Gnat XM691

Here’s another shot showing the fate of XM691…behind Bluebird which is being rolled out for the press following it’s conversion to Orpheus power, you can see ‘691’s severed wings leaning against the wall in the background!

Thank you ‘AMB’ for pinning down the Farnborough dates far more accurately than I had.

The colour print of the Gnat XM691 with red tips is so much more worthwhile than my b&ws. On behalf of thread initiator “Bluebird Mike”, I am delighted that my bringing this thread back to life has had positive results in turning up further photos of this aircraft in different colour schemes. Any more?

Excellent photo, thanks for posting it!

I wonder if anyone has a full photo of ‘691 in the later style paint scheme?

Having participated in this thread some months ago, while looking through an old box containing sundry b&ws collected during the late 70s and early 80s, was shocked to find that I have not only photos of XM691, but in two different colour schemes! Both are clearly at SBAC Farnborough in the early 60s. Photographer unknown, the prints look home processed.

With Vulcan XH534 (clearly on the original) in the background, prototype Gnat T.1 XM691 would appear to be painted silver, with a yellow T-band around the rear fuselage (and presumably wings). The drop tanks are interesting, as there are photos of XM691 with production style slipper wing tanks fitted and none at all. My magazine collection does not go back far enough to trace the year that particular Vulcan was in the static park.

Two very similar shots with a P.1127 behind, could be from September 1964, as a Tripartate Squadron P.1127 (XS688) was there that year along with XM691. Very difficult to tell the colours, but certainly no yellow T-band, while the tail tip (and fairly certainly the wing-tip too) is a very different colour to the rest of the aircraft. Could this be the day-glo orange patch scheme being searched for by ‘Bluebird Mike’ in post #5?, although if so the orange patches are not applied to the standard Training Command pattern. If (big IF), I have the photo date correct (9/64) and the retirement date from airworthy (1964) also correct (post #9), then these photos are presumably of its last paint scheme.

If any one has logs for Farnborough 1960-1965, could they seach and discover which years XM691 attended; which year Vulcan XH534 was also in the static; and which year(s) Tripartate Squadron P.1127’s were also in the static, so pinning down a year for the photos. XM691 was certainly there in 1959, but with a different stores configuration.

The first photo with Vulcan XH534 behind was taken at Farnborough in September 1960. The second two photos are at Farnborough two years later in September 1962. That P.1127 behind is XP972, which also wore Tripartite markings before XS688.
Here is XM691 in colour at the 1962 Farnborough show with P.1127 XP972 behind again.

This is the actual fuselage of XM691, at the Norris Bros. site at Burrell Road, Hayward’s Heath, in mid 1966. Bluebird is in the shed in the background, undergoing her Orpheus engine conversion.

PM sent!

A fascinating posting, thank you. Definitely not the aircraft’s last paint scheme though- it was last painted in this scheme as seen here on another example. We know this to be the case as we have a colour photo of the remains of the forward fuselage post-Bluebird conversion, and a B&W image of the severed(!) wings that also shows this scheme. Plus of course, K7’s tail retains the orange paint as well.

Having participated in this thread some months ago, while looking through an old box containing sundry b&ws collected during the late 70s and early 80s, was shocked to find that I have not only photos of XM691, but in two different colour schemes! Both are clearly at SBAC Farnborough in the early 60s. Photographer unknown, the prints look home processed.

With Vulcan XH534 (clearly on the original) in the background, prototype Gnat T.1 XM691 would appear to be painted silver, with a yellow T-band around the rear fuselage (and presumably wings). The drop tanks are interesting, as there are photos of XM691 with production style slipper wing tanks fitted and none at all. My magazine collection does not go back far enough to trace the year that particular Vulcan was in the static park.

Two very similar shots with a P.1127 behind, could be from September 1964, as a Tripartate Squadron P.1127 (XS688) was there that year along with XM691. Very difficult to tell the colours, but certainly no yellow T-band, while the tail tip (and fairly certainly the wing-tip too) is a very different colour to the rest of the aircraft. Could this be the day-glo orange patch scheme being searched for by ‘Bluebird Mike’ in post #5?, although if so the orange patches are not applied to the standard Training Command pattern. If (big IF), I have the photo date correct (9/64) and the retirement date from airworthy (1964) also correct (post #9), then these photos are presumably of its last paint scheme. Post #17, informs us that the red tip scheme on XM691 was actually September 1962, which makes nonsense of the final sentence – thank you ‘AMB’ for the correct info.

All 3 photos have been auto-contrasted to darken, but no further wizzardry applied.

If any one has logs for Farnborough 1960-1965, could they seach and discover which years XM691 attended; which year Vulcan XH534 was also in the static; and which year(s) Tripartate Squadron P.1127’s were also in the static, so pinning down a year for the photos. XM691 was certainly there in 1959, but with yellow T-band scheme and a clean wing. See post #17

XM691 at Farnborough 1959

http://forums.airshows.co.uk/viewtopic.php?f=40&t=39080

XM691 at Farnborough 1959

http://forums.airshows.co.uk/viewtopic.php?f=40&t=39080

When I was doing my course at RR Tech college at Filton they had a Piston Provost. The instructor, who had been there a long time, told me they were first offered a Gnat, but D Campbell guys had made such a mess of the airframe, i.e. cutting the engine out with a gas axe, it was in no state for use as an instructional airframe. Presumably this was XM691 or did they have to remove the loose engine from an airframe? With no other Gnat available the Piston Provost was acquired instead.

Donald got engine No.709 loose from BAC at Luton, and 711 came out of XM691. We have a thread running on the BBP forum that covers the Gnat a fair bit, including us recently unearthing the orange paint on the tail fin!

http://www.bluebirdproject.com/message/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=216

That Piston Provost, XF603 is now flying as G-KAPW with Shuttleworth after being put back in the air by Kennet, then at Cranfield.

There’s no bother with knowing the Campbell side of things- he bought it from the Air Ministry, who had sourced two Orpheus engines for him. One was loose, the other was still fitted in XM691, which was sat at Dunsfold at the time.

When I was doing my course at RR Tech college at Filton they had a Piston Provost. The instructor, who had been there a long time, told me they were first offered a Gnat, but D Campbell guys had made such a mess of the airframe, i.e. cutting the engine out with a gas axe, it was in no state for use as an instructional airframe. Presumably this was XM691 or did they have to remove the loose engine from an airframe? With no other Gnat available the Piston Provost was acquired instead.

At last found my copy of Paul Jackson’s mini monograph ‘Hawker Siddeley Gnat F.1 & T.1’ published by Alan Hall/Aviation News, I suspect around 1979.

There were 105 Folland Gnat T.Mk.1 built for the R.A.F. and operationally all served with either No.4 F.T.S. at RAF Valley or the C.F.S.

However XM691 was the first to be built (Constructors Number FL.501), and was the first of an initial production order for 14 aircraft to Contract 15434 (often refered to as a pre-production batch, although a number served with the CFS and later 4 FTS).

XM691 First flown 31st August 1959. The nose shape was different to later aircraft. Initially silver with yellow T-bands scheme.

XM691 was used for trials by Folland/Hawker Siddeley at Chilbolton and the A&AEE at Boscombe Down, before being withdrawn from use at HSA Dunsfold in 1964. XM691 did not operate with any R.A.F. training units, being purely used for test and development purposes. Paul Jackson states that it was ultimately scrapped in 1968 – clearly at that time the information provided here regarding film use and parts donation was not known about.

Adds little to the earlier posts I know, but confirms information regarding the flying career of the aircraft.

Gnat XM691

JT442..

I’ve trawled through the IMDB (Internet Movie Data Base) for the film titles you listed, and it is the case that Gnat XM691 was indeed destroyed at Shepperton Film Studios in 1969.

As to which of the films listed expended XM691, my intial researches point to the film in question as being “Anne of a Thousand Days”. In a deleted scene, early in the film, King Henry VIII and Cardinal Wolsey bail out from their burning Gnat XM691 at low level over Spain, after being hit by a SAM-7 missile fired by the Spanish Armada. The Gnat had taken off from the deck of the Mary Rose, Britain’s only aircraft carrier in Tudor times…

Err…seriously, the film could be THE BODY STEALERS. Have not actually seen the film myself, but the IMDB plot synopsis goes like this:

“A British military paratrooper disappears in mid-air during a jump from an army plane. Two investigators, Patrick Allen and Neil Connery, try to unravel how this happened. What they uncover is an alien plot to steal the bodies of earthlings by snatching them out of the air.

Director: Gerry Levy
Writers: Gerry Levy (additional material), Michael St. Clair
Stars: George Sanders, Maurice Evans and Patrick Allen”

The above plot would call for use of an aircraft as a prop, therefore XM691 fits the bill being fairly small, fairly complete (complete enough for filing purposes, anyway – it wasn’t required to fly) and a “modern jet fighter”, as the film had a contemporary (late 1960s)setting. Presumably one of the parachutist vanishing in mid-air, had bailed out of XM691?

Source: Internet Movie Data Base at http://uk.imdb.com/title/tt0065089/

Oh, and here’s a review:

“The Body Stealers (a.k.a Thin Air) is truly one of the most dreadful movies you’ll ever have the misfortune to see. Simply because there are some notable names on the cast list, you mustn’t think that it is remotely good. Everyone in this movie must have needed some fast cash to clear their debts. How else can you explain such a strong cast being lured into such an obvious bomb? OK, that’s a bit cynical – nobody actually sets out to make a bad film – but whatever the original intentions were, the resulting film is an utter loss.

It’s a science fiction story in which the military investigates several cases of parachutists vanishing in mid-air. For the first ten minutes, the peculiar mystery promises to build up to an intriguing resolution, but the promise rapidly evaporates as it becomes apparent that the answers are going to be childish rather than ingenious.

This is hilariously bad, to such an extent that it makes even the worst episode of Doctor Who look like it had high production values! You’d have to be a disturbed eight year old to figure out what the hell is going on as the solution draws close. Still, why worry about it when clearly the actors involved don’t look interested either? One interesting thing about the film is the inclusion of Neil Connery (Sean’s brother) in a significant role… believe me when I say this guy is no actor!”

Good stuff, thank you!

Have you seen the photos on this pprune thread

http://www.pprune.org/aviation-history-nostalgia/428457-gnats-5.html

There’s no bother with knowing the Campbell side of things- he bought it from the Air Ministry, who had sourced two Orpheus engines for him. One was loose, the other was still fitted in XM691, which was sat at Dunsfold at the time.

Another thing I’d like to find is a late photo of it- there’s a lot of it in it’s earlier days in silver with the yellow bands around it, but later on it was painted in the new standard RAF trainer scheme with the fluorescent orange wings and tail etc, and I’ve love to find a shot of the actual aircraft in that scheme.

None of this is of any importance to The Bluebird Project by the way, it’s just a personal interest as we are unearthing big chunks of the orange paint still under the blue on her tail fin, and I just find it cool that there’s still an aircraft lurking under our hydroplane!

In my very limited archive, I can’t find any reference to it after 1964 at Farnborough, and since it was a prototype I would highly doubt it ever served anywhere except CFS during trials and evaluation.

Since It was destroyed at Shepperton in 1969 one would have to assume that it was surplus to requirements at least a couple of years before that. Best guess from the wrong side of the Tyne is that DC would have bought it directly from Folland, stripped it and sold what was left to Shepperton.

DC’s archives would be the best source – hopefully he kept a receipt!

Big thanks for taking the time to compile that. I’ve been through most of that before ahead of you though, and am trying to find something a bit more in depth- anyone?

It was the T.1 Prototype: http://www.thunder-and-lightnings.co.uk/gnat/history.php

Appeared at Farnborough in 1959 and 62:
http://www.farnboroughspotters.com/59.html
http://www.farnboroughspotters.com/62.html

From http://www.militaryairshows.co.uk/follandgnat.htm and which may be of extreme interest to you….
Cost also affected the engine unit and de-rated Orpheus BOR.4.JK100 4,230 lb-st was fitted powering the FO.144 prototype aircraft for the first flight from Chilbolton on the 31st August, 1959, again with Sqn. Leader A. A. Tennant at the controls bearing the registration XM691.
XM691 was just one from fourteen aircraft that had been built following finalisation of the design to spec T.185. For further production to continue Folland aircraft had to join forces with Hawker Siddeley as the government favoured larger organisations to undertake large scale manufacture.

UK Serials has this:

f/f 31/08/1959, blown up Shepperton Studios 07/1969

http://www.ukserials.com/

From what I can gather, Shepperton Studios made 27 films in 1969, some of them are listed below. Its possible the aircraft was destroyed for a production from 1970 too… (I *think* that these are completion dates rather than general release dates…)

Anne of the Thousand Days (1969)
Cromwell (1969)
Every Home Should Have One (1969)
The Promise (1969)
A Severed Head (1969)
The Three Sisters (1969)
When Dinosaurs Ruled the Earth (1969)
Battle of Britain (1969)
The Body Stealers (1969)
The Last Grenade (1969) … this one is a ‘modern image’ war film, so perhaps this is a lightly candidate! Anyone seen the film?
The Oblong Box (1969)
The Reckoning (1969)
The Smashing Bird I Used to Know (1969)