Soviet markings La-5/La-7

[PMoz99]

A few months back Gabor kindly set the record straight regarding markings for late La-5s and La-7s. The red outlines you see most of the time are apparently fiction, with dark blue outlines to white numbers being applied at the factory.
But were these strictly adhered to after delivery?
I have seen many examples (some attached) and I wonder if these are reliable or not. Certainly the photo should be!
Can anyone help?
Thanks
Peter

[HGabor]

Hi Peter,
Yes, late La-5s and La-7s left the factory (mainly Factory No.21, Gorky, Russia - the main Lavochkin builder) with applied white numbers (= plane no. within batch) with thin blue outline, not red. Kozhedub's La-7 still has the blue outline preserved in museum. Interestingly Yevstigneev's La-5 No.14 was Kozhedub's old plane that he inherited from him. I am not convinced that his plane did not carry the blue outline as per poor photo quality and similar tones in grayscale. Drawing colors, however, certainly have no evidence values. I personally do not know about planes, where the numbers were changed on frontline airfields with similar style digits that were previously applied at the factory. What could be the reason for it, once it was already properly marked? Unless it was a battle damage repair and they simply did not bother the blue outline.
Cheers,
Gabor

[HGabor]

Here is another pic of Yevstigneev's famous La-5 No.'14', where the blue outline perhaps looks a bit better. (True, it is hard to see similar colors in grayscale.)

Gabor

[PMoz99]

Thank you again for your help, Gabor.
I did read that white 14 was shared by, or passed on to, at leas 3 different pilots - Kozhedub, Evstigneev and Bryzgalov, and wondered why the number would change. Battle damage certainly might be a plausible reason. In that case it could be possible the 14 on the starboard side might still have the outline ......
The picture you posted is very small and impossible to see any outline on it - I assume the arrow you drew points to an outline you can see on your copy?
You made no direct comment on the black 96 - I assume then that there is no corroborating evidence for that one, or any similar?
Thanks again
Peter

[HGabor]

Hi Peter,
I have never seen black digits on a La-5, so if the drawing is correct, then it was made after an unknown photo of an unusual plane. (But I still doubt the red outline.) Based on No.14, the serial number could be like 3921xx14 from an unknown batch, where:

39 = Factory code of the La-5F/-FN fighter
21 = No. of Gorky factory (Factory No.21)
xx = batch no.
14 = plane in the batch no, - applied as factory marking.

(Same with plane No.96: 3921xx96)

Cheers,
Gabor

[PMoz99]

Thanks again, Gabor!