Message for Britain

[Bill Greenwood]

If there is anyone in England, who might be willing and able to send a message to me, I would appreciate it. There are two men in the news who have departed Goodwood with the intention of flying a highly polished MK IX around the world, quite a goal for a plane which is known to be short range, the standard Mk IX would have had 168 gallons U S internally in 3 tanks as a late war fighter ,or 140 gallons British.

I don't have a phone number or address for them at Goodwood, but understand they are planning to come to the U S and if so I'd really like to buy them dinner, complete with room temperature beer, if it is convenient for them and of course offer any assistance that I might be able to. I'm pretty good at polishing oil or exhaust off also. And good luck to them, I think the odds are in their favor.

[rwanttaja]

For those colonials who hadn't heard of this:

https://www.silverspitfire.com/

Ron "Wild colonial boy" Wanttaja

[Floatsflyer]

Bill, looks like you're in luck. They'll be in Colorado Springs on August 23. They're flying the 2 place, same as yours.

[Bill Greenwood]

Floats, as I read it they are in the polished silver single seat Mk IX, not the two seater. They have a support plane, I think a Piglatus. The schedule says they are going to be in Erie, just north of Denver on the 20 ,wish they were coming to Loveland where Ray Middleton has a shop, working on a Hurricane now, or to Boulder which is a fun town and where I used to base. Its 4100 ft long, at 5300 elevation, long enough for a Mk IX, but not a lot of room to float half the runway. Its so pretty there, and they can even find warm beer, or better yet ice cold.

Id like to fly the part from Erie to Colo Springs, but that other part. looking down for hours at an ice cold ocean is not my cup of tea, Kind of like as the song goes. "Leave those Zeros to the other heroes." Especially since the RAF PILOT NOTES under the section on ditching says, Don't. To quote, "If at all possible abandon the plane by parachute as the ditching qualities are known to be very poor."

You put your life in the hands of Mr. Rolls and Mr. Royce and those were two smart guys, along with a lot of others.

[rwanttaja]

Id like to fly the part from Erie to Colo Springs, but that other part. looking down for hours at an ice cold ocean is not my cup of tea, Kind of like as the song goes. "Leave those Zeros to the other heroes." Especially since the RAF PILOT NOTES under the section on ditching says, Don't. To quote, "If at all possible abandon the plane by parachute as the ditching qualities are known to be very poor."

The biography of Robert Tuck references a Spitfire pilot with the nickname, "Green to Black." It comes from his description of ditching his airplane...."everything was a pretty green at first, but then it all turned black and I started to be concerned...."

Ron "Glub" Wanttaja

[Floatsflyer]

Floats, as I read it they are in the polished silver single seat Mk IX, not the two seater.

In one of the pilot bios it said he and his Spitfire pilot partner bought a 2 seater at auction 10 years ago. I assumed or misinterpreted this to be the Siver Spitfire.

[Bill Greenwood]

I spoke to the FBO at Erie and they said they had not heard at all from the Spitfire team. I am going to be near Erie Sat, and would like to meet the guys and see the plane. The live tracker shows them to be in Monroe , La. now, Thur afternoon which doesn't make sense and is nowhere near their planned route. Anyone know anything?

[Floatsflyer]

Sorry Bill, as Sgt. Shultz use to say,"I know nutting." Just what's in the online schedule.

[Mark17]

Bill- I found this online: https://www.bgdailynews.com/news/ww-ii-plane-on-flight-around-the-world-stops-in/article_769a7e65-1b4e-524f-af23-74dcd85d9824.html

It’s an article from bowling green ky that states the spitfire stopped in Bowling Green KY yesterday. At the top of the article is the email of the journalist who interviewed the crew. She might have some info for ya! I hope you get to see it and meet them!

[Bill Greenwood]

Thanks, Mark they must have changed their route. It was supposed to be Penn, Iow, then Neb and Erie Co for a couple of days, then Col Springs and non to Nelis AFB at Las Vegas. Ky is not on that route. Maybe they really are in La?

[Bill Greenwood]

I phoned the FBO in Monroe and the very nice lady on the phone says they were there last night and left this morning and she doesnt know where but thinks the talked about the "west coast". Who knows?

[Bill Greenwood]

The tracker is working again, the headed SW, mabye to avoid weather and are in west LA.. now in Huntsville, Texas

[Bill Greenwood]

Now in Las Vegas, I think those guys are going to be surprised at how hot it can be there, and how dry.

[Floatsflyer]

Will you get a chance to meet up with them somewhere?

[Bill Greenwood]

No, I don't know them. I was hoping they would come into Erie, just north of Denver. Ray Middleton and QG Aviation are about 20 miles from there and I was 8 miles away at a race track. But they didn't; follow the schedule the posted for some reason. perhaps they got a $$$ offer or to avoid weather. They went south. QG is the shop that just won Reserve Grand Champion at Osh with Eddie Kurdzel"s Fairy Firefly.

[Floatsflyer]

QG is the shop that just won Reserve Grand Champion at Osh with Eddie Kurdzel"s Fairy Firefly.

It's a big, beautiful warbird that looked impressive sitting at show centre. Canada has 2 of them at the National Aviation and Space Museum in Ottawa and the Shearwater Aviation Museum in Shearwater, Nova Scotia.

[Bill Greenwood]

I'd guess the Spitfire crew is likely making a book and or video of the journey to sell, thus they are keeping to themselves. One of their guys came to speak at Osh and then ducked into the headquarters right away and was gone. Some people like to meet others and share and some are very private. I think most often when you dont understand a situation the answer is Money $$$$$$$.

[rwanttaja]

Currently at Paine Field in Everett WA (just north of Seattle) on a four-day maintenance stop.

Ron Wanttaja

[Louis]

They're here in Fairbanks AK now. The way the weather's looking over on the coast they may be here for a while.

[Bill Greenwood]

The Spitfire long distance flight never got much notice here in the U S, and seems to have pretty much dropped from the news altogether. But they still have their internet site and you can still track it most days. So I looked it up now and they are in Japan, which they say is the halfway point and are going to take a break to do 50 hour maintenance. I'm sure that would be an oil change and I expect and hope they have the full flow oil filters adapted that Jack Hovey has for U S based planes. The Merlin flows so much oil, capacity is about 12 Gallons, not quarts, that 2 filter cartridges are required. Also of course checking torque of head, looking at plugs, clean air fliter, and general well being. They don't say anything about any mechanical problems at all, after all 50 hours is not that much and you can cover a lot of ground at 250 mph average, is this case about half of the world. I wonder if the pilots can hear anything at this point, and they are probably glad to give their legs a stretch and butts a rest.
it's quite an adventure ,what could they do after this? Most other airplanes are just not in the same category flying wise and or history wise, most anything else is a notch down. I only have a smidge of jet time, Lear 25, nowhere near this, really just cramped ,even if fast, and a bit of Soko, nice looking, nice flying, but you don't dream about it.
Wish I had gotten to meet these folks, maybe some day over there.

[Bill Greenwood]

They are in Baharian now, long way they've gone,still some to go. I'd like to fly that last leg back into Goodwood!

[Bill Greenwood]

Just looked it up, they are in Jordan very near the border with Israel. It's not widely known, but Israel has at least one Spitfire, painted all black. And there museum flies it, or at least the did at one time. I cautioned the pilot about the short range nature due to somewhat small fuel supply and he reminded me that they were a small country surrounded by unfriendly ones so weren't going far from home. The also have or had a 51, and I think 109. likely an HA Spanish version.

[Mayhemxpc]

I was curious about the 109, since I knew the IAF flew Czech built 109's called S-199. They were essentially Me-109K's with a Junkers Jumo engine as in the He111 and the same prop as the Heinkel. It was NOT a good combination. I looked it up and the IAF museum has the last one on display.

In the air war in 1948, the Israelis flew Me-109s shooting down Egyptian Spitfires. Life is far stranger than fiction.

[Floatsflyer]

In the air war in 1948, the Israelis flew Me-109s shooting down Egyptian Spitfires. Life is far stranger than fiction.

Which just proves the notion that it's a little bit of airplane and a whole lotta pilot.

During the War of Independance in 1948 the IAF also flew P-51's and Spitfires flown by former fighter pilots from the US and Canada.

[Bill Greenwood]

Chris Mayer, its been a long time, but I used to know a man, FAA employee from Albuquerque, I think who had flown for Israel in the years after WWII. I recall a story about combat between Mk XVIII Israeli Spitfires shooting down Egyptian Mk IXs. I am not sure at all about this, but don't recall any 109s. A Jumo engine Spanish 109 would unlikely be a match for a Spitfire, with either the late 2 stage Merlin or the Griffon.

[Mayhemxpc]

Bill,

I was taught a long time ago that "hamburger is hamburger, it doesn't matter how you wrap it." There is the story that King Hussein once outflew two (I think Syrian) Mig 17's while flying a DeHavilland Dove, whereby they learned that one can only tie the record for low flying.

In any case, they weren't the Spanish versions. They were Czech built 109Ks. The only country to ever buy them were Czechoslovakia and the very desperate IAF. There are a few interesting articles on them, including at one in Air and Space.

[Mayhemxpc]

From the Isaeli Air Force homepage: "The IAF performed its first sortie on May 29th 1948, and helped bring an Egyptian advance near Ashdod to a halt using four Czechoslovakian Messerschmitt planes."

[Bill Greenwood]

The Spitfire is back in England today Dec. 5, after about a 20,000 mile flight.

[rwanttaja]

A necropost, but this is pretty cool.

As part of their fundraising efforts, the Silver Spitfire folks are selling a print of the Spitfire and Oregon's Mount Hood:
8760

Information at:
https://silverspitfirephotography.com/collections/frontpage/products/stratovolcano

Ron Wanttaja