Blackburn Botha – surviving parts

I have the remains of an Albemarle throttle box that had seen better days.

Cheers

Cees

A friend of mine used to have a throttle quadrant, complete with levers, in his front room. I refurbished the facia for it, complete with engraved placards, when I was an apprentice. I know he got rid of a lot of his stuff a few years ago, but not sure where to. He wouldn’t have thrown it away, though.

Just wondered if anyone else out there had any more info on surviving Botha parts…

Certainly a possibility – IIRC Hawkinge *spits* have a pair of Spitfire wings that turned up at Woolwich Arsenal, and another famous wing find is lurking tantalisingly on the edge of memory but just won’t rise to the top.

Quite recently some small Overstrand wing parts turned up in a shed near Bicester – aha, didn’t a set of Bulldog wings turn up at Bicester? Maybe that’s it?

And allegedly at Runwell in Essex a Gotha wing was used as a fence into the 1960s, before it conveniently rotted away just as everyone was getting interested in such things…

Adrian

Only a guess, but I’d suggest wings were frequently removed from basket cases and hoisted up into the roof of a hangar or stood up against the wall for future use as spares.

When the type goes out of service, the wings have long since merged into the obscurity of something that you see every day without giving any thought to.

Anyone got a better theory?

Moggy

IIRC there are parts at the Lashenden Air Warfare Museum (AKA Headcorn ‘drome). However it’s almost twenty years since I was there, so I haven’t a clue what!

Interesting point about wing/fuselage part survival – maybe wings are a relatively tight box section compared to a fuselage which is largely a tin can with a lot of space inside it, so crushes much more easily?

*ETA* Much like the Barracuda, would anyone who flew one ever want to see another Botha? :diablo:

Adrian

I’d guess some metal-detecting at the take-off end of any runway that Bothas attempted to operate from would yield tons of stuff 😮

Moggy

So are there any picture of, or plans to raise the Duddon Estury Botha?

Steve

Anyone have anything else to add?

There is a complete Botha on its back in the Duddon Estuary just off the airfield.

Looks like in general that with projects such as this wings don’t seem to be much of a problem but the fuselage is.

Cheers

Cees

Large outer wing section in the museum from Botha L6446, plus we have wheels and other small parts.