Για περαιτέρω ερευνα κατά την κατασκευή του μοντέλου αγόρασα από τη Lela Presse το εκπληκτικό βιβλίο 'Le Brewster Buffalo' με ότι τελευταίες πληροφορίες υπάρχουν. Βρήκα ένα ενδιαφέρον θέμα που ίσως δώσει ιδέα σε άλλους φίλους για κατασκευή!
Μετατροπή του Mk.I σε νυκτερινό καταδιωκτικό με επέκταση εξατμίσεων και πρόχειρο μαύρο βάψιμο της παραλλαγής. Όλα βασισμένα σε αναφορές πιλότων φυσικά χωρίς φωτογραφίες:
Πάντως είναι ενδιαφέρον και σπάνιο σα θέμα! Oι παρακάτω πληροφορίες από το Brewster Buffalo Forum:
"On the night of 15ht/16th, a Buffalo flown by lt Lt. Mowbray Garden joined a pair of Blenheim IFs in patrolling the skies. However, with inadequate radar coverage, control inefficiency and poor R/T communications, little was achieved, while the island's AA commander still would not agree to friendly aircraft operation over Singapore during night alerts! Flying a Buffalo at night was therefore an unrewarding task, as Garden recalled: "When the moon was at all in evidence I had to undertake to attempt night fighting. This was pretty hopeless because the flames from the exhaust stubs of the engine of the Buffalo could not be dampened, and the enemy could see me coming miles off, whilst I could not see them".
The initial bombing of Singapore, coupled with the ineffectiveness of the standard Buffalo fro night fighter work, prompted Sqn Ldr Howell to initiate the modification of W8143 for night fighter duties; Howell wrote:
" A certain number of pilots had flown Buffaloes at night, but the aircraft were considered unsuitable owing to the length of the exhaust flames. I asked Air HQ about night fighting when I arrived, and was told that there was none, and that it was unnecessary owing to the distance from any Japanese base. After the first night raid on 8 December, I flew to Seletar and saw a Wing Commander to see if he could design a flame trap for the exhausts. He was more than helpful, producing a pair within 24 hours -- I .............. After several designs had been tried, one was found to be satisfactory, showing very little light from front view. I painted two aircraft black, and these two were used at night with, unfortunately, no success. I was however officially ordered by Air HQ three weeks later to start practice night flying. This came as a great surprise to me , and the Squadron, as we had been doing so fro fortnight and even had a section at night readiness".
"The black-painted Buffalo of 243 Squadron piloted by Flt Lt Mowbray Garden was aloft to hunt for the raiders:..........."
"TD-G (W8231) Sgt Harry Griffiths in the cockpit of "Shirley", converted to night fighter and renamed 'Black Magic'.
"That night Tengah adn Singapore City were again raided and the airfield's Technical Aera, including the Operations Room, was severely damaged, a number of fires breaking out. 243 Squadron scrambled two Buffaloes including W8143 'Black Bess' but Sqn Ldr Howell and Flt Lt Garden were unable to make contact........"
