AIRCRAFT COLOURS AND MARKINGS OF THE FIRST
WORLD WAR ERA
France: Breguet 14
The Br14 was initially finished in the yellow scheme. When camouflage
was introduced, each company that produced aircraft seemed to come up
with their own variations on the theme. In the late 1960s/early 70s, various
researchers (Toelle, Hardesty, Elman & Hastings) attempted to list
these (and other French marking practices) in a series of articles for
C&C(USA) entitled 'Project Butterfly". It is to these that we
are endebted as to a starting place for more recent depictions in books
and articles. I have used combinations of the Project Butterfly articles,
FMP French book (Davilla/Soltan/Durkota) and OTF 2/2 & 3/4 (Greg VanWyngarden
& Alan Toelle) to come up with the three views below. There are descrepancies
between the previously published versions, all of which I trust are solved
in the recent Datafile Special on the Br14 by Alan Toelle.
The PB articles gave names to the various Br14 camouflage patterns: G-1,
G-2, G-3 and G-4. All of these used the same five colours in the same
basic way, but there were differences that allow one to determine the
manufacturer by the pattern used.
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G-1 is used on Farman built Br14s
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G-2 is used on Breguet built Br14s
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G-3 is used on late-Michelin built Br14. Around serial 4146, Michelin
corrected their previously reversed pattern (G-4). Michelin has their
cocarde centered betwen two ribs.
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G-4 is an early Michelin built Br14. The colours on the G-4 variant
are reversed from the usual sequences and have the footprint on the
port wing, as well as large blotches of green and brown on the cowl
panels. Other patterns have these panels as being one colour or the
other, not both.
The discrepancies between the various sources are that what FMP says
is the top view of a G-1 is what OTF called a G-3. This pattern features
relatively large blocks of colour on the fuselage as well as roughly clenched
fist style of footprint on the stbd wing and is quite distinctive. Both
agree on what is a G-2 and G-4. Since G-3 is supposed to be the reverse
of G-4, I must assume that FMP has the patterns mislabelled for the top
views of the G-1 and G-3. In PB what is labelled as a G-1 is shown as
a G-2 in the other two sources, so I am going with the latter choice for
G-2.
As there were a range of shades for each colour, I have chosen to use
various mixes for each colour in the different profiles. The basic colours
are: beige, light green, dark green, brown and black.

PATTERN G-1
Farman Built
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PATTERN G-2
Breguet Built
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PATTERN G-4
Early Michelin Built
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PATTERN G-3
Late Michelin Built
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Breguet Br14A2 793
-
Escadrille Br.11
Early 1918
Source: http://albindenis.free.fr
|

Breguet Br14B2
-
Escadrille Br.11
Early 1918
Source: http://albindenis.free.fr |

Breguet Br14B2 1168
Escadrille Br.66
Source: OTF 11/3 |

Breguet Br14B2
Escadrille Br.107
Source: OTF 11/3 |

Breguet Br14B2
Ltt Jean Luciani / Slt Roger de Lumley
Escadrille Br.111
1918
Source: http://albindenis.free.fr |

Breguet Br14B2
Adj Edouard Millot / Sgt Léon Lavergne
Escadrille Br.111
May 1918
Source: http://albindenis.free.fr
|

Breguet Br14B2
-
Escadrille Br.117
-
Source: Windsock 7/5 |

Breguet Br14B2
2/Lt Lehr / Lt Charles
Escadrille Br.117
1918
Source: Windsock 7/5
|

Breguet Br.14B2 12203
-
Escadrille Br.129
-
Source: OTF 11/3
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Breguet Br.14B2 13005
-
Escadrille Br.134
-
Source: FMP French Book
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Breguet Br.14A2 779
Escadrille Br.202
1917
Source: FMP French Book
|

Breguet Br14A2
-
Escadrille Br.209
1917
Source: FMP French Book |

Breguet Br14A2 No.75
-
Escadrille Br.209
1917
Source: FMP French Book |

Breguet Br14 A2 No.84
Serrant / Dreyfus
Escadrille Br.220
1917
Source: FMP French Book
|

Breguet Br14 A2 7692
-
Escadrille Br.227
March 1918
Source: Windsock |
|

Breguet Br14B2
-
Escadrille Br.504
-
Source: Profile No.157
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American Br14s |

Belgian Br14 |

Polish Br14s |
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Uruguayan Br14 |
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