A Frenchman?

😀

Tail sitters

Tail wheel aircraft are susceptible to tailwinds when taxying. In other words the breeze could get under the tail feathers raise the tail and risk a prop strike (VERRRRRRY expensive!!).

Getting a handsome ground engineer, or two, sitting there as ballast makes the exercise a lot safer. Once you are pointing into wind there is no problem.

Hope that helps?

MM

She is off to have lunch across the water methinks

I know the chap that took it into Halton originally. Indeed it was looking a bit sad back then.

Suspect it will take loads of wonga and even more TLC to get it back to what it should be (and even there some folk scratch their heads deciding what it was in the first place).

I believe there is a skunkworks at the eastern end of Duxford that could probably sort it. Just find a rich uncle first. :rolleyes:

I was very saddened to hear of the passing of Monsieur Clostermann today. Without doubt he was a great inspiration to all those that have an inherent passion for aviation through the talents of his author’s pen.

As a young boy I would devour the words in ‘Flames in the Sky’ – reading and rereading it endlessly. It was uncanny how he would have you sat alongside the Spitfire pilot ready to launch off a carrier for Malta or how you were very much along for the P38 attack on Admiral Yamamoto.

In my youth’s eye I had pictured M.Clostermann to be a small wiry character with perhaps slick black hair and a pencil moustache. Not at all! On arriving at a French air base some years ago in a Spitfire I was presented to M. Clostermann. I was stunned to see how tall he was and could scarcely believe he fitted into a single seat cockpit! He was devoid of slicked black hair and moustache also!

Kicking myself for not having the foresight to bring my original copy of ‘Flames in the Sky’ to the show I enticed him into signing my brand new flying gloves which amused him somewhat with the comment ‘ I ‘ave signed s few things in my life but never a pair of gloves!’. At a superb gala dinner later that weekend, at a magnificent chateau, I managed to get him to sign the menu (along with many other French WW2 fighter pilots) which he did along with his trademark Spitfire sketch. I still have it and will try to scan the sketch and publish it for you all to see.

I was fortunate to meet him, thereafter, on a number of occasions and remember clearly the show at Rheims a few years ago where the Free French Airforce Association decided to hold their last ever bash. I flew out, alongside the Blenheim, in MK912 and joined up with the other Spitfires at Rheims. I sought him out and as usual he was at a table surrounded by hordes of admirers. This time I got him to sign MK912’s pilot’s notes and his parting words to me were to ensure that the Spitfires flew for as long as possible as he always took great pride in seeing them airborne in their rightful element.

He is gone but his memory will live on, through his writings,
for decades to come.

A thorough gentleman who will be sadly missed.

A bientot!

Out of the loop at the moment
Will try and get an update when I get back to Blighty

MM

>>Any news on that lovely spitfire mk v?<<

Yes

Thanks Dave. Had no idea the dogfight/tailchase looked so effective at Niagara. You have provided ideas for the next one 😉