If any of you are in the market for one of these, take a look here, it's been restored to it's former glory and I'd be on it like a ton of bricks, but I'm short of cash at the moment ;-)
http://www.christies.com/spitfire/in...ily_enews_1A_2
Jimmy
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If any of you are in the market for one of these, take a look here, it's been restored to it's former glory and I'd be on it like a ton of bricks, but I'm short of cash at the moment ;-)
http://www.christies.com/spitfire/in...ily_enews_1A_2
Jimmy
My Grandad flew th in the war, when the war ended he was asked if he wanted to buy one, for £500... He declined...
I'd also be on this like a ton of bricks but I'd need to sell more than three watches a week to raise the funds...
Jason, you sure can be proud of your grandad, but declining on the Spitfire...I'll bet he would be kicking himself if he knew how much these are worth today.Quote:
Originally Posted by JasonM
I'd like to bet that the one on auction will go for above £2.000.000!
Jimmy
This was on the news the other night, must be one of the oldest, if not the oldest Spitfire flying, a mk1 lost during the evacuation at Dunkirk. Fantastic achievement to retrieve it and restore it to full flying glory with that wonderful Merlin upfront. Will be great to see what it goes for. Maybe if we all chip in we could buy it and use it in rotation :icon_biggrin: Reminds me of a guy who I met several times and used to fly a Spitfire mk19 over Kent who was sadly killed during an air display in France some years ago when he had engine problems shortly after take off. He was a true gent to the end.
Lovely to see, but I have to wonder how much of it is original after looking at the wreckage photos from 1940.
http://truth.justdied.com/images/spit_wreck.jpg
That low? Very reasonable really when you compare it to second hand cars. That's a fifth of what Rowan Atkinson wanted for his F1 and I can't imagine how much a good 250GTO would go for these days.Quote:
Originally Posted by Geronimo
Ah, but a car anyone can get in and drive, after paying for it, the Spitfire is a completly different matter. The upkeep is enormous ;-)
So, you’re thinking about buying a Spitfire?
https://grrc.goodwood.com/cool-stuff...UlJtVes6Pi8.97
Yeah, I was thinking...anyone that can raise £2M to buy a special edition Veyron, for example, should be able to afford to own and run such a thing. I think there are an awful lot of people that could afford to buy a £2M Spitfire, but would be ruined trying to keep it. Although, to be honest, I thought they'd be higher then that link suggests.
Not sure that she can afford to bid: Joy Lofthouse.
A friend of mine flew them during the war. At one stage he was attached to an Arctic convoy. They had built a kind of ramp thing on a ship with a Spitfire plonked on top. The idea being that if it was required then it would take off from the ramp, do it's business then land in the sea. The floating pilot was then to be recovered by a launch from one of the ships (if he hadn't frozen to death). My friend and a another pilot where assigned to a ship. They took turns to be on duty (one on, one off). One day the shout came and it happened that it was my friends turn to be asleep in his bunk. His fellow pilot took off successfully but his body was never recovered. For the rest of the trip my friend just had to twiddle his thumbs and try not to think about how lucky he was. He survived the war and lived to a ripe old age until passing away peacefully about ten years ago. Every time I see a Spitfire it saddens me but also fills me with pride that I actually knew someone who was prepared to give all.
I know this is nothing to do with watches but further to the above, my pilot friends wife was in the SOE during the war and worked with the Norwegian Resistance. She is still alive and in fact just celebrated her 100 birthday a couple of weeks ago. She, like her husband, never talked much about what they did during the war. Unfortunately she has lost most of her memory now and doesn't even recognise me or my wife who she was great friends with. I am completely full of regret that I didn't ply her with her favorite gin years ago to get more information. Everything gets forgotten and lost as time goes on. What an amazing couple. Like many others that we will never know.
I hawe one story about 200 Messerschmitt Bf 109 who are destrojed in Croatia from Jugoslavia army.That planes hawe tehnical mistake who are doned by prisoners who worked on Building planes.They did not were drilling holes in turbine panel so that the plane could not reach the maximum height of 10,000 meters. Warmed to and fell. Servicing aircraft investigated the failure, but because they stayed out of the NDH army, are holding back the detection and planes have gone into liquidation. A great pity it would be nice to have that still alive.
Yes but how much would that £500 be in today's money?!Quote:
Originally Posted by Geronimo
Current data is only available till 2011. In 2011, the relative worth of £500 0s 0d from 1950 is:
£14,100.00 using the retail price index
£13,300.00 using the GDP deflator
£39,800.00 using the average earnings
£49,800.00 using the per capita GDP
£62,700.00 using the share of GDP
source: http://www.measuringworth.com/ukcompare/
Call it £50k -- is that about right for a second-hand ex-RAF turbo-prop piston-engined single seat aircraft being sold as govt surplus? I've no idea.
Imagine having one of those sat in the garage.
I think the Spitfire is the most beautiful and graceful aircraft ever built.
Does anyone know the reason it was painted half white and half black on the bottom? I've never seen that before.
Agreed, one flew over yesterday as well fantastic sight and sound. This camouflage technique was used as I understand initially to try and aid identification of RAF aircraft to the British anti aircraft gunners on the ground so they could theoretically identify their own aircraft quickly, it was an aid more than a clever cover up. Later they resorted to duck egg green or light grey.
Not so much the AA-gunners, apparently, more "to aid the Observer Corps in distinguishing and tracking friendly and enemy aircraft formations": link.Quote:
Originally Posted by Cat7
Makes sense, in reality it would be both wouldn't it, as well as friendly aircraft.