Duxford Spitfires & Merlins

Pete · Post by **Pete** » Tue Aug 07, 12 4:43 pm

V8 Sam wrote:i assume they are remade spitfires?

as there are only 2?! originals left flying?

i believe?

They are VERY real (and worth about £3m each).
At duxford for the BOB commoration they had 28 up in the air at the same time in formation - "Big wing"

V8 Sam · Post by **V8 Sam** » Tue Aug 07, 12 4:51 pm

so how many are left?

as im sure i remember hearing that the ones that fly with the b52 bomber are the only remaining examples left?

Ivor · Post by **Ivor** » Tue Aug 07, 12 4:54 pm

V8 Sam wrote:i assume they are remade spitfires?

as there are only 2?! originals left flying?

i believe?

Further to Pete's comment above, I think you may be getting confused with Lancaster bombers. Although there are several surviving, only two are fully airworthy, the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight one and another in Canada.

mad machs · Post by **mad machs** » Tue Aug 07, 12 4:56 pm

RobTwin wrote:
Guy wrote:
Dave81 wrote:
What is the benefit (reson for being) of the twin prop on plane 277???

Not seen one before?
Yes you have.......

four pictures above it

Contra-rotating propellers have been found to be between 6% and 16% more efficient than normal propellers.[1] However they can be very noisy, with increases in noise in the axial (forward and aft) direction of up to 30 dB, and tangentially 10 dB.[1] Most of this extra noise can be found in the higher frequencies. These substantial noise problems will limit commercial applications unless solutions can be found. One possibility is to enclose the contra-rotating propellers in a shroud. It is also helpful if the two propellers have a different number of blades (e.g. four blades on the forward propeller and five on the aft).[citation needed]

The efficiency of a contra-rotating prop is somewhat offset by its mechanical complexity. Nonetheless, coaxial contra-rotating propellers and rotors are moderately common in military aircraft.

and that other plane has 4 of em!

Not only has this Shack got four RR Griffon 58's of approx 2000 HP, it also has two RR Viper jets tucked in behind the outer engines, in effect, a six engined aircraft

But poor old XF708 has only just come in from the cold, retired in 1971, it was to become a flying exhibit, in reality, once landed it's wheels remained firmly on the ground, think the IWM have been shamed into giving the old tart a quick spruce up as she was getting pretty iffy around the edges.

Pete · Post by **Pete** » Tue Aug 07, 12 5:03 pm

I agree Mike, it was looking a bit sad and tatty, as was the Victor; now that really needs bringing back to its former glory.

As I live very close to Duxford I have Mk5's and Mk 9's over my house all the time; as well as lots of P51's, Hurricanes and the BBMF, the B17, and the PBY Cat.

If I was half good at photography (and had a half good camera) I could great shots of classic planes over the Thatched cottage.

We also get lots of Apaches and Hueys and the twin rotor jobs from Bassinbourn barracks............

mad machs · Post by **mad machs** » Tue Aug 07, 12 5:09 pm

How a Shackleton MR3/3 looked back in the day-

My old man & crew, determined to get a good photo of a Soviet cruiser-

(note the jet pipes at the rear of the outer nacelles)

& 42sqn aircrew, standing in front of WR977 ( airframe now preserved at Newark Notts)

Steve · Post by **Steve** » Tue Aug 07, 12 6:36 pm

Fantastic pics!! You know that you are on the right forum when you look at all these fantastic cars and the Mopars get the goosbumps going for me everytime......the black e type is stunning but its just not a Mopar! Think what you could buy with the money thats worth!!

Pete · Post by **Pete** » Tue Aug 07, 12 6:44 pm

I could happily go for one of the Alvis cars, they were superb.......

'Vette was ok too, spoke to the chap (us fellow 'vette owners must stick together

) As ever, a car that was bought "restored" and then the 327 went Kablooeee....more money and time...........

Dave81 · Post by **Dave81** » Wed Aug 08, 12 1:36 pm

Thanks for the snippet of info Guy/chaps, as my next question is why they did'nt catch on..........Learn something everyday!!!!

RobTwin · Post by **RobTwin** » Wed Aug 08, 12 1:48 pm

as it seems so popular, here's another pic of that Shackleton

Would be great to see it flying again....

mad machs · Post by **mad machs** » Wed Aug 08, 12 6:06 pm

RobTwin wrote:as it seems so popular, here's another pic of that Shackleton

Would be great to see it flying again....

Sadly it's highly unlikely that this MR3/3 or any ex RAF MR3/3 will fly again, there is a potentially airworthy MR3 (without the Viper jets) in South Africa, which may fly again.

There is an AEW2 ( in MR2 guise) at Coventry, which could possibly fly again, given a bit of time & more importantly money & importantly again CAA permission to do so.

WR963

terryr · Post by **terryr** » Wed Aug 08, 12 7:55 pm

anyone know the progress of the spitfires they found burried and are bringing back here to be restored

TYREMAN · Post by **TYREMAN** » Wed Aug 08, 12 8:31 pm

Scrap them i say,the war is over,killing machines anyway, so spend the cash on the living.Give it the NHS and our nurses treating todays wounded.

mad machs · Post by **mad machs** » Wed Aug 08, 12 9:11 pm

TYREMAN wrote:Scrap them i say,the war is over,killing machines anyway, so spend the cash on the living.Give it the NHS and our nurses treating todays wounded.

Most of the airworthy & preserved warbirds are privately funded so I can't see your aircraft scrapage scheme being that popular.
If we're on a scraping of machinery kick, purely on the grounds of revenge for numbers killed per type, then we'd have to start with the motorcar, it would be a long long time before we got to the likes of the Spitfire, plus of course you'd have to weigh in more aircraft than actually reside in the UK to sort the NHS out.

On the Shackleton front-

It was a postwar aircraft & was mainly used as a search & rescue aircraft & later an airborne early warning platform, granted its primary role was a maritime patrol aircraft & sub hunter, but it did precious little of that on an operational level, it was used for colonial policing, but only for a very short time. Going through my dads old flying log for Shacks, it seems that OT & S&R was the squadrons bread & butter.

The Shack saved more lives than it ever took, often flying on operations of 18hrs or more to provide assistance to ships in distress, ditched aircraft & many more in peril on sea for various reasons. It could carry airborne life boats, lindholme gear & flares to provide illumination for night searches.

Kev · Post by **Kev** » Thu Aug 09, 12 3:53 am

Sam, time to attend Google history lessons, there are umpteen original spits flying, some with the ugly (but wouldn't mind a go in!) 2 seat conversion (as well as original 2 seater training ones) However, it all depends on what you call original. Is it restored, rebuilt or a tribute? A few have been built round a data plate. Then there is the question of WW2 era or later Griffon engined types which were a much different plane to the dainty original. There are still some fabulous restorations coming out of the various sheds in GB including a recent Mk1 which even had the exact seat that Nicholson used who won the only VC in the Battle of Britain. Sorry for the scant info, at work with no reference books!

The Haynes Spitfire book is good for a brief overview of the Spit, but now out of date as regards airworthy examples.