Spitfire XIV Will fly.

Hi All,

This interesting article and pictures courtesy of:- https://www.lecharpeblanche.fr/  

Spitfire XIV RM927 under restoration at Sywell at Richard Grace ( Photo © Richard Grace/Air Leasing Ltd via W Air Collection for LEB )

The rumor had been persistent for a few months but it was the English magazine Aeroplane for the month of April 2022 which announced the news: a Spitfire Mk XIV will soon fly in France and will be based in La Ferté-Alais and operated by W Air Collection.

This news is something to rejoice French enthusiasts because with the recent sale of Christophe Jacquard’s Hawker Sea Fury and the departure of the North American P-51D Mustang from France Flying Warbirds last year, the future did not seem very promising for the little world of flying warbirds in France.

The 3R-D coded Spitfire XIV RM927 with the Belgian Air Force (Photo © Jacques Schelfaut / Peter Arnold Collection for LEB)

Built in November 1944 with builder number 6S-381758, Spitfire Mk XIV RM927 was delivered to the Royal Air Force in January 1945 and assigned to Canadian No 430 Squadron based at Eindhoven in Holland where it flew with codes G9-X. Engaged in the Second Tactical Air Force , the RM927 is one of the rare Griffon-powered Spitfires to have been engaged on the European front in combat and reconnaissance missions. On March 9, 1945, while being piloted by Flight Lieutenant Stevens, RM927 was damaged by flak just behind the cockpit, causing it to be withdrawn from the front.

Stored, it was sold in November 1947 to the Belgian Air Force where it received the serial SG-25 and the code 3R-D. Used by the young pilots of Koksijde, it was repainted some time later in metal gray with the codes IQ-W. Accidented in 1952, the RM927 was stopped and stored before being finally reformed in 1954.

The Spitfire XIV RM927 while in service with the Belgian Air Force (Illustration Gaëtan Marie)

Sold in 1957 to Oscar Dewachter & Zoon, a scrap dealer from Ostend, the RM927 was displayed alongside the Spitfire Mk XIV NH904 (which still exists to this day) and left exposed to the elements.

Spitfire Mk XIV RM927 in Belgium when exposed to the elements (Photo © Andre Vlieghe via Daniel Brackx for LEB)

It was sold in 1967 to Dennis Kay and his company Manchester Tankers Ltd. Transported by road to the UK, the RM927 changed owners twice more before finally being acquired in 1969 by Americans John Lowe & Larry Matt of Riverside, Illinois. Exhibited at the Victory Air Museum until 1981, the RM927 passed through the hands of Lawrence Matt of Chicago who began its restoration and recovered in the process a pair of wings from the Spitfire XVIII HS649/TP263 recovered in India. Acquired by Don Knapp in 1987, the RM927 was again sold in 1990 to Vern Schuppan who shipped the RM927 to the UK for restoration. After a long period of storage in High Wycombe, English collector Paul Andrews became its new owner in 2005.

The fuselage of the Spitfire XIV RM927 on arrival at Airframe Assemblies on May 12, 2005 (Photo © Chris Michell for LEB)

On May 12, 2005, the fuselage of the RM927 was transferred to Spitfire specialists, Airframe Assemblies where the restoration of the fuselage began. Chris Michell says for the White Scarf:

” At the request of the then owner, it was decided to retain the originality of the Spitfire. So we carefully dismantled the fuselage, most of the time everything was in good condition but a lot of stripping and cleaning work was necessary. Frame 5, which is the heart of the Spitfire structure, had to be largely replaced by new spars but otherwise most of the structure and frames are original. The same work was done on the wings even if we had to redo the main spar. It was also requested where possible that the skin panels be reused so if you look closely, you can see the repairs and undulations of the fuselage in certain places. »

The fuselage of the Spitfire XIV RM927 as it was released from Airframe Assemblies in 2009 (Photo © Chris Michell for LEB)

The restoration of the fuselage was completed in February 2009. Registered G-JNMA on March 30, 2009 in the English civil registry, the RM927 was once again stored and finally transferred by road in November 2015 to Biggin Hill Heritage Hangar. Once again in storage, the RM927 was finally acquired by the French collection W Air Collection at the end of 2020. After a very brief passage through France, the Spitfire Mk XIV arrived in the workshops of Richard Grace in Sywell at the beginning of 2021 and changes registration to become G-SXIV.

Spitfire XIV RM927 under restoration at Sywell at Richard Grace ( Photo © Richard Grace/Air Leasing Ltd via W Air Collection for LEB )

Since that date, restoration work has been carried out at full speed: the Griffon 65 engine has been restored by Mike Nixon and his company Vintage V-12, a new propeller built by Skycraft has been supplied, the wings have been finished at Sywell and the colors applied by the English specialist in the field, Steve Atkin and his company Warbird Colour: these represent a Spitfire Mk XIV of the Canadian No 430 Squadron with the code X. Attention to detail has also been brought because the sight as well as the F24 camera will be installed to be as close as possible to the standard in which the Spitfire flew in 1945.

No date has been announced for the end of the work but the engine tests should not delay any longer and the new first flight should take place in a few months.

Eventually, it will therefore be two Spitfires that will fly in France with that of Christophe Jacquard who is based in Dijon-Darois.

L’Echarpe Blanche would like to express its sincere thanks to the following people without whom the writing of this article would not have been possible:

– Richard Grace & the  W Air Collection  – thank you for your patience and availability!
– Ben Dunnell of Airplane magazine .
–Peter Arnold .
– Daniel Brackx – website: Supermarine Spitfire FR.14 Home | Belgian Wings 
– Chris Michell .

Geoff.