Sun, Jun 06, 2021
Top G7 VIPs Are To Lend Young Apprentices A Helping Hand
The G7 is about to lend a hand in the re-creation of an iconic Spitfire airframe. On 9 June 2021, senior G7 representatives will visit the Trelonk estate in Cornwall, to assist a young team of apprentices and aviation engineers engaged in the reconstruction of the 'St. Ives, Cornwall' Presentation Spitfire.
In December 1941, following 15 months of determined fund raising by the local community, the St. Ives Spitfire fund reached its target of £5,000, enabling the construction of Spitfire BL709 'St. Ives, Cornwall' in early 1942.
BL709 spent its life in the service of 340 Squadron, with 13 'Free French' pilots at its controls taking part in 49 missions. On 12 June 1942, less than 6 months into operations, the plane was struck off following severe damage sustained during a raid. Despite its short career the plane remains an immense source of pride for the local community of St. Ives.
Founded in 1919 and a former partner to Vickers Supermarine on Spitfire production, The Parnall Aircraft Company is rebuilding an historically accurate non-flying recreation of BL709. With the cockpit and fuselage largely complete, focus is now turning to riveting the aircraft's elliptical wings, a job on which the team hopes to receive VIP assistance on during the visit.
The aircraft is being built as a monument to great British design and the people of St. Ives, however, PAC's Founder & CEO Mark Parnall is keen to point out that the project is not only a celebration of the past:
"Through the Parnall Foundation's apprenticeship scheme, this project has provided opportunities for young engineers to develop their skills for the future and become qualified Aviation Engineers, under the tutelage of world-class experts".
More News
Convective SIGMET A weather advisory concerning convective weather significant to the safety of all aircraft. Convective SIGMETs are issued for tornadoes, lines of thunderstorms, e>[...]
Aero Linx: United Flying Octogenarians WELCOME to a most extraordinary group of aviators, the United Flying Octogenarians (UFO). Founded in 1982 with just a handful of pilots, we h>[...]
Pilot’s Decision To Attempt Takeoff With Frost Covering The Airplane’s Wings Analysis: The pilot of the light sport airplane was preparing to depart for a cross-country>[...]
“We’ve paid for the cable line’s repair for the customer and have apologized for the inconvenience this caused them...” Source: Some followup info from an A>[...]
Coupled Approach An instrument approach performed by the aircraft autopilot, and/or visually depicted on the flight director, which is receiving position information and/or steerin>[...]
ANN's Daily Aero-Term (12.01.25): Convective SIGMET
See All