New Spitfire in the Northeast !!

[LARGEFLYER]

There is a new Spitfire Mk IX in the northeast!! It belongs to Mr Tom Duffy and is based at Millville, NJ. I had the opportunity yesterday to visit the hanger and Terry Rush was gracious enough to let me have the run of the place and get some pictures of the Spitfire as well as Tom's P-47 "No Guts No Glory" and his FG-1D "Marines Dream" First up are pictures of the Spitfire Mk IX which just arrived about a week ago. This aircraft is immaculate and looks like it just rolled off the assembly line! Terry Rush who flew it up from Texas is pictured in the last 2 photos.





























More to come ...... P-47 & FG-1D

Last edited by LARGEFLYER on Sun Dec 16, 2007 7:52 pm, edited 1 time in total.

[daveymac82c]

That is one heck of a beautiful Spitfire!

Thanks for posting those pictures. Looks like a marvelous machine!!

Cheers

David

[LARGEFLYER]

Here are the pictures of Tom's P-47 No Guts - No Glory.























Next up - FG-1D Marines Dream!

[LARGEFLYER]

Here is Tom Duffy's FG-1D Corsair Marine's Dream formally owned and restored by Ray Dieckman.























Enjoy the photos!!!

[LARGEFLYER]

Finally, here are a few shots of Tom's SNJ.

















Can't wait for Spring to get here to see that Spitfire in the air!!!

[A36pilot]

Nice photos thanks for sharing! Where are the Avenger and B-25? Does he have a second hangar for his other aircraft?

[Nathan]

Tom has some of the nicest warbirds. The Spit looks great and I love the D-Day stripes. Hopefully he will have it at Geneseo next year. That Corsair is my favorite. Its so authentic looking. I love it!

[LARGEFLYER]

Yes, Tom does have a second hanger where he stores the remainder of his collection.

[TAdan]

Great pictures of some really beautiful planes. Thanks for sharing.

Its so nice to have such a cool collection based here in NJ.

I have seen a few of his planes at shows and look forward to seeing the Spitfire.

[Bill Greenwood]

I don't think I know Tom although the photo looks a little familiar. Would anyone there mind passing on a message to him? The photo shows a tow bar attached to the Spitfire tailwheel. There is one caution re: it. If you pull or tow to the rear, this is a normal force just like landing that moves the tailwheel back and up and compresses the strut (shock absorber) inside the fuselage so no harm. If, however, you push the plane forward by the bar attached to the tailwheel, this is an abnormal motion just the reverse of landing and tries to hyperextend the strut. You can visualize this by looking inside the inspection plate on the side of the fuselage. Does it do damage? I don't know for sure. I asked two of the top Spit experts, one said don't push it, tow only, and the other said ok either way. My guess is if moved gently on smooth level ground like the hanger floor it may not be a problem, but on grass or bumps it could be, and you may not know of the damage until you land. If it was mine I'd tow only to be on the sure side. This is not covered in the Pilot Notes, but there are WWII photos from the factory and they show only tow.
It sure is a nice collection in a good hangar.

Last edited by Bill Greenwood on Mon Dec 17, 2007 1:29 pm, edited 2 times in total.

[Ryan Keough]

I don't think I know Tom although the photo looks a little familiar.

The guy in the photo is Terry Rush... you would have met him in Geneseo at the airshow. He was flying the Corsair "Marines Dream"

[corsair166b]

Bill, Tom is a nice guy, met him at the Corsair gathering in CT a few years ago, he now owns Jerry Tepper's old B-25 'Can Do' also, although he got it from Warbird Digest publisher Tim Savage at the time....I can IM you an e-mail addy for him when I get a chance....and when I can find it...

Mark

[Bill Greenwood]

Thanks Mark, don't bother, I won't email him, just thought someone might be there. I used to drop a note or a phone call to new Spit owners, but rarely got a response. Often you could not get past a secretary and I have found that many owners don't really want any advice and might resent a stranger. It is sort of different when you meet them at an airshow. When Jerry got his, he did phone me and we talked quite a bit. There is a great story John Baugh tells about when he first got his Mustang as a novice and called lots of owners to tape their advice. John said even with "long play" cassette, you don't have enough time when talking to Frank Strickler!
Ryan, thanks for the reminder. Getting to Gen was sort of a last minute rush, a long ways in between weather, and when I got there, it was a hang up and I spent a lot of time just trying to get a few gallons from the "Fuel Truck" (lot's of truck, not much fuel). I do remember walking by the Corsair and stopping to talk to the pilot or owner. I guess it was Terry, he was very friendly.

[LARGEFLYER]

Bill,

I will pass along your message regarding towing to Terry Rush. He is the chief pilot and head of aircraft operations.

Greg

[bentwingbomber]

The Air ministry Publication for the Spitfire states no towing is required as the aeroplane can be man handled.

We tow ours by pulling only via a tow bar and manpower or a tug.

Certain operators here in the UK will only move their spitfires by hand.

Good to see the P-47 is in good company,hard to belive that she was painted back in the late 1980s, it still looks as if it was done only yesterday.

Many a happy memory of working on 'No guts' glad its in good hands.

Fred