Fly Past

PROMISE

T

his month’s cover star is

the distinctively schemed

Supermarine Spitfire XIV

NH799, a fighter restored to fly by

Avspecs at Ardmore, New Zealand,

following a serious accident in

1996.

The aircraft was built slightly too

late to see wartime action with the

RAF and was instead delivered to

the Indian Air Force on December

31, 1947, following a stint with

9 Maintenance Unit. It remained

in India until being recovered in

1981 by Doug Arnold, who had

it brought back to the UK. It was

next owned by Duxford’s Fighter

Collection and flown as G-BUZU

following restoration by Historic

Flying, then based at Audley End.

It was subsequently acquired by the

Alpine Fighter Collection, which

flew it as ZK-XIV in New Zealand

from 1994.

Sadly, pilot Sir Tim Wallis was

seriously injured during a take-off

accident at Wanaka on January

2, 1996. Although the Spitfire

sustained significant damage,

it was gradually brought back

to airworthiness by Avspecs

and took to the air again on

April 2, 2015, in the hands

of John Lamont. It made its

display ‘comeback’ at that year’s

Omaka Classic Fighters Airshow

in New Zealand, and continues

to fly today as a tribute to all who

served in RAF South East Asia

Command.

Left

Supermarine Spitfi re

XIV NH799 (ZK-XIV)

airborne over New

Zealand recently.

GAVIN CONROY

May 2018 FLYPAST 55