36 Mint WW2 spitfires to be unearthed...

reply to post by HomerinNC

Nah.....It's Il-2 Sturmovik I think!

Removed it and put up summat a bit more real!

Originally posted by squarehead666
reply to post by HomerinNC

 

Nah.....It's Il-2 Sturmovik I think!

Removed it and put up summat a bit more real!

edit on 16-1-2013 by squarehead666 because: clarity

I still have a copy installed along with X-plane and Microsoft Flight.

I am still waiting to hear what happens with the Spitfire's reportedly buried in Australia

www.theaustralian.com.au...

reply to post by Zaphod58

The problem won't only be from potential water ingress into the packing crates that the spits were placed in,unless the engines were carefully drained of all coolant and oil/fuel residues(assuming that the engines had been run,most likely as they were usually bench tested at the Rolls Royce/Packard factories and again after fitment to the airframe),then the presence of ethylene glycol,aviation spirit and lubricating oil , all being excellent oxidising agents with a particular affinity with free radicals!could mean a very thorough (and expensive) overhaul of the engine would be required,if not scrapping it completely.

Originally posted by Drunkenparrot
I believe they are thought to be a combination of Griffon powered Mk.XIV's and Mk.XVIII's possibly with a few Merlin 64 Mk.VIII's.

Unfortunately the first crate is full of water, doesn't bode well with all of our hopes of digging a full fighter wing of brand new Spits out of the mud.

Time Capsule Unveiling Reveals Rusty 1957 Plymouth

A concrete vault encasing a 1957 Plymouth Belvedere buried a half-century ago may have been built to withstand a nuclear attack but it couldn't beat back the natural onslaught of moisture.

At a Friday ceremony complete with a couple of drum rolls, crews removed a multilayered protective wrapping caked with red mud, revealing a vintage vehicle that was covered in rust and wouldn't crank.

There were a few bright spots, literally: shiny chrome was still visible around the doors and front fender, and workers were able to put air in the tires.

But the unveiling in front of thousands of people at the Tulsa Convention Center confirmed fears that the past 50 years had not been the kindest to Miss Belvedere.

You beat me to it! I wanted to post this, as I was pretty excited about seeing them unearth the old Plymouth. Plus, I'm from Oklahoma, so it was kind of a big deal for us.... Then we saw it, and there was a quick killing of all the excitement. However, if the planes are packed in grease, there's less chance of this happening to them.

reply to post by nake13


I'm not as worried about the engines as I am about airframe corrosion. That's what the water will cause (we saw it a LOT at Hickam due to the closeness of the ocean). So it will depend on what kind of water we're talking about, and what kind of corrosion we see when they get them out.

I do hope God was was protecting those things . While I love just about all old aircraft , I especially love GREAT old aircraft . I do not have to clear a spot on the top of a shelf or a list for the Spitfire , it chewed it's way up there all by it's lonesome .

Nuff said .

I hope they find them fine specimens of aeronautical engineering! Personally i would be more interested in all the unfound Gold that the Nazis buried prior to their unconditional surrender. I wonder where that is???

cool, you might be able to sell them to the NRA for there upcoming grand uprising.

Think this is Carolyn in her Grace Spitfire.
Neither of them are fairing badly for old birds.


Thank's Reggie, you did us proud.

Up to date information on the Burma dig is hard to come by, but this forum has regular contributions from somebody who is actually there at the site.

Would be great if they can find and restore them !

for leuchars airshow 2 years ago it was some anniversary of the war or RAF and a spitfire a mustang and a lancaster flew over my home town of Grangemouth the week before the airshow to celebrate the Airfield at Grangemouth during the war .
My friend and I were driving along the road with the windows down listening to music in the summer and next thing the 3 planes incredibly low out of nowhere came thundering over , was the greatest feeling and the roar was incredible. What amazed me more was the sheer size of the lancaster and the fact that it was almost effortlessly hanging . floating there in the sky without dropping because of its bulkyness!
It was really magical !

They have yet to put the spitfire memorial in grangemouth for fear it will be vandalised !

Wow. Amazing story. I never knew that was what they did with surplus. Seems kind of a waste to just bury everything. But could be amazing for treasure hunters.

And how amazing to be the man that witnessed the burying, to be able to be back at the site, witnessing the dig!

Originally posted by squarehead666
In my opinion it's the greatest.....The mighty Mustang would have remained an underperformer were it not for the availability of license built Packard Merlins that were originally intended for Spitfires and Lancasters.

edit on 16-1-2013 by squarehead666 because: s&p

Ummm....I dont know...I think it would be a hard decision for me if I had to choose between a Spitfire, a P51 an F4U Corsair or a P38 Lightning. I guess I would have to have one of each...or maybe two. If this is true and those planes ARE there, then I have to raise a toast to whoever had the foresight, this is really cool news, thank you.

YouSir

Originally posted by Zaphod58
reply to post by nake13

 

I'm not as worried about the engines as I am about airframe corrosion. That's what the water will cause (we saw it a LOT at Hickam due to the closeness of the ocean). So it will depend on what kind of water we're talking about, and what kind of corrosion we see when they get them out.

I would actually expect the airframes to be in reasonable condition,the spits were extensively manufactured from Aluminium alloys and coated in oxidising retardant chrome oxide paint,any carbon steel components,such as screws and nuts would be highly susceptible to the ravages of corrosive influences,Ifr there is any significant water corrosion type damage,I would expect it to be predominantly noticable in the cockpit area.
The engine deterioration would be a major headache for any restoration team,as Merlins and Griffon components are pretty thin on the ground these days,although Rolls Royce did maintain a stock of Griffon spares for the UK's Shackleton fleet which was finally retired in the early part of the 21st century,so there may still be some spares available there.

Originally posted by squarehead666
In my opinion it's the greatest.....The mighty Mustang would have remained an underperformer were it not for the availability of license built Packard Merlins that were originally intended for Spitfires and Lancasters.

edit on 16-1-2013 by squarehead666 because: s&p

Mustangs used the Spitfire gunsight as well as Merlin-Packard engines.......

reply to post by nake13


The problem with aircraft aluminum is that if there is any kind of damage, even a small scratch, it's going to corrode and corrode fast. If it gets a hold around where the rivets and bolts are, it'll spread through the airframe fast. We used to see some wicked corrosion, and even had an aircraft retired due to the corrosion being so bad.

Originally posted by andy06shake
I hope they find them fine specimens of aeronautical engineering! Personally i would be more interested in all the unfound Gold that the Nazis buried prior to their unconditional surrender. I wonder where that is???

The gold, found in salt mines, and in Swiss banks.

reply to post by andy06shake


Go to the Philippines and look for that gold. Japan buried several thousand tons of it, and blinded or killed the workers involved so they couldn't tell where it is. A lot of it is still missing.

Originally posted by sapien82
Would be great if they can find and restore them !

for leuchars airshow 2 years ago it was some anniversary of the war or RAF and a spitfire a mustang and a lancaster flew over my home town of Grangemouth the week before the airshow to celebrate the Airfield at Grangemouth during the war .
My friend and I were driving along the road with the windows down listening to music in the summer and next thing the 3 planes incredibly low out of nowhere came thundering over , was the greatest feeling and the roar was incredible. What amazed me more was the sheer size of the lancaster and the fact that it was almost effortlessly hanging . floating there in the sky without dropping because of its bulkyness!
It was really magical !

They have yet to put the spitfire memorial in grangemouth for fear it will be vandalised !

Plus a Lancaster could carry a single 12,000 pound bomb, one was used to sink the Tirpitz in a Norwegian Fiord.