WIX Archives

Re: Nineteen Spits -- or twentyone? Double count. x2=19

Posted by PeterA on Wed Aug 21, 2002 01:02:58 PM

In reply top Re: Nineteen Spits -- or twentyone? Double count. x2=19 posted by Christer on Wed Aug 21, 2002 10:02:59 AM

Christer,
MV370, a Mk XIV from Nagpur, had several owners in the UK before being aquired by OFMC/Mark Hanna. They restored it to quality static and shipped it to the German Museum for their client.

'HS649' (Indian serial), was split in India, the fuselage coming to the UK the wings to the USA. There were no clues to the RAF serial on the fuselage, however the tail unit had an inspection plate with TP285 stencilled on the reverse. Whilst this serial was not in total accord with the constuctors numbers, there are variations with Supermarine built aircraft and I thus identified this machine as TP285(provisional). The fuselage was converted to high back, wings were aquired/manufactured and the aircraft was traded for the Mk. XI PL965 at Overloon. It was painted to represent a 2nd TAF Mk XIV and because the RAF serial was inknown, 'NH649', based on the Indian serial, was applied. In 1999 I finally got access to the wings, now in the UK, and there on both undersides was HS649 over HS649 again over TP263. A full twenty years to pin it down.
Peter

: Peter,
:
: I?ve seen MV370 in Laatzen, Hannover. Does this mean that
: OFMC doesn?t have a Mk.XIV? Or was/is it another one?
:
: NH749 is a MkXIV, TP285 and TP263 are Mk.18s.
: The mix-up TP285 <=> TP263 I can understand but, where doe
: s NH749 fit in? Even if John is right that it should be NH
: 649 it makes no sense to me.
:
: Sorry for being thick,
: Christer

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