RAAF 451 Squadron…

Dave,

451 was the squadron responsible for testing the Typhoon in desert conditions. 3 were transferred out there (off the top of my head DN323 was one of them). Spares were also shipped along with an RAF Typhoon pilot to train the squadron along with a Napier and Hawker engineer to train on the maintenance side. I did attempt to contact some members of the squadron from the time the Typhoons were there but their numbers are thin on the ground and of the current members one shipped out the day they arrived and another arrived just after they finished. The trial was a complete success and I am told that the pilots were happy with the Typhoon. Unfortunately for them the Typhoon was required in more numbers in the European theatre so they were not able to spare them for the African campaign…by the time there were sufficient spare Typhoons to send out there was no need for them in Africa.

Their last base was somewhere near Alexandria (I do have the airfield designation somewhere) which was situated not far from the Libyan border. Contrary to orders 451 continued to fly the Typhoons until they ran out of spares and were unable to keep them in service and as far as I can tell they were then left on the airfield. There is no record of them being transferred back to the UK (they would probably now be classed as war weary and not worth the effort) and they were subsequently struck off charge (again I have the movement cards somewhere but off the top of my head it was after the war that this happened). It would be nice to think of 3 complete Typhoons on a desert airstrip somewhere but with the airfield being close to the coast and close to Libya I am lead to believe that the scrap metal merchants would have done their job very well!!!

There is a fair bit of information available about the desert Typhoons…just not to hand at the moment.

Hope this helps
Dave

Cees knows I will always post something if the subject of Typhoons comes up 🙂

There is lots more out there than you think including about a dozen cockpit projects, a couple of dozen Sabre engines (from sea recoveries to ones that look as though they could run if you hooked a battery up to it!!), rear fuselage, tail planes, rudders etc. In fact there is enough out there if put together to get a complete centre section of a Typhoon together (tail to spinner that is). The wings are relatively straight forward (compared to other types that is) and could be reconstructed if the effort were put in, if the rumoured pair of wings surviving on continental Europe and another pair somewhere in the UK turned out just to be another rumour of course!!!

Dave

This could be the guys that used to be at the jet age musuem…theirs has been in store since the museum lost it premises and is one of 2 car door type cockpits that I know to exist. They do not know the serial number of the aircraft and I believe it came from the flowers scrap yard.

Dave

Poona Tempests…

In theory aren’t there still a couple of Tempest II’s still on the airfield? I believe 6 were recovered, 6 were ‘buried’ on site and I am sure I was sent a picture somewhere showing a couple still left!!

There were 3 Typhoons tested in Libya during the war (451 squadron I believe) wonder if these escaped the scrap man after the war? (they were flown until the spares ran out and then grounded…never made it back to the UK).

Tempests…

If you look closely I think there could be 3 in total there (at least one more wing under cover and what looks like part of a firewall under cover). This would make sense as MW-404,MW-758 and MW-401 are all stored with the same organisation. Although work is almost complete on the 4th airframe I am horified to see where and how these are stored. It looks as though the one airframe has literally been dumped!!! Let me have them….they would look good converted to MKV or form the basis of a ‘new’ Typhoon!!!

Props…

Bruce,
PM is on its way to you.
Cheers
Dave