessie The Jeep Posted May 4, 2011 Share Posted May 4, 2011 Just found this..... http://www.stugiii.com/images/US_Vehicle_Markings.pdf Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deadline Posted May 5, 2011 Share Posted May 5, 2011 That PDF has some errors. Specifically the Circle around the star. The circle was always 'solid' but the 'breaks' are from the stencil... not from any specification. The yellow circle was specified for a very short time, but in 1944 the yellow circle reappeared because the chemical descant was also yellow-ish. Also the 'circle and star' was primarily used to aid identification during invasions. After the invasion, the circle was no longed 'added' to newly painted vehicles... only the vehicles used in the actual invasion. I have video of a vehicle assembly yard in France just 2 months after the Invasion and the 'National Symbol' was just the star, no circle (because the invasion was long over and normal combat operations were in effect. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lightweight Posted May 5, 2011 Author Share Posted May 5, 2011 Thanks chaps, useful stuff! I shall have a scratch down of the paint - there may be a red circle in the middle of the star, the truck is 1941 so according to the article, that wouldn't be out of place. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gordon_M Posted May 5, 2011 Share Posted May 5, 2011 Army Air Force stuff. The MEATBALL, or red circle in the centre, was removed in early '42 I think because of fears it could be confused with the Japanese rising sun in the Pacific theatre. It was seldom seem on European stuff, as most of that was imported and marked as Army Air Force after the date of change. Gordon Gordon Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris Warne Posted May 7, 2011 Share Posted May 7, 2011 and for the blue drab hood numbers, this was the regulation colour applied at the factory when the vehicle was accepted by the military. Specifically for jeeps, every vehicle left the Ford & Willys factoris with Blue Drab hood (USA) numbers, except for the last few months of production of the MB at the Willys factory, where they did change to using white paint (USA 2072xxxx approx) Most period pictures show white numbers as these vehicles had been repainted since being accepted by the military. It's important to remember that lustreless Olive Drab paint (OD) was only expected to keep it's flat finish for 2 years or so and I recall someone on the G503.com forum posting a copy of a regulation on re-painting vehicles every 2 years or so. Anyway, hope that explains the 'blue' hood numbers. Here's a picture of my June 45 Willys MB hood, having used paint stripper to uncover the original USA number - in Blue Drab. As I worked through the layers, I first found the same number in white where the jeep had been repainted at some time. If you want to learn the best way to try and uncover original numbers/markings, there's an excellent topic here: http://www.g503.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=112487 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
schliesser92 Posted May 7, 2011 Share Posted May 7, 2011 Army Air Force stuff. The MEATBALL, or red circle in the centre, was removed in early '42 I think because of fears it could be confused with the Japanese rising sun in the Pacific theatre. It was seldom seem on European stuff, as most of that was imported and marked as Army Air Force after the date of change. Gordon Gordon That is correct, it was also the reason why RAF & RAAF aircraft in the Pacific Theatre had only blue and white roundels. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
antarmike Posted May 7, 2011 Share Posted May 7, 2011 That is correct, it was also the reason why RAF & RAAF aircraft in the Pacific Theatre had only blue and white roundels. It is the reason the Far East Command / South East Asia Command of the RAF used Dark Blue/ Light Blue Roundel. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
antarmike Posted May 7, 2011 Share Posted May 7, 2011 (edited) That is correct, it was also the reason why RAF & RAAF aircraft in the Pacific Theatre had only blue and white roundels. It is the reason the Far East Command of the RAF used Dark Blue and Light Blue Roundel. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Royal_Air_Force_roundels Edited May 7, 2011 by antarmike Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
schliesser92 Posted May 7, 2011 Share Posted May 7, 2011 light blue? i thought that they were white! You live and learn. Was there any reason for blue? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
antarmike Posted May 7, 2011 Share Posted May 7, 2011 (edited) light blue? i thought that they were white! You live and learn. Was there any reason for blue? A lot of Red White Blue roundels were modified locally by painting out the red dot with White, but this was a local expediency. The colours should have been Light Blue and Dark Blue but as is so often the case with Military markings , what should have happened, didn't always happen. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:RAF_Far_East_Command_roundel.svg If you read the RAF's official reason the text says Blue and white was used but their illustration is of Light Blue/ Dark Blue Roundel http://www.raf.mod.uk/history/theroyalairforceroundel.cfm! Edited May 11, 2011 by antarmike Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris Aldous Posted May 11, 2011 Share Posted May 11, 2011 The idea of the blue was that they wouldn't show up in black and white pictures... cheers Chris Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
M.Rimmer Posted May 11, 2011 Share Posted May 11, 2011 The Blue circle with White star is not specifically USAAF and would not usually be seen on AAF vehicles in the UK,however it was far more common on USAAF vehicles in Africa and Egypt. I can post some pics later. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Willyslancs Posted May 11, 2011 Share Posted May 11, 2011 what about this one? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lightweight Posted May 12, 2011 Author Share Posted May 12, 2011 what about this one? I would guess that it was on its way to whichever country it was being lend/leased to? A bit like spraying 'made in America' down the side in big letters! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
N.O.S. Posted May 16, 2011 Share Posted May 16, 2011 And what colour is this guy painting the star background I wonder? USAAF, Norfolk, 1944/1945. I guess anything goes! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
R Cubed Posted May 20, 2011 Share Posted May 20, 2011 And what colour is this guy painting the star background I wonder? USAAF, Norfolk, 1944/1945. I guess anything goes! [ATTACH=CONFIG]45200[/ATTACH] The paint he is using looks dark in colour, so could it be that the whole circle is painted solid white, then the star is marked and the outer parts of the area outside the star but inside the circle are then painted green to match the rest of the vehicle colour !!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
M.Rimmer Posted May 20, 2011 Share Posted May 20, 2011 Interesting pic Tony,do you have any details of unit/location or date?. I do have doubts the background is blue,as R Cubed says it could be something to do with how the star and circle has been applied,though the star looks stenciled. I do wonder if he is applying the dark yellow gas warning paint?. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
M.Rimmer Posted May 21, 2011 Share Posted May 21, 2011 Here's one for Tony(NOS).. This is an official photo and the original caption reads "U.S.Army transport plane refuels in Egypt. A four-motored U.S. Army transport plane,which carries men and materials of war to allied forces on the world's fighting fronts,refuels at an American airfield near Cairo,Egypt,before taking off on another leg of it's journey". Unfortunately the picture is not dated but judging by the paint on the C-54 and the early hard cab Autocar I'm guessing 1943. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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