Thats a new one on me.
I assume the implication is that the stock has been impounded in the UK which doesn’t seem very logical. If the shipping wasn’t paid then it would never get put on a boat in the first place.
There has been lots of juggling going on this year by the new management simply because they inherited an overambitious release programme which would have resulted in far more product out there than the average collector could ever afford to buy. This would have led to the usual situation of excess stocks which would have been dumped soon after release at unrealistically low prices.
To combat this problem some models have been delayed until next year and some which had received very poor orders have been dropped altogether, which make sense as there is no point in making something if collectors don’t want to buy it.
The new management approach seems to be to produce only the quantities of each model for which there is a demand and to cut the number of releases so that collectors can afford to buy every release if they wish.
This new approach seems very sensible and Corgi have turned some of their attention to other sectors of the toy/model market so that they can maintain profits. Let’s hope it all works out.
By the way the above refers to the Corgi ranges in general and not specifically to the aviation archive models.

According to a Corgi newsletter released this week there has been a great deal of discussion regarding the model of Friday the 13th and as a result the model will now be finished in the wartime operational livery of this aircraft and not with different markings on each side as it is now displayed at YAM.
I also notice there are comments a little earlier on this thread about prices being reduced a while after models are first released. This was bcause the old owners of Corgi were over producing and then selling off unsold stock to save warehousing costs.
The price cutting has been going on for a long time and became self perpetuating ie many collectors got wise to the fact that if they didn’t rush out to buy the new releases they could pick them up a while later at considerably lower prices. The policy was operated for the whole Corgi range (not just aircraft) and was very short sighted and has resulted in many dealers virtually giving up on Corgi because they got sick to death of being stuck with unsold stock that they couldn’t shift even if they reduced it to the original trade price and tried to move it on at no profit just to get the money back to reinvest in different stock.
Plenty of dealers told the old Corgi management that they couldn’t carry on indefinitely making mugs out of the dealers or the collectors who bought models at full price on first release by selling the overstock off cheap literally weeks later in some cases but they wouldn’t listen
The new management at Corgi have said that they will monitor production quantities much more closely and it does seem that they are even cancelling models where advance orders from the trade are very poor rather than produce unwanted stock and land up selling it off unrealistically cheap just to save paying for warehouse space.
This is the sensible way to ensure the future stability of Corgi and should mean that, from a collectors point of view, the models shoulld appreciate in value over time so should a collector need to sell up or wants to change theme it may be possible to at least recoup the majority of the money originally invested in a collection rather than find the collection is virtually worthless because your prized models were later cleared out by the manufacturer at a huge discount.
Let’s hope the new management get it right and we can look forward to a stable market or retailers and collectors in the future.
Maybe some of you don’t feel any sympathy for the retailer but remember many of the smaller ones have invested every penny they have ever owned in their business and need to make a profit to live. If I were still in that situation I would be extremely unhappy with the way the old Corgi management marketed what is, for the most part, a good quality product.
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The two seater is exactly as I remember it and I always believed it was TE308/ G-AWGB but it is nice to be sure.
As a very enthusiastic 12 year old I was very disappointed to find that the two seater was the only film aircraft on the ground. The others flew in to display and departed again without landing (presumerably to Duxford). I have probably got lists of the codes somewhere which would help a bit with ID’s but was just curious to know exactly which aircraft I actually saw.
I was also lucky enough to see Heinkel 6J+PR (G-AWHB) with Spitfire G-AVDJ and the Psychedelic Monster when they flew over our rugby field during a refuelling visit to Southend. As home and school were less than a mile from the runway and right under approach the view was great.
Also saw the mass formation on the way to film in France – a truly unforgetable sight even though they were fairly high over Southend.

Mark12 You obviously know your Spitfires. I notice someone else suggested you were educating the youngsters. As today is my 52nd bithday I don’t think I quite fall into that category. One of my biggest regrets is that we didn’t have such an active vintage aviation industry when I left school as we do now. As a school leaver I was told my only chance of an aviation career was to join Hawker Siddeley at Hatfield and nailing Tridents together didn’t really appeal. I was and still am more of a wood and canvas aviation nut. I think it had something to do with being able to understand the structure having built (and crashed) a good few Keil Kraft kits in my youth.

Mark12 I am not a Spitfire expert but are you sure it is MH434. I always understood that the same codes were often carried by different aircraft at different times during filming and some carried different codes on each side.
I found the following on a previous thread on this forum which gives an idea of how difficult it is to identify the 12 flyers used in the film from photos although obviously there are some distinct differences between marks which help narrow them down.

Also what makes you say that image 3 is a GRP replica? Please don’t think I am saying you are wrong it is just that I thought you may have some information that I don’t know and it is always nice to learn.

SPITFIRES

Identity Codes Serials

AR213 AI-B, AI-C, AI-G, AI-N N3311, N3312, N3314,
CD-B, CD-C, EI-E N3316, N3322

P7350 AI-A, AI-E, BO-H, CD-C N3310, N3312, N3316,
CD-G, CD-H, CD-M, DO-M N3317, N3312
EI-C

AB910 AI-C, AI-D, AI-F, AI-J, AI-H, N3312, N3313, N3315,
AI-M, AI-N, CD-D, CD-F, N3318, N3319, N3321,
CD-K, DO-M, N3322

BL641 AI.B AI-D, AI-O, CD-Q, N3313, N3315, N3318,
DO-M, EQ-D N3323, N3327

BM597 NIL (Replica mould master) Nil

EP120 AI-B, AI-N N3312

AR501 AI-B, AI-C, AI-E, AI-G, AI-J, N3311, N3312, N3314,
CD-J, CD-K, DO-A, DO-G, N3316, N3317, N3318, DO-H, EI-Q N3319, N3320, N3324,

MH415 AI-A, AI-C, AI-D, AI-E, AI-H, N2210, N3310, N3311,
AI-M, AI-N, AI-S, CD-A, CD-B, N3312, N3314, N3315,
CD-F, CD-H, DO-H, DO-K, N3317, N3319, N3320,
DO-M, EI-G N3321, N3322, N3328

MH434 AI-A, AI-D, AI-E, AI-G, AI-H, N3310, N3312, N3313
AI-K, BO-G, CD-F, CD-H,CD-M, N3314, N3315, N3316,
DO-N, EI-H N3317, N3319, N3321

MK297 AI-A, AI-B, AI-H, CD-A, CD-B, N3310, N3311, N3314,
CD-E, DO-A, DO-B, DO-H, DO-N N3317
EI-A

MK356 AI-R N3328

MJ772 AI-D, CD-H, CD-N, DO-H Nil

TE308 AI-E, CD-A, CD-D, CD-F, CD-J Nil
CD-K, CD-O, DO-H, DO-K, DO-L
DO-S, EI-A, EI-J Nil

RM689 AI-A, AI-J, AI-M, AI-N, BO-B, CD-C, N3310, N3311, N3313,
CD-J, DO-B, DO-D N3318, N3321

RW382 AI-G AI-H, DO-L, DO-M, EI-G, EQ-G N3314, N3316, N3317,
N3320

SL574 AI-A, AI-E, EI-A N3310

SM411 AI-A, AI-B, AI-S, DO-R, EI-M, LC-M N3310, N3311, N3323,
N3329

TB382 AI-A, AI-C, AI-H, AI-P, BO-H, CD-A, N3310, N3316, N3317,
DO-A, DO-L, DO-M, EI-A, LC-A N3320, N3321, N3323,
N3324, N3370

TE311 AI-C, AI-M, DO-H N3321, N3324

TE356 AI-C, AI-P, DO-M, EI-C, LC-C N3312, N3324

TE384 AI-E, AI-H, AI-L, AI-P, AI-Q, DO-L, N3314, N3315, N3316,
LC-F N3320, N3323, N3324

TE476 AI-B, AI-F N3311, N3320

PM631 AI-E, AI-H, AI-L, CD-F, CD-K, DO-G N3314, N3315, N3316,
DO-N N3317, N3319, N3320

PM651 AI-S, BO-S, DO-N N3317, N3320, N3329

PS853 AI-E, AI-G, AI-M, CD-C, EI-K N3314, N3316, N3319,
N3321
PS915 AI-R N3328

LA198 AI-G, DO-C N3316, N3317

HURRICANES

P2617 MI-C, MI-S H3426, H3427

Z7015 F, L, MI-A, MI-D H3418

LF363 F, MI-A, MI-D, MI-H, KV-C H3420, H3421, H3422

LF715 Nil (Replica mould master) Nil

PZ865 H, MI-CMI-D, MI-G, KV-A, KV-M, H3421, H3423, H3424
OK-I

RCAF 5377/G- D, F, MI-A, MI-D, MI-F, KV-B H3418, H3421, H3423

As a spotter at Southend from the late 1960’s I remember that the first thing the ground crew did once the engines had stopped was fit a prop under the rear fuselage to stop the aircraft sitting on its tail when the cars were unloaded. the loading and unloading was usually accompanied by loud creaks and groans (which could often be heard clearly from the spectator terrace) and a series of lurches as the CG sorted itself out.
Occassionally someone forgot to remove the tail prop after loading and the Carvair was pursued down the taxiway by a van or lorry carrying someone to unclip it.
It wasn’t completely unknown for them to take off with the prop still in place but apparently it banged around so badly in the slipstream that it was best to do a quick circuit and land to get it removed.
They don’t make aeroplanes with character like the Carvair anymore.

I visited Salisbury Hall several years ago with a friend who is new products manager at Revell USA and we measured the Mosquitos for a Revell kit and were made very welcome.
We were told that the ex Liverpool Corporation TT35 was being surveyed with ultrasound to find out if the glue was good enough to make it viable as a flyer.
What happened? – Was it an impossible job or was it simply a lack of money.