History:

Born in Edmonton in November 18, 1918, William Lidstone McKnight and his family relocated to Calgary the following year. A typical young boy, “Willie” attended Crescent Heights High School, where he quarterbacked the football team. Rebellious, he crashed his father’s car into a neighbour’s fence while trying to impress a girl. After graduation, he began medical studies at the University of Alberta, but found it uninspiring. Leaving a turbulent romance, and on the verge of expulsion, he enlisted in the Royal Air Force when a recruiting drive passed through Edmonton.

In April 1939, after arriving in England, McKnight began flying lessons at No. 6 Flying Training School. His rebellious past obviously followed him across the Atlantic, as he was twice confined to barracks for two weeks, and together with a classmate, was placed in open arrest as “perpetrators of a riot.”

Following the beginning of WW2, recruits were rushed into service, and Flying Officer McKnight was posted to 242 (Fighter) Squadron on May 6, 1940. Part of the RAF, 242 Sqd was to be comprised entirely of Canadians, although at the time of its formation only the pilots were Canadian. The ground and support crews were English.

242 Sqd was posted to the British Expeditionary Force (BEF) in France, the doomed deployment of men and equipment intended to counter Germany’s advance across Europe. The few aircraft the squadron had received were kept in England as reserves, but the squadron’s pilots were dispatched to operate alongside other squadrons. McKnight served alongside 615 Sqd, beginning on May 14, 1940. When the group was forced to relocate from Chateaudun, McKnight commandeered a limousine that had been abandoned by a “brass hat” and had a romantic encounter with a young Parisienne, whom he later tried to smuggle back to England in a transport plane. He was caught, and threatened with a court martial.

On May 19, while patrolling over Cambrai, 4 Hurricanes were bounced by 19 Messerschmitts. In the ensuing dog-fight McKnight scored his (and his squadron’s) first victory.

Two days later, 242 Sqd’s pilots returned to England for seven days of leave. On May 23, as the BEF was pushed to the French coast at Dunkirk, they resumed missions over France; flying from French airfields during the day and returning to RAF Manston (in England) at night. On May 28, McKnight claimed another Bf109, but had to limp home, his coolant system had been damaged. The following day he shot down three more aircraft, using up his remaining ammunition by attacking a train which was bringing heavy artillery to the front. In four days over Dunkirk, he’d shot down six enemy aircraft, eventually claimed eight (and possibly ten).

McKnight was admitted to hospital in July 1940. He’d lost 27 lbs, had experienced sleep deprivation and stomach problems.

The ‘Battle of France’ had affected 242 Sqd deeply. It had lost 11 pilots. Originally intended to be an all-Canadian squadron, the vacancies were filled with replacements of all sorts of nationalities. A new commanding officer was assigned; none other than the famous legless Englishman, Douglas Bader. As Squadron Leader, Bader whipped his command into shape. He selected new flight commanders, and obtained new equipment, no small feat considering the poor state and limited resources of the RAF’s fighter force. Bader was impressed by McKnight and selected him as his wingman.

As the ‘Battle of Britain’ raged, 242 Sqd returned to operational status protecting the industrial Midlands, but saw little action during July and August. On August 30, the squadron relocated to RAF Duxford where they met a large formation of bombers. Bader and McKnight each claimed two victories. On August 30, McKnight was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross (DFC). A bar was added the following month.

In September, McKnight claimed 3.5 kills over London. His final victory was reported on November 5. After damaging a Bf109, he indicated for the pilot to lower his landing gear as a sign of defeat. Instead, the pilot bailed out.

On January 12, 1941, shortly after the ‘Battle of Britain,’ the 21 year old McKnight took off on a two plane ‘mosquito’ mission to harass the Germans. The pair encountered anti-aircraft artillery as they reached the coast of France, and just as a Bf109 attacked. Split up, McKnight was never seen again. It’s possible the German pilot was Helmut Brugelman of 8/JG26, who was killed three days later. McKnight’s crash site has never been discovered.

Although he only participated in the first year of WW2, McKnight was credited with 16.5 kills. He fought to become Canada’s fourth leading ace during two of the most famous, and lop-sided battles of the European war. After the war Calgary’s city council honoured their hero by dedicating a major road near the airport, McKnight Blvd, to his honour.

All of 242 Squadron’s Hurricanes were adorned by artwork of a British boot kicking at a cartoon Adolf Hitler. McKnight went a step further and added a skeleton with a scythe beneath both sides of the cockpit of his plane, Hurricane P2961, LE*A. The artwork was obviously inspired by his brief medical training. There has been a lot of conjecture about McKnight’s Hurricane since there are only two known photos, both of which only show the cockpit area. Was it a fabric wing? Did it have a fuselage band? Two-colour undersides? The accepted general appearance for P2961 is based on other 242 Sqd planes, and the RAF standards of the day.

The Kit:

This is Hasegawa’s Mk.I kit, particularly a boxing for the South African Air Force. Because of the odd marking choice, I was able to pick it up for $26.

The kit is molded in medium grey plastic, has nice recessed panel lines, interchangeable plugs for the engine, and wing guns, and a single piece canopy. It also has a second choice for a spinner, and a tropical air scoop.

Construction:

This was a simple model to build, taking only a couple hours to get ready for paint. I don’t think I can expand on my earlier article.

I discovered some time ago, that the best way to deal with these multi-piece fuselages was to glue all the pieces for one fuselage side together. Then I’m left with two fuselage halves, instead of the harder to fit four piece assembly.

Although the fit is quite good, I still needed a touch of Gunze’s Mr. Surfacer putty on some seems, and on the wing joints. The inserts for the wing guns also needed a heavy application to fair them into the wings.

I left off the landing gear and all the small breakable bits until I’d finished decaling and weathering the model.

Painting and Markings:

Using only Polly Scale acrylics, I started by painting the Sky undersides, then the black wing half. This was done to aid British anti-aircraft crews in recognizing friend from foe. It’s also a convenient way to give some variety to an otherwise stock RAF camouflage. Because the Aeromaster instructions didn’t have details, I had to post a question on aircraftresourcecenter.com, from which I received a paint guide from IPMS Canada (thanks Tom). The topside was sprayed with British Dark Earth and Dark Green using paper masks.

The decals were supplied by AeroMaster, in a large ‘Battle of Britain’ commemorative package that I’d bought about 10 years ago. At that time I paid $30 for the package, which gives marking for several dozen British and German planes. Since then, IPMS Canada has included McKnight’s markings on a smaller, less expensive sheet.

The AeroMaster decals went on nicely. They also responded well to Gunze’s Mr. Marksofter, although I had to cut a couple slits into some of the marking to make them settle into the panel lines.

Polly Scale flat coat killed the shine, and some pastel chalks created exhaust and gun powder stains. The two photos of McKnight posing with his plane clearly show that this was a heavily used plane. There is heavy paint chipping, especially at the wing roots. To make the paint chips, I pulled out a silver coloured Prisma-colour pencil crayon and started tapping away.

Conclusions:

Way back in 1999, I bought a Hurricane Mk.II, and promptly screwed it up. Two years later, I built a Mk.I as a practice before risking my McKnight decals. That Hurricane took awards in Alberta, Saskatchewan, BC, and Utah, and satisfied my immediate desire for a Hurricane. Seven years later, I’ve finally gotten around to building a Hurricane in McKnight’s markings. It wasn’t’ hard, and my skills have obviously advanced enough that I didn’t worry about risking my decals.

At long last, I’ve completed my McKnight Hurricane. It will definitely be the first model I bring to any local model show – just so I can explain that’s where McKnight Blvd. comes from.

(Incidentally, Barlow Trail is named after Neil Barlow, another Calgarian, and the personal ground crewman for 242 Squadron’s Douglas Bader. How do you build a model of that?)