Brought a lump to my throat...

[avandonk]

It is Catch 22! We will supply very expensive aircraft while we are at war to any brave smart man.

All you young men left over that now know how to fly will find that we destroyed all the war surplus aircraft so that a competition is maintained.

We do not like competition.

My father who was a boy in the Netherlands will never forget the sound of these aircraft that were on there way to bomb the Germans and not ?.

Until you have heard a RR Merlin with full supercharger boost pass by at 200 ft and do a victory roll, you have not lived.

I should stop now.

Bert

[LewisM]

I am sure your papa preferred the sound of Merlins, Hercules, Twin Wasps and Cyclones to that of desynchronised Jumos and BMW's

[avandonk]

Originally Posted by LewisM

I am sure your papa preferred the sound of Merlins, Hercules, Twin Wasps and Cyclones to that of desynchronised Jumos and BMW's

Dead correct. He was killing Germans at the age of fourteen!

His PTSD never showed to the real world. It was only when we went flying he would start to talk about it.

I used to let him drive my fully worked XT 302 that was blueprinted to the airport as he reckoned I drove too fast. He drove just like me!

Bert

[beren]

Awesome footage of two amazing aircraft.......always get a laugh from this clip {warning some understandable swearing in it}....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9O6Eg_6DTso



Although it pales into complete insignificance to reality I have the PS3 game
IL-2 Sturmovik: Birds of Prey which has a Battle of Britain part that has you flying a Spitfire over the coast of England. Play on a big screen with a good sound system and it gets the adrenaline going, beautiful reproduction of the merlin engine sound and great graphics of the countryside