RNZAF Markings

[Kiwi]

ZBP

Proportional description 40/30. This is the best documented roundel of the ZP family. Presumed to have been derived from the ZBP, it is well documented in photographs, from actual measurements taken from a Kittyhawk and last but not least from scale drawings on official RNZAF files. The first official drawing is updated and cannot be identified with other papers on the file, but a clue to its context is the fact that the 40/30 blue/white/blue roundel with white bars has a complete red border surrounding it. The US equivalent marking (of which there is also a drawing on file) was only extant from June to August 1943. The second official drawing is that prepared for the RNZAF markings for the Sunderland IIIs. On this drawing the wing roundels are not only drawn to scale but are also dimensioned as 72, 24 and 18 inches with bars 36 x 18 inches. From the weight of evidence available it is possible to confidently state that the ZBP roundel was the standard roundel for use on upper and lower wing surfaces for all aircraft operating in the forward area during 1944 and 1945. As always, there are likely to be exceptions, and the Fiji based Dominie appears to be one. It appears to have underwing roundels of the ZPC variety. Another exception, was the underwing roundel on the Avenger. Being applied to a white surface, and with the bars being of non-US origin, i.e with no blue border, there were no bars, and by default the roundel became a ZBP.

ZPC

Proportional description 60/45. A direct derivation of the C roundel, possibly via the ZC and ZCP. Only known applications are to the fuselage of Avengers and Sunderland IIIs , and in all positions on the Fiji-based Dominie NZ523. In bothe the Avenger and Sunderland applications it was in the ZPC.4 form and in each case the bars were larger than the nominal 60 x 30. As previously quoted, the Avenger bars seem to have been around a 90 x 45 proportion, and the Sunderland’s were specified with figures that gave a 75 x 45 proportion. (Roundel diameter 48 inches, border width 3 inches, bars 36 inhes long (each) and 16 inches high.)

ZPF

Proportional description approximately 32/16. Derived from the ZAF and noted, with some proportional variation, on early Dakotas after they had bars added. (see comments under ZAF)

ZPU

Proportional description estimated at 40/20. This roundel seems to have been the standard for Corsair fuselage applications. Whether the proportions given here are correct, and from what actual dimensions they might have been derived is not known. Dimensioning of a Corsair fuselage from photographs is a very difficult exercise, and it is still hoped that an accurate statement may be found as to the size of the US marking on Corsairs of this vintage. It seems likely from the type of bar that the ZPU was derived by overpainting of the US marks. The most common form was the ZPU.5, but in some instances the added yellow ring stopped a little short and so these examples bordered on the ZPU.6 variety.

ZPV

Proportional description estimated at 48/32. This roundel was applied to Ventura fuselages and contrary to the original bar instructions it most appeared in the ZPV.3 form. Sufficient examples have been measured to suggest that it was a standard for Venturas, and documentary evidence confirms that from 1943 at least these aircraft were painted in accordance with an official RNZAF diagram. This evidence gave the diameter as 48 inches, but the willingness for the RNZAF to specify diameters down to quarter inches gives little confidence in speculation on the likely proportions, and the ones given here are based solely on photographic measurements.

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[Kiwi]

POST WAR

Reversion to RAF Roundels

The need to adapt markings in order to operate alongside an ally in battle evaporated with the war’s end, but so did the sense of urgency to re-adapt to peace. The first move was fored during preparations, in February 1946, to send Corsairs to Japan as part of the occupation forces. The decision was for these aircraft to revert to standard A type roundels in all six positions, the bars being deleted in the process. In the same month permission was sought by Whenuapai Station , and granted by Air Department, to delete the white bars from Dakota roundels.

In April 1946 a policy decision was taken to revert gradually to RAF markings – at the time this meant C type roundels in all positions. This standard was just beginning to gain widespread effect when, in June 1947, the RAF introduced the D roundel to replace the C.

Superficially the same as the pre-war A, the D differed in having a red centre “twice” as large. In the A the diameter of the red had been the same as the width of each of the other two colour bands, but in the D it was the radius of the red which had this relationship. Thus the proportional description became 80/40 compared with the A’s 72/24. The D roundel is still the RAF standard for all except camouflaged aircraft. The RNZAF, however, has modified the D through several stages, and these are discussed later under the ZF, ZS and ZK roundel types. But first we will consider some roundels which saw limited use.

The attached photos show the FG-1 Corsairs at Hobsonville in February 1946 awaiting shipment on HMS Glory to Japan. The aircraft have not been repainted merely having the wartime roundels and bars painted out (rather roughly in most cases) and type A roundels applied.

Other shots show an Anson 1 and an Oxford wearing the type C roundel in late 1946.

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[Kiwi]

Post-war miscellany

ASR

In response to a query from RNZAF Fiji late in 1947, Air Department ascertained that Air Sea Rescue aircraft should carry distinctive ICAO (International Civil Aviation Organisation) markings. The markings comprised the application of “Orange Yellow” to the aircraft plus a “large yellow cross”. The reference was ICAO Doc. 2480, and this contained a drawing of the cross but no dimensions. The disc on which the cross was superimposed was specified as black. Air Department decided that rather than wait for ICAO to be more specific the RNZAF Air Sea Rescue Hudsons – which carried airborne lifeboats – would have their RNZAF roundels in all positions replaced by discs of equivalent diameter. Accordingly an instruction was issued to Wigram, Ohakea, Hobsonville and Fiji on 10 November 1947 for the change to be carried out “as soon as convenient and not later than the next minor inspection”. The instruction, and later Air Department Order, included an undimensioned sketch based on the ICAO drawing, and this gave a cross whose width (thickness) was abour 22 % of the roundel diameter. This is borne out by photographs of NZ2016 and NZ 2085, but the inevitable exception appears on NZ2063 in which the cross is much thinner, about 15%. The RNZAF instructions in all cases specified black for the disc. No information has been found to indicate when the ASR roundel became obsolete.

The three photos show: a close up of the ASR roundel on NZ2085. Roundel diameter appeared to be 36 inches with the cross bars eight inches thick.

NZ 2016 which doesn't have the "yellow orange" panels applied.

NZ2063 which has the tine crosses mentioned in the text and also has the cowls in the "yellow orange" the same as the fuselage panel.

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[Kiwi]

ZD

The RNZAF’s Mustangs were delivered under lend-lease in August 1945. It was intended that they would replace the Corsairs and operate with the Australians in Borneo. The first shipment (30 aircraft) were on the water when the war ended and the order was cancelled but the US would not accept them back. They arrived cocooned with full US markings but with the war ended and no immediate use apparent , they were stored as received. They were bought out of storage (still in their cocoons) in 1951-52 for use by the Territirial Air Force Squadrons, and on being unwrapped they received standard D roundels over the top of their US national markings – thus arose the ZD roundel (in ZD.7 form always). On the fuselage the bars were soon displaced by individual squadron markings, however, and wing roundels lost their bars (some may never have had them). It is unlikely that all 30 Mustangs carried the ZD.

Variations in the Mustang markings are shown as follows, Firstly NZ2423 showing ZD roundels on the fuslage and wings, no fin flash and the US serial number on the tail. On some Mustangs the numerals were removed from the fin only, but the previous identity could be ascertained by combining the two halves on either side of the rudder.

Next is NZ2406 with ZD on the fuselage and plain D on the port wing upper, no starboard wing marking but wearing the fin flash

Last is NZ2418 with ZD roundel markings similar to NZ2423 ans also shown is NZ2414 with the bars replaced by the squadron markings, D roundels and fin flash. In peace time when things should be more uniform it just gets very confusing!

ZR

Moving ahead a couple of decades we find another unusual roundel in the ZR. This was a modern version of the C roundel and was introduced when the two remaining Austers (NZ1702,’04) were camouflaged in 1968. The standard 18 inch roundel had the red and blue moved toward each other by two inches, this giving red and white diameters of eight and ten inches respectively. Application was unusual in that roundels appeared under both wings but there were none on the top. The ZR disappeared when the two aircraft were withdrawn from service in 1970. This style is shown below

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[Kiwi]

The search for national identity

ZF and ZS. No doubt the adoption of national emblems in the roundels of the Canadian, South African, and Australian air forces had not escaped the notice of New Zealand serviceman. It was a letter to the Editor of the Wellington “Dominion” newspaper, published on 17 February 1956, however, that actually spurred action that was to result in the RNZAF adopting a national roundel in peacetime. The Chief of Air Staff, Air Vice Marshall W.H.Merton, referred the letter to his staff the same day it was published, and asked that a drawing be prepared showing “a fern leaf placed in the red centre portion of the roundel.”

The problems which ensued were concerned mainly with the actual design of the fern leaf and whether or not it would be applied by stencil or decal. During this period of trial, however, several alternative designs and alternative emblems were proposed by various staff officers. Pilot Officer R.M.Conly (the RNZAF’s official artist) was tasked with producing colour drawings of a silver fern leaf on a red circle, a red fern leaf, a red kiwi and silver fern combination.

The CAS’s fern leaf design held out. The actual design took some deliberation, however, and the assistance of the Drawing Office of the Tourist and Publicity Department (a government department) was sought. The Tourist and Publicity drawing was modified by giving more curve to the rachis (the leaf axis) and simplified so as to be able to be applied by stencil. This design was approved by the Air Board on 16 January 1957. The notation for this first fern leaf roundel is ZF.

During the gestation period there were further murmurings outside the RNZAF. The RSA (Returned Services Assosciation) Review of December 1956 pushed for a distinctive national marking, obviously unaware that matters were in hand. Following the public announcement of the new roundel on 26 January, further murmurings were seen in the RSA Review and some daily papers, criticising the choice of emblem. Amongst the points made were the3 fact that No 14 Squadron Venoms in Singapore had been sporting kiwi emblems for the past year.

The decision had been made, however, and implementing instructions were issued in June 1957. Stencils were produced (the Wigram ones were in aluminium) to apply the the white fern leaf over the existing red centres, a process that required careful preparation if leaching of the red was not to produce a pink fern leaf. A reverse stencil was also produced for the construction of new roundels, this being used to apply red to the white area, while masking out both the white ring and the fern leaf. The fern leaf was specified as being “wholly within the red disc and at an angle of 45 degrees to the horizontal axis thereof, with the butt of the fern leaf in the lower left hand portion of the red disc, as viewed by an observer.” Where the observer would stand to observe was not specified, and this led to a little confusion. I suspect that on some of the fuselage roundels the 45 degrees was taken from the horizontal when the aircraft was sitting on the ground, rather than at 45 degrees to the fuselage reference plane which was probably what was intended. On the wings the fern was at 45 degrees to the aircraft’s longitudunal axis with the butts towards the trailing edge – usually! I have found this to be case with the upper wing roundels, but underneath the port wing the butt was sometimes leading. This in fact did meet the crriteria for an observer who was positioned to read the serial number under the wing. (I call this overall arrangement the ‘3+1’, i.e three butts trailing and one leading.)

The paint was still drying on the ZFs when moves were made to adopt a better representation of the fern leave. Legend has it that one of the driving reasons was that the white stencilled fern leave could be mistaken for a white feather- the symbol of cowardice!Whatever the reasons, the search for an alternative was underway within nine months of the approval of the white fern leaf. During this period actual fern samples were viewed, and it became quite obvious that anything approaching a true likeness of a fern leaf would be too intricate for anything but a decal.

The two photos show RAF Venoms leased by the RNZAF and operated by 14 Sqdn at Tengah (Singapore) from May 1955 to May 1958, with their distinctive black rudders with white "Kiwi" marking, as mentioned and the balck and white diamond markings.

Second is Sunderland NZ 4120 wearing the white fern leaf of the ZF roundel, taken in the South China Sea during a SEATO exercise

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[Kiwi]

On 19 December 1957, the Air Board decided that that the fern leaf should be changed to silver, and by early 1958 a company had been approached to manufacture two types of decal for a trial application on Vampire tail booms at Ohakea. One type comprised a silver and black fern leaf decal to be placed on the existing red centres, and the other comprised the complete red disc with the silver and black emblem already printed thereon. Trials obviously had to establish some measure of the durability of the materials, and it was June 1958 before a report was made. This recommended the plain fern leaf as the more durable, and action was then taken to procure stocks for the entire RNZAF fleet. The ZS roundel had arrived and was to be the standard for the next 13 years.

Before the ZS was adopted, however, some changes were made to roundel sizes. The cost of decal was relatively high, and the variety of roundal sizes extant would have meant holding a range of seven sizes. Some rationalisation was therfore carried out and the number of of roundel sizes reduced to five by increasing all Dakota roundels from 48 inch to 54 inch, and Hastings wing upper from 72 to 84 inch and lower from 48 to 54 inch. These deliberations and the obtaining of quotes took until the end of 1958, so it was 1959 before the ZS appeared as a standard. At present there is no indication as to the time it took to change over from the ZF.

The ZS was applied in the same alignment as the ZF, but the ‘3+1’ arrangement is something of an enigma. Photographs that clearly show underwing ZS roundels are hard to come by, but two that I have seen show one of each arrangement. In the lead up to the December 1957 decision, the alternatives of all butts facing the trailing edge or the underwing ones matching the serial numbers was discussed, but no record of any decision has been found. It may be noted, however, that official colour scheme drawings issued in 1970 specified the ‘3+1’ arrangement.

In service, the ZS came in for a fair amount of criticism. Ther had been no problems with the prototype roundels on the Vampires, but other aircraft had raised rivet heads. These made the decals difficult to apply and prone to surface breakage. Upper wing roundels were exposed to a lot of bright sunlight, particuarly in the tropics, and deterioration was a major problem. Notwithstanding these problems, a silver fern decal in mint condition tended very much to blend into the red background, making the marking often indistinguishable from the RAF roundel, even at comparitively close quarters. Pressure mounted for a change.

In the images attached we see: Bristol Freighter NZ5912 at Saigon 5 Dec 1961 (With a Shackleton of 205 Sqdn from Changi) The silver fern leaf of the ZS showa up but ironically this could be because the decal has deteriorted. It was the CO of this unit, No 41 Squadron, who eight years later started the final process that was to culminate in the adoption of the Kiwi as the roundel emblem.

In the view of the Hercules NZ 7002 taken on 28 July 1969 it is just discernable in the roundel that the butt of the leaf faces to the right, i.e. the wrong way, the exception from the written instruction again, just to trip people up!

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[Kiwi]

ZK

Documented pressure was spasmodic, but it always pointed to the kiwi as the ideal emblem, although on unsolicited drawing from a member of the public had a red southern cross as the roundel centre. An observant spectator at the opening of Rongotai (Wellington) airport made the point that the visiting were “zapped” with kiwis, not fern leaves! ( I vividly remember personally “zapping” aircraft at Tengah in 1968 and, yes, I used a kiwi!) An editorial in the Dominion of 21 October 1966 discussing New Zealand emblems generally during the aftermath of the Commonwealth Games, made reference to the RNZAF roundel, and this brought forth comment within RNZAF Headquarters that Woodbourne’s roundel should be adopted. Yes, pressure was also mounting within the service, and tradesman at Woodbourne had painted a large kiwi roundel and mounted it on the inside of a hangar wall where visiting officers could hardly fail to miss it.(I remember it well!)

In late 1969 the moves that were to spark change gained momentum with a letter from the CO of 41 Squadron (flying Bristol Freighters) in Singapore. Operating among a sea of RAF roundels, and a few kangaroo ones as well, he voiced strong objection to the unsatisfactory silver fern and suggested that a black kiwi would be more appropriate and easily recognisable. The AOC Operations Group sought opinions from others under his command. Unanimity was for the kiwi, and the AOC put a case to RNZAF Headquarters. In support, a red kiwi, allegedly based on the bird on the twenty cent piece but quite obviously from the concurrent two shilling piece, was painted on white cardboard and attached to the starboard fuselage roundel of Dakota NZ3553 and photographed (see attached photo). The Air Board were swayed.

It was some time, however, before a final kiwi design was to gain approval. The two shilling kiwi was judged unbalanced in the roundel setting, the mass being off-centre. On 29 July 1970 the AOC Operations Group forwarded a revised design, and with the approval of the CAS this was forwarded for consideration by the Defence Council. The latter approved the adoption of the kiwi on 8 September 1970 and the ZK was born. Implementation instructions soon followed and the change-over was under way.

The ZK roundels (and variation on it) looks set to stay. The pressure for change was completely dissapated with the adoption of the kiwi emblem, and the design has been popular among RNZAF personnel and, one suspects, almost universally recognised by foreign military personnel. The RNZAF uses the word “Kiwi” as its registered call sign (and had been doing so in South-East Asia before 1970), and New Zealanders abroad are known as kiwis in many parts of the world.

The kiwi is applied by stencil, and the roundel is normally carried in all six positions on non-camouflaged fixed wing aircraft, two positions on helicopters. Camouflaged aircraft normally have the starboard upper and port lower wing roundels omitted. The kiwi’s beak always face the direction of flight, and its feet point towards the ground on fuselage applications or the aircraft centre line when applied to wings. These specifications were not adhered to when the Andovers were having their roundels converted in the United Kingdom in 1976, and NZ 7624 had the kiwis on the wings both facing starboard with the feet towards the trailing edge. The error was spotted after the aircraft had arived in New Zealand.

Occasionally the kiwi will feature an ‘eye’ in white, but this is not part of the authorised design.

The next instalment will be the last in this series.

When I embarked on this tutorial I did not envision it extending to more than 40,000 words! It's just about worthy of a PhD thesis.

Should anyone have any styles they would like to see a further example of please let me know and I'll try and find an appropriate photo.

The two photos here show the cardboard mock up on a Dakota as mentioned in the text and the final design, in this case on C-130 NZ7002 prior to the camouflage scheme.

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[Kiwi]

My apologies for the delay in posting this final part, I only just realised that it was still outstanding.

In 1982 the white was removed from the roundels applied to those surfaces painted in the low visibility camouflage in much the same way as the RAF reverted to the B type roundels on their camouflaged aircraft.

The Roundel Blues

In 1980 the RNZAF standardised on Insignia Blue for both roundels and fuselage stripes. The only exceptions are the pale blue (FS 595a #15450) in the centre of the stripe on VIP aircraft and the particular shade of blue that comes with decal applied roundels, ie those on Airtrainers and Airtourers. This move was hardly suprising when one realised that that at least five blues had been used since the introduction of the ZK roundel. Descriptions and applications of these shades follows.

Bright Blue. This blue was the standard RNZAF roundel blue throughout the 1950s and 1960s, with the exception of Insignia Blue on a few types. It appears to have been used for ZK rroundels on the two FAC Harvards, NZ1037 and ’56 up until their withdrawal from service in 1977. As late as 1975, Dakota roundels were still being specified as Bright Blue.

Insignia Blue. FS 595a #15044. This very dark blue is used on the insignia of American aircraft, and it would appear to be no accident that Hercules, Orions, Iriquois, Sioux and Skyhawks were delivered with ZS roundels using this shade. This colour is the one thatis now the RNZAF standard.

Zenith Blue. A New Zealand mixed blue that is close to both FS 595a #15090 and to the British Standard BS 381C #109, Middle Blue.

The colour first gained widespread application in the RNZAF in fuselage and tail pennant stripes from at least the late 1950s, the distinction between it and the Bright Blue roundels of the period being quite noticeable. Its first use in roundels seems to have been for some of the communications Devons, and its widespread use probably came with the adoption of grey and orange for Wigram training aircraft. The decals used on the later trainers are probably Zenith Blue.

Roundel Blue. BS 381c #110. Roundel Blue. This shade has been an import from the United Kingdom, being specified for the Strikemaster. It has been in previous use, however, at least on Bristol frighters in Singapore 1968-1970. It was probably also the shade of the original RAF roundels on the Andovers.