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Thread: 20 Brand New Unused Spitfires Discovered in Burma

  1. #1

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    20 Brand New Unused Spitfires Discovered in Burma

    The aircraft were buried at the end of World War II with some possibly being added a few months later, as they were no longer needed for operations. To avoid having them fall in the wrong hands, they were buried in their transport crates covered in waxed and greased paper.


    http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/ukne...ned-to-UK.html

    I figured some may not have heard this yet and how cool is that.
    Last edited by JimmyH; 04-18-2012 at 09:14 AM.

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    steveinindy's Avatar
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    Very cool news. I think someone else posted about it the other day though. I can't wait to see some of these birds back where they belong.
    Unfortunately in science what you believe is irrelevant.

    "I'm an old-fashioned Southern Gentleman. Which means I can be a cast-iron son-of-a-***** when I want to be."- Robert A. Heinlein.



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    Yea, I just noticed it had already been posted . I must have had tunnel vision when I looked through the topics to miss it . Oh well , still great to hear.

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    steveinindy's Avatar
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    No worries. This is the sort of news worthy of a second thread!
    Unfortunately in science what you believe is irrelevant.

    "I'm an old-fashioned Southern Gentleman. Which means I can be a cast-iron son-of-a-***** when I want to be."- Robert A. Heinlein.



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    There is some doubt about the final results if and when all this is found. So far it seems to be a story of how detectors see something large underground and maybe a small camera was sent down and found something. This is not the same as a real intact Spitfire sitting on the surface, but it may be in the end.

    20 ft 0r 30 ft of earth is very heavy, it is possible that the weight might crush a normal shipping container.
    Some have remarked on another site, (warbirdinformation) that the "magnesium rivets" would have turned to dust. And I have heard this story from some looking to sell other planes, especially in the U S. I don't think so. The rivets are an alloy with magnesium to add strenght at light weight. They don't spontaneously disingtergrate at a certain time, like a new car which may be pretty trouble free until the month after the warranty expires.
    If the rivets are kept painted and thus moisture free there may last decades. There are Spit MK I from before 1940 that are in museums and they did not turn into a pile of dust. If the rivets were painted and then sprayed with a protective grease or oil, and not subject to flooding, the plane could be in excellent shape.

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    Quote Originally Posted by Bill Greenwood View Post
    There is some doubt about the final results if and when all this is found. So far it seems to be a story of how detectors see something large underground and maybe a small camera was sent down and found something. This is not the same as a real intact Spitfire sitting on the surface, but it may be in the end.
    Remember the "perfectly preserved" P38's buried in a glacier......?

  7. #7

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    Marty, the P-38s and B-17 were much different. They crash landed on the glacier or force landed and sunk in the ice and over the years under more and more snow or ice. They weren't crated or preserved in any way. And one of the 38s is flying.

    Who knows what the real story is on the Spits, if they are there at all and how they were put there? But they certainly could be in great shape.
    Last edited by Bill Greenwood; 04-19-2012 at 09:50 AM.

  8. #8

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    This car was preserved in a vault and it didn't do so well..

    http://www.reuters.com/article/2007/06/16/us-timecapsule-car-idUSN1628272520070616

  9. #9

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    so this guy does all the work to find them....but who owns them? Burma? Did he set up a deal with the gov't ahead of time? I would be worried that going through all this trouble only to find out they won't even let you have ONE for your own use.....

  10. #10

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    I had seen the article about the car in the vault, it was much worse than I would have guessed. It seems that they will go through much greater efforts to restore aircraft , about a year ago another spitfire(P9374) was returned to the air that had crashed on a beach and sank into the sand during ww2 and there wasn't much left when tides pushed it back to the surface. They say the aircraft are in crates. How much of the aircraft would be there? Would the engine and propeller be installed and the wings be in the same crate as the fuselage or seperated ?

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