Category: Restorations / Reproductions

Posted on by

“The People’s Mosquito” Awards Contract to Build, Test DH Mosquito RL249

An effort by Leicestershire-based charity The People’s Mosquito, Ltd. (TPM) to return a de Havilland Mosquito to UK skies has taken a major step forward with the announcement of a contract with East Sussex-based Retrotec, Ltd. to construct and test the machine.

The deal will provide Retrotec’s restoration experts with full access to TPM’s massive collection of Mossie engineering drawings and allow the aircraft to be to constructed in the UK. TPM Managing Director John Lilley states: Continue reading “The People’s Mosquito” Awards Contract to Build, Test DH Mosquito RL249

Posted on by

A Two-Seat Hawker Hurricane is on the Horizon

Hawker Hurricane IIB G-HHII will reportedly be converted into a two-seater by UK-based Hawker Restorations, Ltd.

The aircraft was manufactured by the Canadian Car & Foundry Company in 1942 and served with the RCAF until 1944. It then passed through a succession of owners, including Tony Ditheridge of Hawker Restorations, who restored it to a fighter-bomber configuration in the markings of BE505 of 174 (Mauritius) Squadron. The machine was acquired by the Hangar 11 Collection in 2007 and performed its first post-restoration flight in 2009. After being offered for sale, the machine once again joined the Hawker Restorations family and performed a short flight from North Weald to its new home at Elmsett on January 19.

Warbird Lovers has reported that the modification to a two-seat configuration will take roughly a year, with the second seat being positioned behind the pilot’s seat with an elongated cockpit and canopy. It is said that the machine will retain its fighter-bomber appearance.

Future plans for the machine have not yet been announced. It is also unclear whether the conversion of G-HHII is related to the Hawker Restoration’s recently announced opportunity to own the “only two-seater Hurricane in the world.”

(via Warbird Lovers and Hawker Restorations, Ltd. Photo: Paul Nelhams via Wikimedia Commons)

Posted on by

Hefty Tax Bill Could Lead to Destruction of Restored Avro Lancaster Nose Section

A painstakingly restored Avro Lancaster cockpit section is in danger of being scrapped due to a hefty inheritance tax.

The aircraft was relegated to a field in Lincolnshire following WW2, where its remains were discovered by Jeremy Hall in the 1970s. He spent 20 years restoring the nose section and it has since been widely exhibited for educational purposes and as a tribute to Bomber Command.

However, Hall’s descendants are reportedly facing an unaffordable tax bill of roughly $60,000 on the machine – a prospect that could result in it being destroyed upon or before his passing.

The cockpit recently arrived at Royal Albert Hall to commemorate the 75th anniversary of the day the green light was given for Operation Chastise. Conducted in May 1943, 19 Lancasters of 617 Squadron attacked a number of German dams, resulting in severe flooding that destroyed or damaged power stations, factories and mines.

Click below to learn more about the display.

Continue reading Hefty Tax Bill Could Lead to Destruction of Restored Avro Lancaster Nose Section

Posted on by

Hawker Sea Fury WG655 Returns to the Air Following Re-Engineering

Earlier today, the Fighter Collection’s Hawker Sea Fury T-20 WG655/G-CHFP returned to the air for a series of three test flights following a period of re-engineering.

This particular machine was built by Hawker in 1951 and delivered to 781 Squadron. In 1957 it was converted to a target towing configuration and sold to the German Ministry of Defence. It was withdrawn from service in 1976 and ferried to Royal Navy Historic Flight in Yeovilton before being refinished at Royal Navy Air Yard Fleetlands. In 1990, WG655 suffered an engine failure shortly after takeoff, resulting in a wheels-up forced landing and collision with a tree. In 1993, the remains were acquired by Chuck Greenhill of Kenosha, Wisconsin. Restoration was begun by Tim McCarter and his crew and finished by Sanders Aeronautics in California. The aircraft returned to the air in 2005 and was sold to the Fighter Collection at Duxford in 2008.

The recent effort included the installation of a P&W R2800 engine in place of the conventional Bristol powerplant. Future plans, including possible participation at the Flying Legends event this summer, have not yet been announced.

Click below to check out photos of today’s flights.

Continue reading Hawker Sea Fury WG655 Returns to the Air Following Re-Engineering

Posted on by

F4U-7 Corsair Performs First Engine, Taxi Tests in New AU-1 Livery [Video]

Flying Colors Aviation of Benton Harbor, Michigan has reported the first run up and taxi tests for an F4U-7 Corsair which they recently refinished.

The aircraft appears to be B/N 133714, which was once on display at the USMC Museum in Quantico and flew in the TV series Baa Baa Black Sheep. It now wears the colors of AU-1 B/N 129378 (pictured above) flown by Marine Corps pilot Lt. Col. John F. “Jack” Bolt, who served in WW2 and the Korean War and earned ace status in both conflicts.

The aircraft will reportedly by departing soon, although an exact date and time had not been announced at the time of this writing. Click below to check out a photo of the repainted machine and a video of the recent engine test.

Continue reading F4U-7 Corsair Performs First Engine, Taxi Tests in New AU-1 Livery [Video]

Posted on by

IWM’s Hawker Hurricane Gate Guard Returns With New Livery

Earlier today, the Imperial War Museum at Duxford returned their Hawker Hurricane gate guard to display with a new livery.

As pictured above, the reproduction previously wore the markings of P2954 of 302 (Polish) Squadron flown by Tadeusz Pawel Chlopik, RAF (Polish Air Force). The new colors represent V7467, flown by Douglas Bader of 242 Squadron, RAF.

Click below to check out a photo of the Hurricane’s new appearance.

Continue reading IWM’s Hawker Hurricane Gate Guard Returns With New Livery

Posted on by

Spitfire to Arrive at Australian Home Following 10 Year Restoration

Fighter Pilot Adventure Flights, a Brisbane, Australia-based flight adventure company, has announced that their Spitfire Mk XVI (TE392) is about to arrive following a 10-year restoration.

The aircraft operated with the Royal Air Force and served as a gate guard at numerous RAF bases (including Wellesbourne Mountford, Waterbeach, Kemble and Credenhill) before being acquired by Warbirds Of GB, Ltd. and partially restored. It passed through the hands of several additional owners before arriving at the Lone Star Flight Museum in Texas, where it was restored to airworthy condition. It returned to the air in December 1999 but was damaged by flooding caused by Hurricane Ike in 2008.

The current restoration is nearing completion and Performance Aero will reportedly reassemble the aircraft and apply finishing touches before its expected arrival next week. It is expected to grace Australian skies by August of this year.

(via Fighter Pilot Adventure Flights Additional Information via Warbird Registry Photo: Bill Abbott via Flickr)

Posted on by

Hangar10 Collection Adds Newly Restored, Airworthy Bf 109 G-14

The Hangar 10 Collection has reportedly added a new Messerschmitt Bf 109 G-14 to its collection on the Pomeranian island of Usedom.

In 2017, the aircraft (S/N 462707) was fully restored to airworthy condition by Rare Bird Aviation near Vienna, Austria. It arrived at Hangar10 on February 5th and has since joined the collection’s G-6 (S/N 440738) and G-12 (S/N 440738), both of which are currently available for sale.

Hangar10 states that the new G-14 “shines” with its original DB 605 engine and reports that they are looking forward to admiring all three machines in a “messerschmitt formation in the sky above the island of usedom.”

Click below to check out newly released photos.

Continue reading Hangar10 Collection Adds Newly Restored, Airworthy Bf 109 G-14

Posted on by

Museum to Display Full-Scale Spitfire Sculpture During RW388 Restoration

The original Spitfire LF Mk. XVIe based at the Potteries Museum and Art Gallery in Hanley, Staffordshire has been dismantled ahead of a major, off-site restoration that will see it returned to its former glory.

The museum closed on January 22nd in order to remove the aircraft (RW388) from the popular Spitfire gallery, where it has been on display since 1985. When the facility reopens on February 10th, the gallery will reportedly contain a temporary replacement in the form of a full-scale Spitfire sculpture crafted by apprentices at KMF Group Ltd.

As previously reported, RW388 was originally built by Vickers-Armstrongs, Ltd. in 1945 and served in a training role during WW2. Following the war it was used as a gate guard at RAF Benson and RAF Andover before being officially presented to the city of Stoke-on-Trent by the Royal Air Force in 1972. After arriving at the museum, it was given a place of honor in the Spitfire gallery, which is dedicated to the type’s locally-born designer, Reginald Mitchell.

In 2019, the restored Spitfire is slated to return to the museum for display in a new, £6 million glass-fronted extension that will also include a new cafe and city square.

Click below to check out a time-lapse of RW388 being dismantled as well as photos of the replacement sculpture.

Continue reading Museum to Display Full-Scale Spitfire Sculpture During RW388 Restoration

Posted on by

TVAL Debuts New Albatros, Sopwith Pup at Hood Aerodrome

Yesterday, The Vintage Aviator, Ltd. (TVAL) debuted new Albatros D.Va and Sopwith Pup reproductions at Hood Aerodrome in Masterton, New Zealand.

The Albatros (seen above) is painted in the colors of a Jasta 11 machine flown by Ltn. Carl-August von Schoenebeck and bears the unit’s signature red on the nose, struts and undercarriage, while the pilot’s personal color, lilac, is applied to the tail surfaces. The new Le Rhone-powered Sopwith Pup wears the colors of N6185 “ANZAC” of 4(N) Squadron, RNAS, flown by FSLt C.J.Moir.

It is not yet known when the machines will make their public debut, as TVAL is not hosting any public flying weekends for the 2017/18 season.

Click below to check out a photo of the new Pup.

Continue reading TVAL Debuts New Albatros, Sopwith Pup at Hood Aerodrome