1948 International Air Rally, Lympne

Associated Press report on Miss Lettice Curtis at the Lympne Air Race 1948:

The man with the moustache is Alan Walter Gear.
He was a hurricane pilot in the Battle of Britain.
Gerry

Letticec Curtis’ Spitfire was in a Key thread in 2008 https://forum.keypublishing.com/showthread.php?83374-Air-racing-Spitfire-1948

Many thanks for that. I went to that meeting, I had been a regular at hanging over the fence since 1944, and worked in the Met Office there for a few months in late 1948.

This Spitfire was subsequently on static external display at Old Warden in unrestored condition until a decision was made to return it to flight. This how I first remember it. (Link to photo credit “rac819”) https://www.flickr.com/photos/rac819/40450382974/in/photostream/

“Miss Lettice Curtis taxying to the line for the start of the high-speed handicap race” (FLIGHT, 2 September 1948, page 256):

1940 Spitfire equivalent £236,944.89 in 2017

But did you see that moustache!

… and what the total spend to date on each of them has been?

Amazing show, what I would give to slip back in time and spectate there.

Moggy

Indeed an interesting piece of film. Notable that the two Spitfires shown are still flying, ‘IDN at Biggin Hill and PL983 at Duxford. I wonder what the relative values are compared with 1948.