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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-humber-20910980
There could be up to 36 buried planes at the end of the airport's runway in Mingaladon and up to 124 aircraft in total, it is thought.
I know there are Spitfire experts on here, but arent alot these planes going to knackered?
Surely they were never designed or built for longevity? At the end of WW2 they must have been churning them out with a probable life of months in combat
Could be a alot of other stuff underground as well it seems, and at the current rate for Spitfires alot of ££££££'s worth
And they are taking a chap who saw them being buried. blimey.
My dad fought in Burma, shame he no longer with us to ask him if he knew anything.
I believe the thinking is that the aircraft are all wrapped up in kit form - so if they have been properly covered and treated then there shouldn't be much corrosion etc. hopefully anyway!
they're wrapped and boxed and well under the mud so they're hoping for "well-preserved" - remains to be seen
I would love this to be true.
Equally, I would not be suprised if they end up with 54 bulldozers and a large collection of corned beef tins.
Memory is neither accurate nor reliable.
Fingers crossed, eh?
Thanks for the link. I'm keeping my fingers crossed 8)
singletrackmind - Member
Surely they were never designed or built for longevity?
They'd have to be reliable, and hence well made, Shirley?
Theres reliable in terms of engine starting and guns going bang when asked to. Then there are things which happen to metals after 60 years underground.
Bi mettalic corrosion of rivets would not be an issue to RJ Mitchel or the ground crews . All the hydraulic lines whould have been tested then have been sat in hydraulic fluid . All wiring insulation willbe gone it was cloth , the wires themselves brittle and oxidised.
Yes the Engine will be ok , but all the fuel componants will be shot as they will have been test run up , then crated and shipped.
Towards the end of 1945 there were shortages of everything so things were made to minimal specifications everywhere.
alledgedly they were still in their protctive wraps for shipping, I worked on a site where they disposed of old MOD kit back in the 80's and 90's they'd regulary find things that had been in storage for best part of 50 yrs
ok not burried in the ground but the shipping protection tended to be grease wrapping in a waxy paper like material which was designed for long term preservation, I can imagine shipping high value aircraft by sea would require similar if not superior protetion
Items I've seet in A1 condition include ww2 searchlight, aero engines etc
Its incredible what can be rebuilt with the right determination, look what was possible with even rarer aircraft like the Blenheim.
I'm really excited to see what they uncover.
If this Mk1 Spit can be rebuilt after spending time buried in the sand on a beach then the Burma Spitfires should present no problems..
But I doubt there was much of the original used..
One plus maybe that they were buried deliberately As opposed to crash landing......
Generaly if the Engine is rebuildable and you have the makers plate, then a Spit can be worth rebuilding.
If you look at the recently rebuilt Mosquito, I'm pretty sure it's a complete new fusalage and wings as the glue they used to use is known to fail and delaminate with age.
SM
Just heard on the radio that the team sent to dig them have reviewed the evidence given to them by the enthusiasts and now don't believe they're there. The enthusiasts are saying they've just been digging in the wrong pace. 🙁
Shame they never used them to clear the Burma railway
Awaits.... 
Remember those Yank planes that lay in shifting ice for decades as well?
Well, that's bloody disappointing!
Heres some stories for a Fri read. Including point 5 that was the subject of a documentary:
http://mentalfloss.com/article/23637/9-lost-and-found-airplanes
they've just been digging in the wrong pace.
"Balloq's staff is too long. Indiana."
😆 atAlexSimon
My dad fought in Burma, shame he no longer with us to ask him if he knew anything.
Ditto my Grandfather.
See, the thing is, my Father ran a solicitors practice in the 70's and 80's, and during that time employed a retired ex publican. He happened to become a publican after leaving the RAF where he had been Squadron Leader Rank, albeit in the stores.
He told my dad some time in the 70's that they crated up a load of spits after the war, and concerned that which ever Indian/****stani Govts post partition would move to capture these machines and initiate an Air Force with some decicive capacity over the other, the Govt dictated that they be disposed of.
So in best Air Force practice, they were lovingly disassembled, crated up, including being coated in grease ect as if for long term storage, and then sailed 60 miles of the coast and thrown over the side.
Personally, I don't believe there are many, if any spits. Politically there was no appetite to allow them to fall into "enemy" hands, and yet were obsolete and not worth shipping back to the UK. A few were sold to the Israeli air force, but by 1946, remmeber we were in the jet age. A bunch of old ex WWII tired obsolete marque spits in the far east were worth nothing.
Still, it's only conjecture, but told to my father by the person who organised the sinking of them. Sadly he died 20 years ago.
Surely they were never designed or built for longevity? At the end of WW2 they must have been churning them out with a probable life of [s]months[/s] hours in combat
Well, not so long ago I saw something on telly about an aircraft, I believe was a Spit, dug out of a bog where it had nose dived in Eire. When they dug up the remains, they found the cannon, along with live ammo. On checking the guns, and giving them a good clean, they were set up by the military and they fired perfectly, despite having been three or four metres underground for something like sixty years, in less than optimum conditions.
I remember that!
Related to Hora's link - plenty of aircraft remains closer to home...
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[url= http://www.flickr.com/photos/naegears/6990872129/ ]IMG_6355[/url] by [url= http://www.flickr.com/people/naegears/ ]martysavalas[/url], on Flickr
Canberra
[url= http://farm1.staticflickr.com/103/260975833_0e8355c9f3.jp g" target="_blank">
[url= http://www.flickr.com/photos/naegears/260975833/ ]IMG_1595[/url] by [url= http://www.flickr.com/people/naegears/ ]martysavalas[/url], on Flickr
Wellington