SAVE OUR SPITFIRES!
With historic aircraft increasingly being sold abroad in multi-million pound deals, enthusiasts are calling for urgent protection for Britain’s legendary aviation heritage… before it flies away for good
FEWWILL forget the moment the late Captain Sir Tom Moore raised his right arm in triumph as a Spitfire and Hurricane performed a flypast for his 100th birthday, lifting the nation’s spirits as they soared majestically over the rolling English countryside. Treasure those rare moments – because enthusiasts fear many of our most magnificent flying machines are dipping over the horizon to sunnier climes and into the hands of rich foreign owners, at an alarming rate.
Now a campaign is being launched to give our old warbirds National Treasure status, with a protected register of aircraft, to keep them flying in the UK for future generations and prevent wealthy buyers taking them abroad.
Enthusiasts are lamenting the recent sale of a Spitfire Mark XVI to a buyer in Holland. And in December a Mark XVIII was sold to a German organisation for an undisclosed sum. Powered by a RollsRoyce Griffon engine, it was built in 1945 and was previously owned by Spitfire Limited of Humberside.The aircraft served with the South East Asia Air Command and was later transferred to the Indian Air Force.
Two superbly restored Spitfires are expected to be sold to overseas buyers in deals worth millions of pounds and it is highly unlikely they will ever again grace the skies over Britain. One of them is an extremely rare Seafire – the navalised version of the aircraft. It is back on the international market after a sale fell through in December and two potential US buyers have already swooped in for a deal.
Seafires provided air cover for the Allied invasion of Sicily in 1943. This one was bought by French aircraft enthusiast Jean Frelaut in 1970 and exhibited at the Musee de la Resistance at St Marcel, near Malestroit, Brittany.
She was later bought byWarbirds of Great Britain at Biggin Hill, Kent, in 1988, registered as G-BUAR on January 21 1992, then relocated to Bournemouth. The Seafire ended up with Air Leasing Ltd at Bentwaters, Suffolk, and flew again in 2015 after considerable restoration. Now she could be on her way to America unless a British buyer can be found urgently.
Britain has 35 airworthy Spitfires and there are 30 more around the world. But demand is huge, so many restoration projects are under way using new fuselages and wings made on the Isle of Wight. Spare parts for Merlin engines are also made.
The new parts are being built around remains of Spitfires which crashed during
wartime. The reality is Spitfires, Hurricanes and other rare warbirds from yesteryear have become the must-have boys’ toy for enthusiasts and billionaires.And sadly, without protection, many more are likely to be making a one-way journey over the white cliffs of Dover.
It is not just British-built aircraft that are disappearing. Vintage aircraft from other countries which have become hugely popular at UK air shows for decades after restoration work in the UK are also vanishing.
A North American P-51D Mustang, known as Ferocious Frankie, delighted tens of thousands of spectators when she was operated by the Old Flying Machine Company. She is now in Turkey.
Another aircraft crowds love to see is the Hispano Aviacion HA 1109, more commonly known as the Spanish Messerschmitt 109 fighter. During the Second World War ME 109s were involved with countless dogfights with Spitfires and Hurricanes. One of these beautifully-maintained fighters has just left the UK for Hungary.
Tighter regulations enforced following the Shoreham airport disaster, near Brighton, in 2015, when a vintage Hawker Hunter T7 jet crashed, killing 11 and injuring 16, have made it more difficult and costly for UK-based owners to fly historic aircraft.
Civilian-operated Hawker Hunters were grounded following the accident, blamed on pilot error, resulting in a number of the spectacular aircraft going abroad. A colourfully painted Hawker Hunter called Miss Demeanour was a huge crowd-puller at British air shows but she has been sold abroad.
A rare two-seater Hunter jet also now resides in the United States. Another favourite at air shows is the Gloster Meteor, the only British jet fighter which took part in combat missions during the Second World War. Its groundbreaking turbojet engines were pioneered by Frank Whittle and his company Power Jets.Two of these beautifully-designed aircraft have recently been sold to US enthusiasts.
AVAMPIRE T.11 jet fighter owned by a British syndicate is up for sale. The de Havilland Vampires entered operational service just after the end of the war and remained in frontline service for the RAF until 1953. A Vampire was the first jet aircraft to cross the Atlantic Ocean. A P.40 Kittyhawk, a stylish ground attack American aircraft, which was flown in the
2012 war film Red Tails, has been sold to a buyer in the United States, leaving just two serviceable examples in
Britain .
A German Fieseler
Storch owned by British collector Peter Holloway has recently been sold to a buyer in Germany.
She was built primarily for army liaison purposes.
Storch wings can be folded back which allows the aircraft to be easily transported on a trailer or towed behind a vehicle.The coronavirus pandemic has meant scores of air shows had to be cancelled last year, which has been devastating for vintage aircraft owners who have come to rely on them to help offset high operating and maintenance costs.
This has prompted the Historic Aircraft Association (HAA) to come up with a radical plan to try to save aviation heritage.
President Sir Gerald Howarth, a former Conservative MP and minister, says: “The solution I have in mind is similar to the one which applies to the art world. If someone in the UK wants to sell a Leonardo painting to a foreign buyer, the sale can be halted to give an opportunity for a British buyer to come forward and match the price so the work can stay in this country.
“We need a register of historic aircraft just as there is a register of important works of art. We have to do something to stop these aviation assets from being lost to Britain.This register would also raise awareness among the public about what aircraft are at risk of going abroad.
“Seeing aircraft like Spitfires and Hurricanes is a real joy for many people and that cannot be put under threat.” Association chairman Wally Epton, a former Spitfire and Hurricane display pilot who has also flown the “enemy” Me108 Taifun at air shows, shares Sir
Gerald’s deep concerns. Shortly before flying to Nigeria to hand over a private jet, Wally said: “Britain has been a world leader in aviation from the start and we believe that these aircraft, including some from other nations, represent a vital part of the UK’s aviation heritage which must be preserved for future generations.”
Wally, the proud owner of a 1942 de Havilland Tiger Moth biplane, adds: “We quite rightly list our historic buildings to protect them from the bulldozer, but now is the time to ensure we protect this extraordinary collection of aircraft which have so enriched the 20th century development of aviation but also, literally, prevented our country from invasion.
“Our museums do a great job but people also want to see these vintage aircraft in the air, entertaining the crowd and evoking the spirit of Britain’s aviation pioneers.
“Recent changes in air display rules have caused some pilots to withdraw from the display world and risk-averse regulations introduced by the Civil Aviation Authority are persuading owners to dispose of their aircraft, with too many being sold abroad.”
The association wants a “watch list” of the top 10 aircraft at risk to be drawn up so they have “National Treasure” status. As well as the Spitfire and Hurricane, the list would include the legendary Lancaster bomber, the Fairey Swordfish, the 1930s Hawker Fury and a Bleriot X1 – the oldest flying aircraft in the UK today.
Complementing the National Treasures’ list the association also wants a second tier of so-called Blue Plaque aircraft, which would include the Bristol Blenheim and
‘Museums do a great job but people want to see aircraft in the air... evoking our pioneering spirit’
Sally B, the B-17 Flying Fortress based at Duxford, Cambs. Another cherished survivor given this status would be the Bristol F.2B, whose Rolls-Royce Falcon engine is the oldest working RR aero engine in the world. There would be further categories which should be called significant, important and noteworthy.
These would include the 1930s Hawker Nimrod I and II biplane fighters; American fighters including P-40, P-47 and P-51s that flew from British airfields in the 1940s, and more esoteric types such as Yaks and Hispano “Buchon” Messerschmitt 109.
HERITAGE aircraft enthusiast Allan Vogel, who brokers many sales of aircraft, says while the National Treasures list is a very good idea, it will be difficult to control the international trade in highly sought-after planes.
Lancaster bombers capable of flying could fetch up to £30million simply because there are so few of them. A de Havilland Mosquito, the iconic British Second World War-era fighter-bomber, now in America, has just been valued at £8million. Spitfires sell for around £1.5million but any of those which saw combat in the early part of the war can command more than £3million. One extensively restored 1945 Spitfire is on sale in Australia for £2.75million.
HAA member Allan says: “There are quite a few wealthy philanthropists around the world who are willing to pay for heritage aircraft which can fly.
“The value drops if they are for static displays or museums. It is important we keep as many of these superb aircraft flying because they all need flying time to keep them in good mechanical order.”
Enthusiasts are hoping aircraft can stay in Britain but there will have to be plenty of air shows where the public can see them – and, indirectly, financially support the efforts being made to halt the exodus of aviation’s crown jewels.
If nothing is done, the danger is we will lose priceless national treasures. And why should people stand by and let happen what the Luftwaffe failed to do 80 odd years ago – knocking the RAF’s finest out of the skies in the Battle of Britain? If dear old Captain Sir Tom Moore was still alive he would surely join the rallying cry, SOS – Save Our Spitfires.