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Air Force Marking (Spain)

Roundel	Fin Flash

image by Frank George Valoczy, 04 Jul 2003	image by Eugene Ipavec, 03 Jan 2009

Air Force Roundel and Fin Flash
Air Force Markings 1914-1918
Air Force Markings 1918-1931
Air Force Markings 1931-1939 (Second Republic)
Air Force Markings 1936-1939 (Nationalists)
Air Force Markings 1939-1942
Air Force Markings 1942-

See also:

Other sites:

Vexilología Militar. Antecedentes y Evolución de las Banderas en España 1700-1978 (Military Vexillology. Origins and Evolution of Flags in Spain 1700-1978, Spanish text only) 1700-1808 and 1808-1978 by Luis Sorando [smz], at the Nec Pluribus Impar website
Banderas Militares (Military Flags, Spanish text only) image by Sergio Camero
Banderas y Estandartes (Flags and Standards, Spanish text only) with military flags of the 16th and 17th centuries at the Tercios Españoles website
Emblemas y Guiones de La Legión (Emblems and Guidons of the [Spanish Foreign] Legion, Spanish text only) at the Amigos de la Legión Española website
Heráldica del Ejercito de Tierra Español (Heraldry of the Spanish Army, Spanish text only)
Official Air Force site
www.scramble.nl
www.aeroflight.co.uk

Air Force Roundel and Fin Flash

The Spanish Air Force fin flash – a black thin saltire on white – represents the Burgundy Cross, a 500-year-old Spanish (mostly military) flag.
Santiago Dotor, 14 Oct 1999

Roundel of red-yellow-red, fin flash – white panel with black saltire. (This is not a flag painted on the fin, but rather the whole fin is painted white and crossed over with a black saltire.)

Source: Album des Pavillons 2000 [pay00]
Željko Heimer, 06 Aug 2001

In 1942, the Ejercito del Aire adopted the 1918 red-yellow-red roundel but kept its rudder marking of black saltire on white (photo, photo). Those marking are also used today; however, as "low visibility policy" requires, the rudder stripes are sometimes are very small (photo, photo).

Fuerza Aeromóviles del Ejército de Tierra (formed 1965) uses the same marking (photo). Arma Aerea de la Armada Espanola (formed 1954) uses the same roundel with inscription ARMADA but not the rudder marking (photo).
Dov Gutterman, 24 Jun 2004

1914-1918

Servicio Militar de Aerostacion was formed in 1896 and renamed Aeronautica Militar Espanola in 1913. Cochrane and Elliott 1998 [cos 98] reports the initial marking (titled 1914-1918) as wing stripes of red-yellow-red (in same internal proportions as the flag) and plain national flag in the middle of the rudder.
Dov Gutterman, 24 Jun 2004

1918-1931 and 1942-

image by Frank George Valoczy, 04 Jul 2003

In 1918 a roundel of red-yellow-red (same as today) was adopted together with horizontal rudder stripes (in equal width) of red-yellow red. See photo, photo.

Aeronautica Naval (formed 1917) used same marking, but added an anchor on the rudder's yellow stripe.
Dov Gutterman, 24 Jun 2004

1931-1939

image by Frank George Valoczy, 04 Jul 2003

The República Espanola and changing of the flag in 1931 brought immediate change in the roundel and fin flash too. The inner disc and bottom stripe were changed to purple. Navy planes kept their anchor until Naval Aviation was dissolved in 1936. Wide red "identification stripes" were added to AF planes while Naval planes had narrower stripes.
Dov Gutterman, 24 Jun 2004

Roundels 1936-1942

Roundel 1936-193x	Roundel 193x-1942

image by Eugene Ipavec, 03 Jan 2009	image by Eugene Ipavec, 03 Jan 2009

This is a complex subject since many different roundels, fin markings and fuselage markings were used. Nationalist Wing roundels were usually plain black, to which later on a white saltire (reaching the edges) was added. Correct models can be seen at the www.aire.org website.
Roberto Pla, 04 Jul 2003

The 1936-1939 civil war was an aircraft-marking nightmare. Not only was the AME split into Republican and Nationalist air forces, foreign planes and aviators also took part in this "field test" of their new machines (the German Condor Legion and the Italian Aviazione Legionaria on the Nationalist side – Russian planes on Republican side).

In general: Republican AF planed used the former red-yellow-purple rudder stripes with narrow red identification stripes on fuselage and wing tips. The Nationalist AF used a white rudder charged with black saltire and black roundels (and some also use three black identification stripes on wing-tops). [cos 98] shows the black roundels charges with small white saltire (photo). Such and other markings were used on the black roundels, however, this was not the rule. The basic pattern was black roundel – see photo.

At http://www.zi.ku.dk/personal/drnash/model/spain/codes.html there is an article: "Codes and Markings" with review of Civil War markings; see also "Aircraft that took part in the Spanish Civil War" and Insignia's "Spanish Nationalist Air Force 1939-1952."
Dov Gutterman, 24 Jun 2004

Fuselage Markings 1936-1940s

Pilot's Fuselage Marking	Falange Fuselage Marking

image by Frank George Valoczy, 04 Jul 2003	image by Frank George Valoczy, 04 Jul 2003

These are fuselage markings, not wing roundels. The 'X' one is the personal marking of a pilot, something usual with fuselage markings, the other one tries to represent the Falange yoke and arrows which should be red.
Roberto Pla, 04 Jul 2003

At the end of the civil war in 1939, the new Ejercito del Aire (EdA) kept the Nationalist marking but charged the black roundels with red Phalanx symbol. Those marking appear at Jane's 1945.
Dov Gutterman, 24 Jun 2004