I’m afraid I’ve drawn a blank, AA. My Flying Squirrel photos are of the Scott variety and my memory of having an ABC of some sort was correct but it is indeed fitted to a motorcycle! 

Brian Thornby is a member of the forum (engineman) though I have not seen him on here for a while. If he still looks in he may take an interest in your thread. 

Well done! Absolutely beautiful.

I can’t find any details on D656, an Airco DH.9, but I notice that other aircraft in the same serial batch, such as D658 and 659 are listed as being at No. 7 Air Acceptance Park, Kenley in 1919 so it’s certainly possible it was there too.

Hi AA,

Took a bit of searching to find anything about this one! According to the 12 O’Clock High Forum the Spitfire in question was EN865

– http://forum.12oclockhigh.net/showthread.php?t=37037

Airhistory.org’s Spitfire Production List entry for that aircraft would seem to back that up though without naming the pilot

– http://www.airhistory.org.uk/spitfire/p037.html

“Gloster Aircraft since 1917″ states all the dimensions are the same except for the height. Span 31ft 10″; Length 21ft 3 and 1/2″ and height 10ft 8″ for the Gambet and A1N1 but 10ft 10” for the A1N2.

The book doesn’t go into great detail on the differences between the types simply saying the design was modified to suit Japanese production techniques. The powerplant and propeller differed – the Gambet having a 420hp Bristol Jupiter VI with a 9ft diameter Watts wooden prop; the A1N1 a 520hp Nakajima Jupiter Vi driving a 9ft 2″ diameter wooden prop and the A1N2 had a 520hp Nakajima Kotobuki 2 and a metal propeller.

The weight of each type varied – the Gambet being 2,010lb; the A1N1 was 2,094lb and the A1N2 = 1,944lb. These are the empty weights.

Looking further, all the aircraft which participated in the International Touring Competition of 1932 seem to have carried a striped-tail scheme.

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/06/Challenge1932_Frenc…

I wonder if the Heinkel is one of those which featured in the “Weekend Aerien” referred to in Flight magazine of 9th September 1932. Several took part in the event which included a visit to Hooton – D-2301; 2302 and 2304 are mentioned. There is a photo of the Heinkel pilots being greeted at Hooton Park.

https://archive.org/details/Flight_International_Magazine_1932-09-09-pd…

I was surprised to find out that many of the Firebrands were scrapped not too far from us here at the McDonald yard in Milnathort. In the case of some of the TF.4s and 5s the book states this was as late as 1965.

The plaque which accompanies the prop blades –