There is a single surviving complete Fairey III “Santa Cruz” in Portugal, with a museum quality reproduction, a full size metal sculpture, and an enthusiast level replica also all in Portugal.
Apparantly the Royal Navy Fleet Air Arm Museum at Yeovilton also have a fuselage, – is this on display or in storage?
Does anyone have photos and background to its identity and history?
By: Mothminor - 24th April 2024 at 19:55
Assuming it is the same Fairey IIIF as the remains which were at Arbroath in the 1960s?
From Scottish Air News of Feb 1967 –
ARBROATH, HMS Condor – Fairey 111F (serial unknown). This aircraft had been lying outside at Guist, Dereham, Norfolk for over 30 years and was in a highly deteriorated state. It is believed that the machine had originally been taken to Guist from Bircham Newton for a fire-fighting display. In the event, the main structure of the fuselage and mainplanes survived, and in October 1964 the remains were taken to Arbroath. These are currently in storage. Large portions of the airframe are missing and corrosion is widespread. It is possible that reconstruction to non-flying condition could be carried out, but this would be a long job, and copies of the original constructional drawings would be required. It appears that plans for reconstruction have been shelved, at least for the time being.
By: hypersonic - 23rd April 2024 at 23:16
It is a Fairey IIIF fuselage frame and forms part of the reserve collection at Yeovilton. It is unidentified and not normally available for public inspection.
Sign In
April 23, 2024 at 10:45 pm