Cutting Edge Decals
Mosquito Nose Art Part 1
No.418 Sqn RCAF
CED48122

By Tony Paton

Introduction

A few years ago I was at a reunion in a small country town in NSW Australia where my mother was born. They started talking about a WW2 pilot from the area who happened to be an ace. Most people remember the memorial service that included a Mosquito after he was killed in a road accident a few years after the war. They also remembered that he used to buzz the town, which not many of the older residents were happy about!

I started getting curious and decided to research the career of Charles C. Sherf with the ultimate aim of producing a scale replica of one of his Mosquitos. Information was hard to come by but using the resources of the internet, I found many contacts who were very helpful. Especially in Canada as Sherf served with No.418 Sqn Royal Canadian Air Force. I found no pictures or information to confirm what aircraft he flew. I found a novel written by an Australian that gave out the tail numbers but not what they were called. About 6 months ago I heard that Cutting Edge were releasing a sheet for 418 Sqn. I emailed them and asked if a scheme for Sherf would be included. They replied that one of the options was for his aircraft. The long search was over, the longer anticipation period started!

I ordered the decals from the Meteor Productions website and they were sent as soon as they were released. Four versions of 418 Sqn RCAF Mosquitos can be created. Most aircraft were adorned with characters from the cartoon strip Lil' Abner. Sherf's example is TH-F "Cousin Jake". To my great surprise, the information sheet informs me that Sherf also flew the last example on the sheet: TH-J "City of Edmonton". The other two examples are TH-M "Black Rufe" & TH-U "Moonbeam McSwine".

They are designed for the Tamiya 1/48 FB VI / NF II version of the Mosquito. One sheet of decals are included that has the four schemes separated with the roundels below. There are only enough for one aircraft, so more sheets are required if you want to make another version or find a source of aftermarket roundels. They look to be of a very high quality and the character nose art is very well done.

The instruction sheet is full colour with side views of all four aircraft and a top view of one aircraft. There is an instruction sheet that has a small historical paragraph on each example, how to apply the decals, colour cross-references and Bibliography.

They are well worth the price of $7.99 per sheet and give more options for one of the greatest aircraft of world war two. Thanks to Cutting Edge decals for providing a scheme I was passionate about. And most importantly, thanks to everyone that has helped me out with information.