Crashed WW2 Spitfire flies again after £3m refit

[exmanman]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-cambridgeshire-39220403

[oldpax]

Obviously it was not a two seater when it crashed so why restore it as such!??

[DaveReidUK]

Obviously it was not a two seater when it crashed so why restore it as such!??

Have you looked at how much you can charge for flying Joe Public in a 2-seat Spit ?

[treadigraph]

Peter Arnold could probably tell us how much original metal went into the rebuild apart from the data plate, but I'll wager almost nothing. I'm perfectly happy to see this aeroplane emerge as a two-seater and maybe I'll get a ride in it one day. If MH434 got a back seat I'd call foul.

[DaveReidUK]

Peter Arnold could probably tell us how much original metal went into the rebuild apart from the data plate, but I'll wager almost nothing.

A bit more than just the data plate:

http://forum.keypublishing.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=153088&d=1178565099

[treadigraph]

Wow, that is indeed a substantial hulk!

[India Four Two]

I'm ambivalent about two-seat Spifires.

I think they are ugly, but without them, I wouldn't have been able to fly one! :ok:

[chevvron]

Peter Arnold .....
Chap came up the tower at Fairoaks about 3 years ago to pay a landing fee for an aircraft coming to pick him up. He gazed at the view and casually mentioned 'my father used to own this airport'!!
At that time he said he was managing an aircraft museum in the USA.
I didn't mention I'd met him before in his younger days when he was in the habit of riding a motorbike through the lines of parked aircraft at Blackbushe after dark; all you could see was his brake light.

[treadigraph]

That would be David Arnold I think, Doug's son. Might be another? Peter is not related; between them, Doug and Peter recovered quite a few of the surviving Spitfires.

[ChrisVJ]

The picture from the Mail online showed the aircraft being run up without it's engine cowls. It also showed a row of what looked like circular ports along the underside of the leading edge.

The Spitfire was described as being a "Low Level" aircraft. Does anyone know if the ports were an adaption for airflow for low level or just access points for the wing? (I thought the usual adaption for low level was clipped wings.)

[treadigraph]

Access points. Clipping the wings improved rate of roll.

[ChrisVJ]

Were they typical on all Spitfires? I don't remember seeing access points there on Spitfire wings before, but it might just be that they were always covered and I didn't take note of them.

[treadigraph]

My only immediate reference are some 1/48 kits, Mk1, MkIX and MkXVI, and a Seafire XV, all of which have them marked, looks like they are held in place by screws or dzus fasteners.

According to Peter Arnold on Flypast's forum, the picture Dave has kindly posted actually shows parts of NH341 (presumably the cockpit section) and wreckage from another Spitfire (the confetti?) which is also poised to make a comeback as a two seater in due course.

You can never have too many airworthy Spitfires in my opinion!

[DaveReidUK]

My only immediate reference are some 1/48 kits, Mk1, MkIX and MkXVI, and a Seafire XV, all of which have them marked, looks like they are held in place by screws or dzus fasteners.

For example:

http://www.ipmsstockholm.org/magazine/2006/11/images/benshahar_spitfire_30.jpg

I have to admit I've never noticed them on a real Spitfire (or on my Airfix 1/72 Spit many years ago) so I suspect they were extremely well-fitting and therefore almost invisible under a couple of coats of Grey or Sky, as the case may be.

[India Four Two]

I have to admit I've never noticed them on a real Spitfire

Dave,

Here's the only picture I could find:

https://hushkit.files.wordpress.com/2012/10/wing-commander-j-e-johnson-leader-of-no-144-canadian-wing-raf-rests-on-the-the-wing-of-his-supermarine-spitfire-mark-ix-with-his-labrador-retriever-sally1.jpg?w=830&h=664

[Wander00]

Wonder what the dog's name was.................

[Nige321]

wreckage from another Spitfire (the confetti?) which is also poised to make a comeback as a two seater in due course.

MJ271 is to be restored as a single seater now apparently...

[treadigraph]

ML295 is the next two seater, MJ271 is a complete airframe from the Aviodome museum which arrived at Duxford a few years ago.

Wonder what the dog's name was

Ginger!

[albatross]

Sally according to JEJ in "Wingleader".

[India Four Two]

Looks too black to be ginger. Now let me think!

[Wander00]

Just watched a programme about the Vacher Hurricane rebuild - absolutely fascinating

[brokenlink]

Wander, was that on Nutfluks? Whole series on there regarding a/c restorations including the Percival Q6 in Norfolk.

[DHfan]

It's just been on PBS America too. Freeview or Sky so possibly still available.
A series of six, some substantially more about the aeroplane and some lots of waffle related to the aircraft the programme was nominally about.

[megan]

Does anyone know if the ports were an adaption for airflow for low level or just access points for the wing?ChrisVJ, looked at the Mail photo. They are access points for the person holding the dolly when bucking the rivets for the leading edge construction.

Don't know, but would be a good place as well to run such things as nav light wiring, pitot tube line etc. Could be why they are still open.

[Wander00]

Yes I saw it on PBS - be good to see the Q6 aviating

[Chef Bruz]

now that would make a good caption competition pic...

[The Member]

NH341 has finally flown again . :ok:


Crashed WW2 Spitfire's first flight since 1944 - BBC News (http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-cambridgeshire-39529403)

[Mark22]

That would be David Arnold I think, Doug's son. Might be another? Peter is not related; between them, Doug and Peter recovered quite a few of the surviving Spitfires.


To clarify. The late Doug Arnold had two sons, David, very interested in old aircraft, as his father, and Peter, more interested in the arts and antiques. He also had a daughter Kay.

Spitfire historian Peter R Arnold is not related to the Doug Arnold family but to add to the confusion his wife is also named Kay.

In the mid 1970's Peter R Arnold was directly involved with Doug Arnold in the initial surveys and recovery of the 'Indian Spitfires'.

PeterA

[Wander00]

G'day Pete. How is restoration going. Friend was interested (like "very") to see her late husband's items in the cockpit mock up


W

[noflynomore]

Re the underwing access panels;
Some models of Spitfire suffered a problem where fuel vapour leaked into the leading edge and backfires from the exhaust could light them up which blew the leading edge off the wing. I imagine on early runs one would be very careful to monitor the le for fuel vapour but it's just a guess. What the designer put them there for is probably another matter.
The late Bev Snook once described to me how this happened to his personal Spit which he used to fly to business meetings wearing a pinstripe suit, bowler hat and umbrella stuffed down the side of the cockpit. The damage effectively scrapped it.
I look at the wreckage pictured above and marvel at how times have changed

[Mark22]

The picture from the Mail online showed the aircraft being run up without it's engine cowls. It also showed a row of what looked like circular ports along the underside of the leading edge.



These ports are for access for the dolly to 'buck' the solid c/sk rivets on the upper leading edge skin. All Spitfires and Seafires have them.

In years past they have helped to identify some Spitfires/Seafires as some but not all subcontractors would stencil the military serial on the inner face.

PeterA