FP_2015_05_

Following the wood repairs, the

fuselage and wing were given a

fresh fabric skin, using a bolt of

Irish linen with a 1943 inspection

date stamp. This was given six

coats of red dope and two of

aluminium dope, the latter for

ultra-violet protection.

Cockpit heritage

At some time in the past the whole

of the cockpit interior had been

treated to a liberal brush coating

of zinc chromate primer, even over

the instrument dials. This must

have been done to help protect

from corrosion. All cockpit fittings

have been removed and fully

restored to original condition, and

many are already back in place.

The cockpit canopy was

challenging. It was believed it

would probably cause more harm

than good to try and remove

the Perspex from the frame as

some of the panels were already

cracked and the rear panels were

chafed from the fairings for the

dummy gun turret. It was decided

we could not excessively polish

the Perspex and

risk losing this evidence

of the aircraft’s history.

So the canopy frame

was carefully stripped

of its original paint,

both inside and out, and the whole

assembly masked and resprayed.

The canopy is now refitted to the

fuselage.

Giving up secrets

During restoration, the prototype

has revealed many of its secrets.

The airframe is liberally adorned

with signatures of personnel

who worked on it. There are also

handwritten notes and serial

numbers. When we came across

any of these we gave them a coat

of clear dope to protect them for

posterity.

Other secrets and anomalies

found include the mounting points

for the dummy turret, a flare

chute situated in the rear fuselage

and oversize elevator trim wheel

(unique to W4050).

Of particular note are the

Handley Page leading edge slats.

These were tested during early

flight trials – but, with low speed

handling more than acceptable,

they were deemed unnecessary,

strapped back and eventually

covered in fabric. On dismantling

them we found that, apart from

a couple of corroded and broken

control cables, the operating

mechanism was complete and

in excellent condition. We have

decided that, as they are a

May 2015 FLYPAST 115

The restored forward fuselage of the

prototype with its new fabric covering.

The original (short) engine nacelle

with the extended version applied

directly over it.

112-116_Mossie_fpSBB.indd 115 16/03/2015 14:33