Jean Navarre's red Nieuport

[tkelly]

Fellow Aerodrome modellers,

I'm buiding the Eduard Nieuport 11/16. Now that I'm getting close to paint and was wondering if there is any photos of Navarre's red painted Nieuport? I've heard allot about it but I have never seen any pictures. Is this color scheme hearsay?

Thanks
Tim

[PeterL]

Only ever seen it illustrated by artwork. The usual rendition is of a red fuselage with everything else CDL. Even Ray Rimmell, who appears to have red as his default setting , stayed clear of this one preferring to illustrate another of Navarre's aircraft in RW&B

[tkelly]

Peter,
The RW&B aircraft is more interesting anyway. What is your feeling about the color(s) used to outline the wings and fuselage edges? Where they taping the seams or just decorating? After all we are talking about the French. By the way, that is an excellent point you brought up about D1033/17.
Tim

[StephenLawson]

A photograph of Navarre's Nieu. XI painted an overall dark color(red?) can be seen in Osprey's Nieuport Aces of WWI bt N.Franks on Pp.58-9. #33 in their recent series.

[Richard_Schrader]

Tkelly;
I just bought a Eduard double pack with a Nieuport 11/16 & Nieuport 17. I too was thinking about doing Navarre's Nieuport. The kit has the markings of another red NI-11, but I never have heard the pilot's name before. I guess I better check out the Osprey's book also.

Richard

[tkelly]

Stephen,
Thanks for that reference. I don't know how I overlooked it, I was going through that book just last night.

Richard,
That double kit of the Nieuports. Does it contain the Profi Pak Photo-etch parts?

Thanks for the information!

Tim

[Richard_Schrader]

Tkelly
No it didn't, but it sure is nice!

Richard

[tkelly]

Richard,

I agree! That kit is a pleasure to build.

Tim

[Gregvan]

Hi Tkelly and all,

The photo Stephen Lawson mentions is also on page 14 (Photo #18) of the Windsock DF Special "Nieuport Fighters" Vol. I. It is a JM Bruce/GS Leslie photo captioned "It is said that the occupant of this Nie. 11 is Jean Navarre". It might be his red bird, but then again it may just have been camouflaged. The wings are a dark color (presumably green/brown camo) with light tapes. What is unusual about this 11 is that its Lewis gun is mounted in a fixed position on the cowling, synchronized presumably with the Alkan mechanism.

There's no doubt that Navarre did indeed fly a red Nieuport along with the r/w/b N576, as it is well attested to by both French and German accounts. Henri Farre mentions it in his book "Sky Fighters of France" ('That's Navarre in his red Nieuport !') - he saw Navarre shoot down a Rumpler while flying it. He even has a painting of Navarre's plane in the book, but it's reproduced in black & white, sadly. His literary description is no more precise, either.

The other red Nieuport mentioned by Richard is based on an illustration in the marvelous book "Guynemer, Les Avions d'un As" by Bernard Klaeyle and Philippe Osche. It is Nieuport 16 No. 1386, flown by Sous-Lieutenant Louis Bucquet (three victories) in Esc. N 3. The profile shows it as having a red fuselage, wheel covers and upper surfaces of wings. It had the stork of N.3 in white on the fuselage, along with a white "5" on the aft fuselage. There is a photo of Guynemer in the cockpit of this plane, dated July 1916, in the book. I do not know the authors' source of the red interpretation, but these two really did their homework and are very careful, so I presume it's based on something substantial.

Just thought you'd like to know.

Greg VanWyngarden

[Jimmaas]

Just a question re the 'red-white-blue" N576 - don't the tonal values make more sense if that is red-white-RED?