Spitfire K5054

While not directly linked to this thread, I wish to do a model of K5054 on the day of its first flight. Anyone know what colour/colours it was? I beleive it was sort of bare metal and light green/zinc chromate?
Thanks.

Keith, I have an article lurking around here from one of the modelling mags that goes into a lot of detail about this. If you’re interested, PM me and I’ll scan the pages in.

While not directly linked to this thread, I wish to do a model of K5054 on the day of its first flight. Anyone know what colour/colours it was? I beleive it was sort of bare metal and light green/zinc chromate?
Thanks.

But then you hear of other accidents like 457 squadrons Bruce Little.Somersaulting his Spitfire MkVIII at almost 200mphr into the ground after misjudging a loop in a low level stoush with a zero at Millingimbi.He got out with a few scratches,and walked back to camp.I,m building frame 11 on our spit at the moment and supprised how rigid the frame is up the top.It all comes down to a matter of luck I suppose.Thanks Mk12 it,s good to see that at least a part of the first survived..Any other pics guys??

Wasn’t the fuselage used “post accident” for mockups of the PR camera arrangement?

Some parts were used as mockups for this.

The photos of the wreck in Price’s “The Spitfire Story” show severe distortion of the seat and mounting frame and the mast pushed down into the well behind the cockpit, pushing into the pilots harness.

Cause of the crash was reportedly holding off a bit high, stalling and bouncing twice and then nosing over.

Wasn’t the fuselage used “post accident” for mockups of the PR camera arrangement?

Peen

It is claimed that one of the wing bolts of K5054 was souvenired and later made into a sheet metal worker’s hammer.

This hammer is in the custody of Solent Sky and currently on show at the Spitfire Exhibition at the Science Museum in Kensington, London.

Mark

One report on the accident says that the pilot loosened his harness on landing and that the straps fouled the elevator , and a nose over ensueing.

Very hard to see how that could happen.

The harness preventing forward movement of the stick might be a cause for a stall, but a nosever (which would be prevented/minimised by moving the stick as far backward as possible) sounds unlikely

Moggy

One report on the accident says that the pilot loosened his harness on landing and that the straps fouled the elevator , and a nose over ensueing.

Although that would be at odds with the official report which (as previously stated) the aerial mast compressed through the fuselage bearing down on the harness straps ,and violently pulling the pilot back against the fuselage frame.

Thanks for that. Going right over onto it’s back brings about load of other potential nasties although I hadn’t heard of that particular one . Broken neck and /or suffocation were common.

Apparently this type of fatality was not uncommon. Pilots loosened straps to ” see round the nose” on approach. The evidence was usually pretty obvious I was told

In the case of K5054, the pilot was killed as a result of the radio mast snagging on the harness as it crushed down in the nose over – the radio mast and the harness were modified as a result of the crash.

The accident at Farnborough on 4th Sept 1939 was a simple nose-over on landing.

I would suggest the remains were fairly intact and were quickly dragged to a hangar for detailed analysis as to why the pilot F/Lt White died.

Moggy

Apparently this type of fatality was not uncommon with Spitfires. Pilots loosened harnesses to ” see round the nose” on approach. The evidence of injury was usually pretty obvious I was told and doesn’t need much imagination . Incidentally, von Richtofen suffered a similar type of injury when his face impacted the gun blocks as his DR 1 went up on its nose on the last landing. He would probably only have had a lap strap in any case.

The accident at Farnborough on 4th Sept 1939 was a simple nose-over on landing.

I would suggest the remains were fairly intact and were quickly dragged to a hangar for detailed analysis as to why the pilot F/Lt White died.

Moggy

I have seen a photo of the remains in a hangar so that certainly was the case.

The accident at Farnborough on 4th Sept 1939 was a simple nose-over on landing.

I would suggest the remains were fairly intact and were quickly dragged to a hangar for detailed analysis as to why the pilot F/Lt White died.

Moggy

Does anyone know if anything remains of the original prototype Spitfire K5054? I know it crashed, but was anything salvaged. Has anyone been over the site with a metal detector?

It was recovered as it didn’t spear in but nosed over on landing. The remains were used for further development and scrapped somepoint during the later war years. There might be the odd component left somewhere but any substantial bits are long gone 🙁