Spitfire Mk XVIe for sale in NZ

My point was it is not the net worth of the plane that counts, I am in the Auto restoration business and 90% of the cars I do cost more than the worth of the car but people will spend the money to restore a car for the love of it and seeing something return to it’s former glory. If it was just the money then we would lose a lot of the heritage to the scrap man! I see no difference if it’s a plane or a car……………Paul….

Oh and I wish I could get $1.5 million for a restoration!

David the £1.5k included the purchase price !! So about £1 mill for the rebuild. Probable worth ? What some one will pay !! Say £1.8. The more original parts the more you could add to the value !

Steve.

Very interesting Mark, i’ve never heard of that one before. Do you have any other details such as pilots name etc please, as i’m adding it to my list of post-war (service) incidents at Dx.

Rob

I have an image of the incident and recognize the distinctive beret of Ch/Tech Stan Pucynski leading the recovery, later of BBMF and the BoB film.

The image will be in Vol II.

Hendon will have an accident card with all the details as it is also listed in ‘Broken Wings’ by Jim Halley.

Mark

All depends on the quality of the work done so far, which cannot be guessed by the pictures.

If I had a choice of a largely original low back 16, and a largely new mk 9, the 16 would win hands down every time. That however is down to personal choice.

Bruce

SL542 had an incident resulting in a ground loop and starboard u/c collapse at Duxford on 24 January 1957.

Mark

Very interesting Mark, i’ve never heard of that one before. Do you have any other details such as pilots name etc please, as i’m adding it to my list of post-war (service) incidents at Dx.

Rob

1.5 million(£’s?) to rebuild in its current state. Possibly on the high side. 🙂

Forget the the shiny aluminium and the etch prime. It is the completeness and integrity of the non-visible systems and components that gobble up the budget.

Mark

David, are you sure you are not adding a 471K purchase price to a rebuild number which already includes a purchase price?

Mackerel- clarity of your numbers please before someone adds anothe 471k to the project!!!

Do the maths ! The purchase price for the project is 471K . A rebuilder has mentioned a figure of 1.5 million to overhaul it. Therefore its 1.97 million for a less desirable Spitfire with no combat history.
Now if you look at recent sales the Brooks Tr.9 was bought by its current owner for something like 1.78 million – Platinum Fighters have the former TFC
Spitfire Mk.18 at $2.75 million so its seems to follow that the market is somewhere at 1.8 million -with the probable exception of MK.1’s.

So in reality spending nearly 2 million for a MK.XVI low back seems an expensive way of getting a Spitfire. In reality the project is probably a little on the high side price wise.

Really? not worth it? I would give my left nut to own and rebuild this aircraft! it’s a Spitfire, doesn’t matter who what or why it’s a Spitfire and it deserves respect no matter what it’s history! it is at least an original example of the Mark and not something rebuilt from a smoking hole in the ground. When did we get so picky about it? is it because there’s just so many of them around these days? Or am I just too in awe of Mitchel’s and Rolls-Royce’s wonder?

So looking at its history it isn’t really worth rebuilding when you can I imagine get a ‘blooded’ MK.IX for probably a little less than the asking price and rebuild cost of this MK.XVI

That’s what I was getting at.

Fully restored, I doubt this Spitfire is worth more than £1m. Lovely as it no doubt is, and could be.

So looking at its history it isn’t really worth rebuilding when you can I imagine get a ‘blooded’ MK.IX for probably a little less than the asking price and rebuild cost of this MK.XVI

Thank you, a most interesting read.

SL542 had an incident resulting in a ground loop and starboard u/c collapse at Duxford on 24 January 1957.

Mark

Spitfire Mk XVIe for sale in NZ

As I don’t have the book yet does anybody have a potted history of this aircraft?

Here http://www.wingsmagazine.com/content/view/2336/38/
and here http://www.warbirdregistry.org/spitregistry/spitfire-sl542.html

Delivered to Royal Air Force, July 1945
– Allocated to 595 Squadron.
– Transferred to 695 Squadron.
– Transferred to No 1 CAACU at Hornchurch, Essex.
– Transferred to No 2 CAACU at Little Snoring.
— Suffered accident, removing it from airworthy status, RAF Little Snoring, Jan. 1957.
RAF Horsham St. Faith, UK, May 1957
– Gate guard.
RAF Duxford, 1960.
– Displayed.
RAF Coltishall, 1966-1988
– Displayed on pole.
RAF St. Athan, Feb. 1989-1991
– Stored pending disposal.
– Exchanged with RAF Museum for Handley Page Hampden bomber.
Jeet Mahal, Vancouver, BC, 1992.
Dick Melton Aviation, Winchester, UK, 1994.
Mike Araldi/Pegasus Investments/Jet Cap Aviation Corp, Inc, West Palm Beach, FL, May 11, 1994-2002.
– Registered as N2289J.
– Operated by Anthony Gurak, Westmount, Quebec, 1996-2002.
– Under restoration to airworthiness, Bartow, FL, 1996-1999 (later Westmount, Quebec, 2000).

and this is on flickr

Plus this from “Flight” Magazine issue dated 4 January 1957

Last Spitfires Grounded

THE last four Spitfires flying regularly under Air Ministry contract are being grounded, leaving only Spitfire Mk 16, SL542, to be maintained in flying condition by the R.A.F. for its annual appearance in the Battle of Britain fly-past. A Mk 16 flying from Hornchurch with No. 1 Civil Anti-aircraft Co-operation Unit was withdrawn on December 3 and three P.R. Mk 19s which have been flown on high-altitude weather reconnaissances from Woodvale by Short Brothers and Harland, Ltd., are similarly being withdrawn. The Mk 19s will be replaced early this year by modified Mosquito T.T.35s, one of which has already made trial flights. The three Mk 19s being withdrawn are PM631, PS853 and PS915.

Which implies that SL542 was withdrawn from use on December 3rd 1956, and not “January 1957” as reported above…

Vendor is asking $750,000CAN (Canadian Dollars)

At the current rate of exchange that equates to £472,035.43

And to get it flying would easily cost as much again. So, I believe any serious interested party would need £1 million plus in loose change down the back of their sofa…

I would say that £1.5 mill would just about get it in the air. Engine overhaul and prop & hub would be about 350K !

Steve

As I don’t have the book yet does anybody have a potted history of this aircraft?

Spitfire Mk XVIe for sale in NZ

The question is, what is it really worth as it is?

£250k?

Vendor is asking $750,000CAN (Canadian Dollars)

At the current rate of exchange that equates to £472,035.43

And to get it flying would easily cost as much again. So, I believe any serious interested party would need £1 million plus in loose change down the back of their sofa…

Oh, and there’s this http://www.warbirdinformationexchange.org/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?p=286765 which is dated 15 April…2009(!)

In other words, SL542 appears to have been up for sale for the past four years, with no takers. Considering the asking price, I do not forsee a stampede of potential buyers.

Good to see you on the mend Steve, you had folks worried.

Hey Tony i’m not the Steve you are thinking of. He is on the mend in hostpital after a fairly serious op. I do how ever work for Steve at AA.

Steve.

Good to see you on the mend Steve, you had folks worried.

Seems like a lot for one of the less desirable models, not that I’m doubting you 🙂 (I personally like the low back models, but there’s no doubting that they don’t have the same mass appeal as the highback versions)

Think I’ll wait until Burma opens for business 😀

They are low back XIV’s so even less desirable !!

Steve