…An inverted Luton Minor wing can be seen in one of the pictures of the ‘second Flea’…

As the Luton is obviously dismantled, perhaps that’s the source of the Flea’s Anzani…

Thanks for identifying that wing, Pelagius. I suspected it might be from Carine’s Minor, which crashed in early March 1939, but I hadn’t got round to comparing it with another picture of a Minor.

And yes, it could be the source of the Anzani. I wonder where the engine is now. We’ve got no information as to the fate of the Flea.

Jenna, Dr Armour was involved in some design work with the Luton Hornet aircraft, according to his letter. His address was Crichton House, Anstruther. Dr Armour’s letter to the Flea builder, Mr Craine, is dated February 1939, ie the month before the Minor crashed. It refers to Craine’s difficulty in getting the Flea unstuck. I wonder if he fitted the Anzani to the Flea after the Minor crashed.

I am now convinced that this Flea with its movable rear wing and lengthened fuselage, neither of which I had spotted, is more than likely a different aircraft to the one built in 1936 by Mr Carine. This increases the number of Manx-built aircraft by a fair percentage.