Cierva c30/Avro Rota – Battle of Britain Colour Scheme & Markings
 

I am making a diorama depicting a dispersal scene in late June or early July 1940, just before the Battle of Britain began in earnest and want to add something a little out of the usual and go beyond the expected Spitfire and/or Hurricane etc.

I have had an interest in the development and deployment of the Chain Home Radar network and I know that several Avro Rota’s (a license built Cierva C30 Autogiro) were used to calibrate the individual stations due to their ability to fly an orbit at very slow speeds at a given distance and bearing from the station and that these sorties were ongoing during the Battle, usually in the early mornings when the skies were quiet.

Unfortunately none of the books I have read on the subject give any detail of how these aircraft were used nor is there any information available on the color scheme used in 1940.

I would appreciate any information beyond the little that I already know!

Standard camouflage from photos I've seen.
There was an excellent article about their work in 'RAF Flying Review' in about 1962 (before it became 'Flying Review International'). The squadron was headquartered at Halton but thy detached to bases nearer the radar units they were calibrating.
Did you know one of them was credited with a 'kill'? Operating off the south coast on calibration work from Tangmere; Bf109 if I recollect; tried to turn with the autogyro and discovered he couldn't.

Sometime in the 1960's Aeromodeller magazine covered the type in their "Aircraft Described" series - with 1/72nd scale drawings showing the camouflage pattern and code letters, etc.
I am afraid I cannot now recall the issue or even the year but I used the drawings myself to make a model Avro Rota.

I think some of the Aeromodellers Plans Service scale drawings are still available on the net.

M-62A3

5645andym, you might find some useful information at No. 529 Rota Squadron.