RN Skua in Norway….WoW! (2007 story continues)

Nearly 4 years on here is the Skua cockpit section on display at Bodo. its a bit tucked away.

And the 2.5x Ju-88 and He-111 that whent to Gardermoen just outside Oslo.

But that is what he said, it took a lot of red tape cutting to get the OK to do those.

In which case, they deserve even more credit – they don’t seem to let it slow them down!

I don’t know about that, but there does seem to have been an awful lot of work of this nature in the last few years. Off the top of my head I can think of all the Skua work (recoveries from fjords and on land, from around half a dozen airframes), the two Ju88s currently under restoration at Bodo, Fw190 raised in the North, a Bf109E, and the wonderful He115 (see http://navalairhistory.com/2012/11/23/heinkel-he115-brought-into-the-sun-at-sola/ with apologies for plugging my own website).

And the 2.5x Ju-88 and He-111 that whent to Gardermoen just outside Oslo.

But that is what he said, it took a lot of red tape cutting to get the OK to do those.

Link broken.

Is Norway much more open to recoveries these days?

I was told by my Norwegian pal that all military equipment is property of Norway thus takes a circus to get an OK to raise, or raised by the military with half a circus.

I don’t know about that, but there does seem to have been an awful lot of work of this nature in the last few years. Off the top of my head I can think of all the Skua work (recoveries from fjords and on land, from around half a dozen airframes), the two Ju88s currently under restoration at Bodo, Fw190 raised in the North, a Bf109E, and the wonderful He115 (see http://navalairhistory.com/2012/11/23/heinkel-he115-brought-into-the-sun-at-sola/ with apologies for plugging my own website).

Link broken.

Is Norway much more open to recoveries these days?

I was told by my Norwegian pal that all military equipment is property of Norway thus takes a circus to get an OK to raise, or raised by the military with half a circus.

Yes, I didn’t mean to sound disparaging; the team responsible for the recovery and restoration are, of course, best placed to decide the most appropriate way to proceed and they do deserve our congratulations and encouragement.

It is easy to imagine that because the airframe looks (relatively) complete and intact underwater that it will remain so during recovery and restoration. The gradual process of corrosion could have left the major internal load-bearing structural components paper thin and incapable of supporting the airframe out of water.

My understanding is that this is basically what happened. The tail had been damaged, probably when the aircraft came to rest on its narrow ‘shelf’, and there wasn’t much holding it on.

I suppose for myself the most important aspect of this recovery is to properly measure and document the airframe as it is dismantled for restoration; once exact dimensions and material specifications are recorded this aircraft type, instead of being lost forever, is (hopefully), ‘preserved’ forever.

I’m certain this is being done. The team at Bodo are hunting not just for parts but for knowledge. Their interest in the type is phenomenal. I honestly can’t say enough in their favour, but then I am biased! The other thing to note is that this sort of work is hideously expensive. The search vessel MV Gunnerus is usually loaned by the university that runs it on the basis that the students benefit from using the sonar and ROVs as well as all the equipment for bringing objects up from the bottom. Its availability is usually limited to the times it’s not on university or commercial business, so the museum has to work around that.

But there has been an immense amount learned from this aircraft. For me, one of the most interesting things about this Skua was that its raising proved that some FAA aircraft at the time had been mistakenly painted with Sky Blue undersides (or as near an approximation as the maintainers could get on an aircraft carrier on ops in the North Sea) due to a misinterpretation of instructions from the Admiralty and Air Ministry. I’m only sorry Ian D. Huntley died before the aircraft was raised, as it would have been the final piece in the jigsaw of his very extensive work on Skua colours.

Yes, I didn’t mean to sound disparaging; the team responsible for the recovery and restoration are, of course, best placed to decide the most appropriate way to proceed and they do deserve our congratulations and encouragement.

It is easy to imagine that because the airframe looks (relatively) complete and intact underwater that it will remain so during recovery and restoration. The gradual process of corrosion could have left the major internal load-bearing structural components paper thin and incapable of supporting the airframe out of water.

I suppose for myself the most important aspect of this recovery is to properly measure and document the airframe as it is dismantled for restoration; once exact dimensions and material specifications are recorded this aircraft type, instead of being lost forever, is (hopefully), ‘preserved’ forever.

Thanks for the links. Quite surprised at the “wreck” that they bought up considering the before recovery pics. Makes me wonder if things went according to plan as it surfaced. I guess it just goes to show how initial looks can be deceiving.
But nevertheless an excellent restoration of a much forgotten type in my opinion!

Rob

Don’t forget the sheer difficulty of bringing up an airframe from that depth. It was also on the edge of a deeper trench, and not at all easy to move. The depth and stillness of the water that the Skua was in meant that while the strength of the airframe had degraded a fair bit, a lot of material just stayed where it was until it was disturbed. The rear fuselage was full of silt, so unfortunately as soon as it was lifted off the fjord bed, it tipped up, which sadly but unavoidably caused a bit of damage.

The team at Bodo and Operation Skua have brought up bits and pieces from a number of other Skuas since, and the plan was always for original material in insufficiently good condition to be used as patterns for new parts. And I can assure you that where a component is usable, it is incorporated. The oil tank ahead of the already-restored cockpit has the bullet holes still in it!

It is a fantastic labour of love, and they should receive nothing but congratulation and encouragement.

Sure there is some new metal, but they are best placed to decide the most effective way forward for the project.

Thanks for the links. Quite surprised at the “wreck” that they bought up considering the before recovery pics. Makes me wonder if things went according to plan as it surfaced. I guess it just goes to show how initial looks can be deceiving.
But nevertheless an excellent restoration of a much forgotten type in my opinion!

Rob

http://luftfartsmuseum.no/fly/project-blackburn-skua-l2896-green-a/

Its a frame..

Thanks, Bruce!

What’s a “spant?”

Its a frame..

Indeed a lot of new metal! I guess they will still have a restored example which is a little further ahead from the FAAM’s wreckage!

What’s a “spant?”

There seems to be a lot of new material going into that ‘restoration’.

It’s hard to find anything after about 2009, but here are some preliminary restoration works including a rather nice piece of work on the fin.
http://www.toredgarolsen.net/skuapage.htm

I wonder where the engine is.

Mark

Haven’t looked too far but are there any updates on this amazing find?

Rob

Going through some of my archived photos I came across these that I took in Norway a couple of years ago. Thought I’d share them here! Andy Saunders

Nice pics. They’ve done an absolutely fantastic job on that cockpit section (they have a seat as well), I saw it when the team from NLM Bodo brought it to the Skua aircrew reunion at the FAA Museum a year ago. It would be lovely if the FAAM could get something similar too, a repro would be possible given the NLM’s fastidious reconstruction.

Skua cockpit

Going through some of my archived photos I came across these that I took in Norway a couple of years ago. Thought I’d share them here! Andy Saunders