FROM THE WORKSHOPFROM THE WORKSHOP AIR LEASINGAIR LEASING

with a back seat

A

t first glance you’d be

forgiven for thinking that

the aircraft parked on the

tarmac outside Air Leasing’s

Spitfire Blister headquarters

in Sywell was another Hispano-

Suiza HA-1112 Buchón. This is the

Spanish licence-built version of

the famous Messerschmitt Bf 109

fighter that features a 1,400hp

Rolls-Royce Merlin

500-45 engine,

and incredibly,

remained in front-

line service with the

Spanish Air Force until

1966.

However, a closer look

reveals that this machine is a

unique two-seater HA-1112 M4L

variant. Wearing the ‘Red 11’

markings it carried during the

filming of Battle of Britain in 1968,

the fighter (registration C4K-

112/G-AWHC) gleams – testament

to the hard work undertaken by

the Air Leasing team that restored

it to airworthy condition after 50

years in storage in the arid heat

of Texas.

Richard Grace, Chief Engineer of

Air Leasing is immensely proud of

how things have turned out. As we

walk past the wingtip, he points

out a very unusual pitot head

cover – a Cuban cigar tube.

“It’s a tribute to [German fighter

ace] Adolf Galland,” laughs

Richard. “He flew this aircraft

during the filming, and we thought

it was a nice touch.”

Galland, who was famed

for his love of cigars,

had a particular connection with

‘Red 11’. The story goes that while

the Luftwaffe legend was working

as a technical adviser on the film,

he was asked by Pedro Santa

Cruz (who was the chief pilot of

the Spanish types) when he had

last flown a ’109. Galland wistfully

replied that it had been 26 years

ago, and so Santa Cruz let him

take C4K-112 into the air at Tablada

near Seville, Spain, and shortly

afterwards was rewarded with a

spectacular aerobatic display

culminating in Galland’s

famous victory bunt. Later,

the same aircraft – by

now in the UK for

filming – was flown

by Galland again,

with the equally

famous RAF ace Wg Cdr Roland

Robert Stanford Tuck DSO DFC**

AFC in the rear cockpit.

With such a pedigree, the arrival

of the little fighter on the warbird

scene has been eagerly awaited. It

has already completed a series of

successful test flights in the hands

of Richard, who describes it as a

‘dream’ to fly. It won’t be used for

training purposes though, because

as the MD wryly notes: “If you

need someone to check you out

from the back seat, it’s probably

not for you.”

Sharp-eyed readers may have

noticed that the previously fitted

blown canopy has been replaced

by a traditional Messerschmitt-

styled framed cockpit,

which blends in well.

“The original

Spanish-designed

canopy wasn’t serviceable

at all,” states Richard, “It was

barely held on, and certainly

didn’t meet modern safety

standards, which are very strict.

The replacement looks good, and

it’s a lot safer, especially in case

of trouble.

“We have overhauled the other

canopy,” he adds, “and it will be

offered with the aircraft.”

Inside the surprisingly

roomy

Buchón

Managed and run by the Grace family, Air Leasing

at Sywell continues to go from strength to strength, and its latest project is a fi lm star with

an unrivalled pedigree. Chris Gilson gets up close to a Buchón made for two

18 FLYPAST May 2018