Colour/Camouflage scheme of Russian WW I planes

[Volker_Nemsch]

Hello!

A few days ago I bought some models (scale 1:72) of two imperial russian biplanes (Sikorsky "Ilya Muromets" and Sikorsky C-XVI) of WW I. The pictures on the cardboard-box do not show the surface of the wings or the fuselage. The colour on the paintings look like clear doped linnen or something like that (a colour similar to
sand, light-brown wood or brown paper (indeed a very lousy description!)). Or, on the other hand was there any camouflage on russian planes?

Thank you in advance for any help!
Volker Nemsch

[Michael Skeet]

Most Russian aircraft were finished in clear-doped linen. Some (I'm thinking of the Anatra and Lebed' recce machines here) were covered with green-pigmented dope. The green was quite bright and rich, not an olive drab.

Your question is on Russian (built) aircraft.
The Russians depended on imports (mostly French)
which were retained in whatever colors they
had upon arrival (silver Nieuports, for example).
Check out Bob Pearson's web site accessible
from the World War I modelling site. He has
illustrations of several aircraft in Russian
service. (Go to Forum links to find the WWI
modelling site and once there go to their links
to find Bob Pearson's site.) The site on the
Russian Air Force (also on Forum links) shows
several Russian aircraft apparently in clear
doped linen.

Durkota, et al., show three Muromets in "The Imperial Russian Air Service", Flying Machines Press. Two of these are a sandy brown color, somewhat darker than CDL. However, the text says that almost all of them were finished with varnished linen. The third Muroments, a model G3, is a light grey in color. It is listed as being the only Muromets in this color.

What do you think of the models? I recently bought the Muromets myself and was impressed with it though I'll probably never assemble it.

I put my IM model aside for another day--there's a good kit in there, but the plans are certainly not intuitive.

IIRC, more than one late-model IM was painted in the light grey scheme.

The Durkota book is a very good source for other schemes, as well.