`A Tribute to all Buffalo pilots who died while defending Singapore’

In 1940, RAF ordered a total of 170 Model 339Es under the British designation Buffalo Mk. I.

The 339E was powered by an export-approved Wright R-1820-G105 Cyclone engine of 1100 hp. A number of changes were made: a British-built Mark III reflector gunsight replaced the ring-and-bead arrangement, armor plate was provided for the pilot, and armored glass was added to the wind screen. The Curtiss Electric cuffed propeller was replaced with a 10-foot one-inch Hamilton Standard propeller. The 339E was the only Buffalo variant to feature an internal gun camera. The small retractable naval-type tail wheel was replaced by a larger fixed tail wheel.

These changes brought the gross weight to 6500 pounds. The maximum speed was lowered to 330 mph and the rate of climb was lowered to only 2600 feet per minute. In addition, this increased weight raised the wing loading, increased the landing speed, and adversely affected the maneuverability. Another problem was that the Buffalo Mk. I did not use the same fuel line pressurization system as the F2A-2, and fuel starvation problems were often experienced above 18,000 feet.

The first three production Model 339Es were sent to Great Britain in April of 1941 for trials. The remaining Buffalos of the British order were shipped directly to the Far East to serve with units in Malaya, Singapore and Burma. The first Buffalos arrived in Singapore in the spring of 1941.

Five Commonwealth squadrons were formed around the Buffalo -- Nos. 67 and 243 Squadrons, RAF; Nos. 21 and 43 Squadrons of the RAAF; and No. 488 Squadron of the RNZAF. No. 67 Squadron was based in Burma and the other four were stationed at bases near Singapore. Each squadron was issued with 15 aircraft. A shortage of pilots prevented the formation of additional squadrons, and many Buffalos were placed in storage. Many of the pilots in the Commonwealth Buffalo squadrons were relatively new and inexperienced, and some 20 Buffalos were lost in training accidents during the autumn of 1941.

War in the Burma/Malaya theater began on December 8, 1941. The Brewsters are up against Japanese Army Air Force Ki-27s and Ki-43s, and there were at least three Commonwealth pilots who became aces during this period. However, when the Japanese Navy A6M(Zero Fighter) appeared, the Buffalo was completely outclassed. The Zero was faster, more maneuverable and had a heavier armament. In an attempt to improve the Buffalo's performance, ground crews removed all unnecessary equipment to lower the weight, sometimes replacing the 0.50-inch machine guns with lighter 0.303-inch guns and reducing the ammunition and fuel load. However, these modifications did not even come close to closing the performance gap.

The situation in Malaya rapidly deteriorated as the Japanese advance gained momentum, and Commonwealth squadrons were forced to withdraw to Singapore Island. Attrition and combat losses took their toll, and by February of 1942 there were only a few airworthy Buffalos left. These were withdrawn to the nearby islands of the Netherlands East Indies. When the British evacuated the aircrews to Australia, at least four Buffalos were turned over to Dutch squadrons.

Many official British historical sources blame the loss of Malaya and Singapore largely on the Buffalo's poor performance Approximately 60 to 70 Buffalos were lost in air combat, 40 were destroyed on the ground, twenty were lost in various non-combat related accidents, four were transferred to the Dutch, and six were evacuated to India. Commonwealth Buffalo squadrons claimed at least 80 kills, and some units may have achieved a 2-to-1 kill ratio. Only 15 pilots were from RAF. The others were officers or (the majority) sergeant-pilots from Australia and New Zealand. Altogether, the Buffalo pilots numbered 118, of whom 28 were killed and another was captured--25 percent lost in less than two months. Several others were badly injured.

RNZAF 488 Sqn

Motto: Ka ngarue ratau (We shake them)

Serial used : NF (Sep 1941 - Mar 1942)

Formed September 1941 at Rongotai, New Zealand. No. 488 began as a day fighter squadron equipped with Brewster Buffaloes based at Kallang (November 1941 to January 1942) in Singapore, after sailing from New Zealand in October 1941. Not fully operational when the Japanese onslaught took place, it had its first air encounters with the Japanese on the 12th of January 1942. An injection of Hurricanes towards the end of the month was only a temporary measure and on the 31st January the squadron prepared to move. It re-assembled near Batavia, but on the 23rd February the survivors were evacuated to Fremantle in Australia. The squadron disbanded on the 2nd March and formed the nucleus of No. 14 Squadron.

When the war broke out, the British had four Buffalo squadrons at Singapore and in Northern Malaya, including 488 Sqn with borrowed Buffalos from RAF. Another was stationed in Burma.

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My 1/72 Matchbox Brewster Buffalo Mk.1 RNZAF 488 Sqn at Kallang 1941, Singapore Diorama

Kits/material used:

Matchbox 1/72 Brewster Buffalo Mk1
Airfix 1/72 RAF Refueling set( only the 4x4 Bedford QL refuel truck was used) + kit figures.
Airfix Bofors 1/72 AA Gun + Morris tractor
Cork board 4mm thick + white glue
Tomix grass & earth powder
My wife’s hair for the wire antenna of the Buffalo!

I used the Matchbox 1/72 Buffalo kit to create a diorama of 488 sqn RNZAF in RAF Kallang Singapore in 1941. Additional items were Airfix 1/72 Morris CDSW truck with Bofors 40mm AA and a RAF Bedford tanker from Airfix 1/72 RAF refueling set.

The Matchbox kit was rather poor, with the decals disintegrated and shredded in the water! Note: this was the `reissued’ Chinese made kit made by a Shanghai toy factory. I bought it at a bargain of US$3 at a local hobby store .Basically I built the kit straight out of the box. There is no much details save for a cockpit seat and a cylindrical life raft behind the pilot. The fuselage fitting was average with putty required at the joining halves. There are some fuselage sink marks filled and a weak undercarriage strengthened. I re-scribed almost all the panel lines. Gunze Mr. Surfacer 1000 was sprayed before the painting. Colours were middle brown( Gunze---), dark green Gunze—(FS 34092) on the top side. Underside were Gunze black(port) and white(starboard). The canopy was masked and sprayed while attached to the fuselage.

I weathered the plane using Tamiya acrylic aluminum with a toothpick to create worn/chipped off paint.

From references I gathered, the antenna was repositioned on the starboard just in front of the cockpit and attached a hair to the tail. I also hot melted holes using a needle in the wings and engine cowling to create the 4x 0.5in guns. I also made the wheel chooks using excess spruce material.

The Bedford QL truck was introduced in February 1941 and over 50,000 were produced with a wide variety of bodies fitted to the basic four wheel drive chassis. The refueller version was produced carried up to 950 gallons of petrol. Wheelbase was 11 ft. 11 ins. and power was provided by a 72 bhp. 6 cylinder engine. It was widely used in RAF bases even after the war ended.

The CDSW Bofors Tractor [The letters, CDSW, can be 'translated' as; C - for model (first introduced 1933), D - for Double Axle - rear, S - Six Cylinder Engine The CDSW was the last of a line of Morris Commercial 6 wheel vehicles which started with the D type in 1926. The first CDSW was made in 1935 being specifically designed to tow a field gun hence the large tow hook at rear. In those days the gun would have been an 18 pounder or a 4.5 Howitzer. Total of 980 CDWS with Bofors 40mm AA was produced

Both the Bofors gun with Morris truck and the refuel truck were built OOB.

RAF Kallang was mainly a grass aerodrome. I created the diorama base using a cork board that gave the texture of `bare earth’ pattern. Firstly the cork base was smeared with white glue mixed with water. Bare patches were created by applying glue arbitrarily to give a heavily used effect.

Next I sprinkled grass+dark earth powder by Tomix(Japanese train set maker) and brush off the excess. RAF/RNZAF personnel wear shorts most of the time due to the Singapore weather and humidity. In that respect, I have to `cut’ the figures’ pants to show the RAF/RNZAF ground crew in shorts! I tried to create this as realistically as possible and I hope they don’t look like artificial limbs !

Sean `beagle’ YJ Chua

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