Simmond Spartan questions.

ZK-ABK is up for auction on 6th April in NZ…..

http://www.dunbarsloane.com/auction.php?auction=322

Battle -that sounds fascinating – any chance you could post scans of the Sales Leaflet on here?

Spartan

Hi all , had a lucky find resently in as local junk shop , an original sales leaflet on the Simmonds Cirrus Spartan which contains two reports from The Isle of Pubeck Light Aeroplane club and the Hampshire Aeroplane Club on the Spartan .

Also included was a specification letter (8 pages) from Simmonds aircraft to there Australian rep this also has hand written costings on it , and a letter from Robert Bryce & co (Simmonds aust. rep.) to a potentual customer in Melbourne

All of the above dated fron August 1928 to Feb 1929.

An interesting read.

cheers dave

A lovely air-to-air of recently restored Spartan ZK-ABK here:

http://i56.photobucket.com/albums/g173/gavsgt/blog%20pics/1495783.jpg

Great stuff Dean..it’s always nice when you realise someone actually reads all the text you spent hours typing out…I’m sure there are a few typos on my websites!

Merry Christmas Everyone

The SAAf website does mention an unidentified Simmonds Spartan in their “Aircraft” section …the problem with their entry is that they state the years of service as 1925- 1925 ….the aircraft could not have been built until 1929 at the earliest !(the prototype ff in 1928).

Apologies for the incorrect info, the typo has now been corrected.

At least now I know that all the time spent compiling the list was of interest. 😎

Dean Wingrin
Webmaster
The Unofficial South African Air Force Website
www.SAairforce.co.za

Mozambique –
1929-1937 CR-MAA-MZZ,(MAA-MAI actually used- none of which is a Spartan)
1937-1975 CR-AAA- BZZ
1976- C9-AAA- ZZZ

Portuguese East Africa, now Mozambique, would have registrations in the range CR-AAA to CR-ZZZ, but the possibility of tracing one is slim.

Malcolm Filmore of Air Britain on AB-IX (Air Britain Information Exchange) has supplied some subsequent history of c/n 9

C/n 9 Spartan [Gipsy II] CofA 1967 issued 6.4.29 to South African AF & evaluated Roberts Heights (dd Capetown to Zwartkop 6.5.29). To SAAF 503. Sold 10.29 to Lourenco Marques, Portuguese East Africa.

But he has no subseqent history as no Portuguese marks are known.

Regards

Paul

Flyernzl

& Barnstormer

Please check your Private Messages.

Adding a bit to G-ABBE/ZK-ACQ:

Built 28Jun30, Gipsy II.
Balfour used it as a landplane
Sale Feb31 Spartan Aircraft Co.Ltd., Cowes for trials as a seaplane (so the above photo would have been taken at that stage).
Sale as ZK-ACQ Frank Lysons (any idea where in NZ he lived?) registered 26May31
Cr Blenheim 31May31 – not much later!
CofA 30Nov34, CofA canc 19Apr39. – so may have not been used again until rebuilt in late 1934.
Sale Matthew Henry Oram, Palmerston North 7Dec34
Oram was at that time Speaker of the NZ Parliament
DBR when hangar collapsed in gale at Parorangi, 7mls from Feilding, 2Feb36. Remains burnt at Kings Road, Mt Roskill, Auckland, 18Feb39 with Avian ZK-AAC, also owned by Oram and damaged in the same incident.
(There may have been the intention to rebuild, as the cancellation of the CofA was three years later than the damage).

Parorangi 20-20-36

That is an error on my site – should be 02-02-36

The A24 – this is about the only halfway decent photo I have been able to find

Sorry, Dave. The only ID on back of photo is “Spartan Arrow, G-ABBE.”
But according to the main list: “G-ABBE-Spartan Arrow R27-06-30 Capt H H Balfour, to ZK-ACQ 02-05-31 F Lysons,Destroyed by Hangar collapse in gale at Parorangi 20-20-36, scrapped.” it must have been before
2/5/31? I am impressed that it had four balanced ailerons.
The Other thing I did not realize about the A24 mailplane was that it was a trimotor.

PaulMcmillan’s post above clears up one problem and raises another…. to where/whom was the SAAF machine sold?

SAAF website is wrong!

Thanks for the confirmation and serial number/correct dates … the SAAF website dates were obviously wrong but I had been unable to locate any other info .

SAAF website is wrong! A Simmond Spartan Arrow was purchased for evaluation as Training aiecraft in 1929. It flew in South Africa in May 1929, had the SAAF serial 503. However the Avro Avian was chosen instead and the aircraf was sold October 1929

Source: 85 Years of SAAF by Winston Brent

Glad you find it interesting – unfortunately still a lot of gaps to fill in – some unknowns in the production lists – most of which I think possibly went to the USA.

Regards the Mailplane , one thing I lack is a decent photo or 3 view drawing of the A24, but AFAIK no other Spartan aircraft had twin fins.

I see that G-ABBE Arrow was on twin seaplane floats at one time

Have you any idea of the dates?

Hi Dave; You have a very interesting website. So much information on the obscure Spartans. I have some odd bits. I see that the A24 Mailplane had a double tail. Did any of the others have a double tail? I see that G-ABBE Arrow was on twin seaplane floats at one time. The oddest registration I see here is a Cruiser II with YI-AAA (ex G-ACBM). I don’t have anything in my files for Spartans with ZK reg #s though

Corrected (hopefully).

I have also recently acquired a small set of four contact prints showing what is presumably the aftermath of the final crash of Spartan ZK-ABN (42) at Pleasant Point 31Oct39. Aircraft is shown being dismantled:

Your image not showing in the Forum – although I can see it at Blogspot if I C&P from the source code… ( syntax error in your link ?)

Lovely picture …

Yes McGarry has done a wonderful restoration job on ABK.
The aircraft is now for sale apparently.

At Wigram this morning, 16th December 2008, photo by ‘bluebus’