Anybody seen todays’ Sunday Times Magazine
There’s a nice picture of the recovery of an REAF Spit IX from the surf on Herzliya beach in 1948. I’ve not seen this before – was this the airframe that was rebuilt to become the IDF/AF’s first Spitfire?
There’s a well known picture of an IDF Willys CJ2A (notice Willys stamping on bonnet sides and windscreen apron – it’s not an MB/GPW….or M38) on the same page
By: Mark12 - 4th May 2006 at 09:33
Mark12,
When you say “It is quite a revelation”, you seem to be referring to the serial of one of the Spitfires involved. It must be known which Spitfires they could potentially be.
I’m sure if you know what it is, you can’t say until the book is released, but here’s a few possibilities:
1. It’s a Spitfire with history, maybe flown by an ace.
2. It’s a Spitfire that shouldn’t have been in that part of the world
3. It’s a mark V with a mark IX engine addedI shall be looking forward to the book’s release
My copy arrived in yesterday’s post.
The size and content exceeded my expectation by some margin. It is a major contribution to our knowledge on the Israeli Spitfires.
The revelation:- The first Israeli Spitfire, D-130, what not a Mk IX at all, but built up around an ex RAF PR XI.
Mark
By: wings48 - 4th May 2006 at 08:05
Book on the Spitfire MK.IX in IAF service.
The book is out, and more info can be found here:http://www.wings48.com/spitbook.shtml
All the best
Wings48
By: Mark12 - 21st February 2006 at 21:30
Mark12,
When you say “It is quite a revelation”, you seem to be referring to the serial of one of the Spitfires involved. It must be known which Spitfires they could potentially be.
I’m sure if you know what it is, you can’t say until the book is released, but here’s a few possibilities:
1. It’s a Spitfire with history, maybe flown by an ace.
2. It’s a Spitfire that shouldn’t have been in that part of the world
3. It’s a mark V with a mark IX engine addedI shall be looking forward to the book’s release
Collis,
It is none of those and far more bizarre and interesting than that.
Yes I do know the RAF serial and I have the photo in question. I would not want to steal the author’s ‘thunder’ here.
The latest I have is:-
“The Korean printer have some problems with the colors of the art work. So I hope that by the end of the month the book will be printed then 3 to 4 weeks of shipment from Korea to California and then distribution by early April.”
Mark
By: Collis - 21st February 2006 at 20:58
Mark12,
When you say “It is quite a revelation”, you seem to be refering to the serial of one of the Spitfires involved. It must be known which Spitfires they could potentially be.
I’m sure if you know what it is, you can’t say until the book is released, but here’s a few possibilities:
1. It’s a Spitfire with history, maybe flown by an ace.
2. It’s a Spitfire that shouldn’t have been in that part of the world
3. It’s a mark V with a mark IX engine added
I shall be looking forward to the book’s release
By: Mark12 - 20th February 2006 at 11:15
The fascinating series of images of the Egyptian Mk IX Spitfire on the beach at Herzliya have been published before.
As to the identities of these very first Israeli Spitfires D-130 & D-131, rebuilt from Egyptian and RAF residues, one serial is known and will I gather be revealed in a just to be published book. It is quite a revelation.
I await my copy with some anticipation.
Mark
By: paulmcmillan - 20th February 2006 at 09:14
I saw that picture.. I wondered if it could be ID’d as well..
Sign In
February 19, 2006 at 2:19 pm