Post by Brickhead on Jul 11, 2024 7:48:25 GMT
For this summer, I considered going to the British isles instead of the usual ride to Italy in some roundabout way or other. A third option stood out, however: A mere 2.5 hours (back road) ride away - but a proper indulgence at the destination:
Vickers-Armstrong Supermarine Spitfire Mk. IXc, EN570. Built by Rolls-Royce Hucknall factory as an LF IX and originally powered by a Rolls-Royce Merlin 66. First flight 1943-04-03, issued to 15MU 1943-04-08 and then 76MU 1943-04-21. The aircraft was then issued to 611 squadron and coded FY-J on 1943-05-15. On the 11. June 1943, at 15:58, EN570 and 11 other Spitfire IX from 611 sqadron took to the air on rodeo 229. Over the coast of France in Pas-de-Calaise region the flight ran into 13 FW 190s. EN570 was last seen diving through the thick fog with 8 FW 190s giving chase.
After a nine year rebuild, the aircraft flew again from Biggin Hill 2024-04-22.
The engine has been replaced by a Packard-built V1650-7, aka Merlin 266, functionally identical to the Merlin 66, but with slight differences in mounting/couplings (different threads, of all things). The same engine type powered the P51D Mustang, hence the somewhat less scarce availability. The compressor gear change has been removed to limit weight and wear, so it's basically stuck in M.S. (low speed), meaning that "boost" (manifold pressure) will be limited at altitudes where this particular aircraft never needs to operate.
Merlin variants (Wikipedia)
The fuselage has been converted from an LF to a TR, and the forward cockpit moved some 13" forward (if memory serves) to counter the weight rear-shift for stability reasons. The lower (37 gal) of the two fuselage fuel tanks is removed, to make leg room for the pilot, but since no guns are installed, that wing space has been re-purposed for additional fuel tanks. The wing itself is slightly modified to resemble 'e' wing armament (originally 'c' - first-gen "universal" wing), albeit without the blisters for the 20mm Hispanos common for both 'c' and 'e' wings. Looking at old pictures, I'm reasonably certain that the tail fin was the older/smaller type, whereas the current tail fin is the newer type with some 50% greater rudder area. Both types were used (at different production dates) on the Mk. IX.
Inside the cockpit, the gun sight has been removed, making room for the required VHF radio. I suspect the original TR1196 radio isn't very useful today. The mixture lever on the throttle quadrant is now inoperative, fully auto mixture and a separate cutoff filling its role. Since you can't sit on modern "backpack" type parachutes, seat cushions have been added (success debatable).
A few personal gripes:
The instruments in the rear cockpit aren't calibrated and certified (at least not yet), so this aircraft is not a fully functional trainer. The artificial horizon and the DI (gyro compass) are currently defunct, and the tachometer fluctuates a bit. With limited forward visibility from the rear, and a defunct horizon, the altimeter and vertical speed indicator were pretty much all I had to go on to maintain the desired pitch and altitude. Can't complain about a little sideslip during turns, though, that was all me and my glaring lack of experience.
More concerning (for someone vaguely familiar with flight controls), the VHF radio, flaps and wheel brakes are unavailable from the rear cockpit. In the highly unlikely event of pilot incapacitation, this means that a gear-up (belly) landing is the only reasonably safe option, lest one rolls off the far end of the runway, or swerves and flips when the rudder no longer has sufficient airflow. After figuring out how to visually alert the tower and/or traffic, that is (no radio in the back). Bailing out is of course possible, at the expense of both a pilot who might still be alive, and a priceless aircraft. Best case, however, is predictably what actually happened: Nothing amiss with the aircraft nor any of its occupants, and the pilot set her down nicely on two points, then bleeding speed before the third - three-point landings best avoided on high-grip surfaces.
Vickers-Armstrong Supermarine Spitfire Mk. IXc, EN570. Built by Rolls-Royce Hucknall factory as an LF IX and originally powered by a Rolls-Royce Merlin 66. First flight 1943-04-03, issued to 15MU 1943-04-08 and then 76MU 1943-04-21. The aircraft was then issued to 611 squadron and coded FY-J on 1943-05-15. On the 11. June 1943, at 15:58, EN570 and 11 other Spitfire IX from 611 sqadron took to the air on rodeo 229. Over the coast of France in Pas-de-Calaise region the flight ran into 13 FW 190s. EN570 was last seen diving through the thick fog with 8 FW 190s giving chase.
After a nine year rebuild, the aircraft flew again from Biggin Hill 2024-04-22.
The engine has been replaced by a Packard-built V1650-7, aka Merlin 266, functionally identical to the Merlin 66, but with slight differences in mounting/couplings (different threads, of all things). The same engine type powered the P51D Mustang, hence the somewhat less scarce availability. The compressor gear change has been removed to limit weight and wear, so it's basically stuck in M.S. (low speed), meaning that "boost" (manifold pressure) will be limited at altitudes where this particular aircraft never needs to operate.
Merlin variants (Wikipedia)
The fuselage has been converted from an LF to a TR, and the forward cockpit moved some 13" forward (if memory serves) to counter the weight rear-shift for stability reasons. The lower (37 gal) of the two fuselage fuel tanks is removed, to make leg room for the pilot, but since no guns are installed, that wing space has been re-purposed for additional fuel tanks. The wing itself is slightly modified to resemble 'e' wing armament (originally 'c' - first-gen "universal" wing), albeit without the blisters for the 20mm Hispanos common for both 'c' and 'e' wings. Looking at old pictures, I'm reasonably certain that the tail fin was the older/smaller type, whereas the current tail fin is the newer type with some 50% greater rudder area. Both types were used (at different production dates) on the Mk. IX.
Inside the cockpit, the gun sight has been removed, making room for the required VHF radio. I suspect the original TR1196 radio isn't very useful today. The mixture lever on the throttle quadrant is now inoperative, fully auto mixture and a separate cutoff filling its role. Since you can't sit on modern "backpack" type parachutes, seat cushions have been added (success debatable).
A few personal gripes:
The instruments in the rear cockpit aren't calibrated and certified (at least not yet), so this aircraft is not a fully functional trainer. The artificial horizon and the DI (gyro compass) are currently defunct, and the tachometer fluctuates a bit. With limited forward visibility from the rear, and a defunct horizon, the altimeter and vertical speed indicator were pretty much all I had to go on to maintain the desired pitch and altitude. Can't complain about a little sideslip during turns, though, that was all me and my glaring lack of experience.
More concerning (for someone vaguely familiar with flight controls), the VHF radio, flaps and wheel brakes are unavailable from the rear cockpit. In the highly unlikely event of pilot incapacitation, this means that a gear-up (belly) landing is the only reasonably safe option, lest one rolls off the far end of the runway, or swerves and flips when the rudder no longer has sufficient airflow. After figuring out how to visually alert the tower and/or traffic, that is (no radio in the back). Bailing out is of course possible, at the expense of both a pilot who might still be alive, and a priceless aircraft. Best case, however, is predictably what actually happened: Nothing amiss with the aircraft nor any of its occupants, and the pilot set her down nicely on two points, then bleeding speed before the third - three-point landings best avoided on high-grip surfaces.
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