ID for film B-25J, Mosquito

Thank you, Southern Air99. At least I correctly recollected the aeroplane, if not the series/episode in which it appeared!

That was in the Christmas special of the previous series, shot at Elvington. They also used a Tiger Moth and a couple of Miles Hawks in that ep.

Am I correct in recollecting that there was also an Aeronca C-3 in that scene?

I misread the original post, I thought it was the first series in 1978 !!!!!!

Southern Air99

Thank you for the details.

I was impressed that a Jeep, (usually seen with later markings) was not used.

I love Jeeps, but it probably would not have been correct for the setting and period. 

I was very impressed by the Mosquito.

As a Supporting Artist on the series, I can confirm categorically that it was East Kirkby.

We were filming over three days (and some night shooting was done of course) and it was incredible to get the chance to be up close to the Mitchell, Mossie and the Auster, which taxied on camera, but never flew. The Lancaster ‘Just Jane’ remained in the hangar undergoing maintenance, but we got a good look around her too. 

Everything set at ‘RAF Abingdon’, bar the Wing Commander’s Office, and of course the hospital, was shot on location at EK – it was amazing to see it come alive with a good many extras, all the vehicles (including a lovely Bedford owned by a friend of a friend), and set dressing.

I paid homage to my relative in the series, portraying a Sergeant Wireless Operator/Air Gunner, which was indescribably poignant and will be something I’ll never forget.

Here are some on-set images (hopefully)!

HJ711 is a “bitsa” in the extreme.

It started when Tony Agar bought the cockpit section at auction, probably what seems to him to be a million years ago.

Over the ensuing years, by scouring world wide, he’s managed to collect enough parts to make a complete aeroplane.

I went to the roll-out at Elvington on the 50th anniversary of the NF.II’s first flight. Without actually looking it up, I guess that was 1992.

Thanks, East Kirby it is. 

I’ll have to dig put my ancient “Mosquito Survivors” book to learn the backstory on the aircraft.

I didn’t realize they had a Mossie…it seems “Just Jane” gets all the attention there.

I hope they do get the B-25 flying. Having been around one, and occasionally flying in one for a few years made me appreciate the type.

East Kirkby for sure.  There is a real sentiment within the museum management that it could/should fly again.

“It’s a difficult balance, but the Lancaster always takes priority, whether it is funds or time – she is the heart of what we do and the reason we are here. The Mosquito comes next, while the B-25 ‘bimbles’ along in the background. We typically have a two-man team working on the Mitchell, but we do plan to expand that.”

The port Wright Cyclone R2600 radial engine looks immaculate, despite not having run since 1979. “They could run,” Andrew says. “The problem with radials is that if they are left fixed to an aircraft for that amount of time with the propeller attached, the weight of prop forces the bearings into the bearing face. Now, some say you might get a few hours out of them if you’re not flying them, while most say it’s not even worth turning [them] over. To run them we would have to get them both overhauled in the US.”

That the Mitchell could be made airworthy again is largely down to the care it received during its lengthy tenure with the RAFM: “From the survey we carried out, it can be made airworthy relatively simply – especially compared to the Lancaster. It would be a comparatively quick thing to do, but what we don’t want to do is take funds from the Lancaster and not get them back.

“To get it to taxiable standard, it would cost in the region of $200,000 to overhaul the engines and propellers. We have two spare engines that are currently in Canada and it’s likely that they would be sent for overhaul if we went down that route. It wouldn’t cost that much more to get the airframe flying. It’s a bit of a ‘Catch-22’ – if you’ll pardon the B-25 related pun! If you’re spending that amount anyway, you might as well spend $400,000, because it would be worth that much when airworthy. It’s something we’d like to do given time and funds.”

In the grand scheme of things, it would be a good aeroplane to potentially get airborne before the Lancaster and would ultimately help Just Jane do the same: “It would give us a multi-engine training and currency capability, albeit not tailwheel. Of course, we would have to install a longer runway, but that is something we have already planned for to get the Lancaster into the air. Personally, I’d love to see it fly.

Andrew Panton

Photos taken in the confines of their hangar, August 2023 at East Kirby.   Click-over to enlarge image.