When a Spitfire is not a Spitfire (and certainly not British)

Kinja'd!!! "No, I don't thank you for the fish at all" (notindetroit)
04/05/2014 at 10:43 • Filed to: Planeopnik, Silence Twister

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Just like the Cobra kits from Superformance, the classic fighter planes from WWII can be had in built-it-yourself form. Mostly covering the P-51D Mustang - some would say ad-nauseum - some even venture to cover other subject matter like the P-40. and F4U Corsair. The medium used can be diverse as well, from wood and fabric lightweights powered by Volkswagon engines to aluminum sheet metal like the "real thing" to fiberglass thoroughbreds powered by V12 boat racing engines. Rarely, if ever, do these kits exceed being 2/3s the size of the genuine article. And rarely do they dare reinterpret the original aside from construction materials. One German fiberglass fabricator fell in love with the Spitfire, but sadly, owning the real deal is very pricey (the acquisition and operating costs are in line with many bizjets). But hey, when you make fiberglass, why not use it as an opportunity to show off your skills! And if you're going to have a Spitfire be built by those darned Jerries why not go full tilt on the sacrilege and redesign the thing while you're at it?

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Silence Aircraft is primarily in the business of fiberglass molding and milling, but they also sell the Twister as a kit with some assembly required - like Ikea but, you know, it won't fall apart when you actually try to fly it. It runs on an 80HP motor, so it won't exactly replicate the feel of the Spitfire's storied Merlin or Griffon V12. But it's not going to poke around at walking speed either - the proportions of the aircraft have been shrunk down around the engine and the single-person cockpit. Much of the Spitfire's elegance is lost in translation but at least the Twister keeps a grace original to its own, or at least matching other high-performance aerobatic aircraft (with much larger and powerful engines - and checkbooks needed to support them). At least the Twister keeps the most important element - that elliptical wing there is clearly all Spitfire.

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The basic kit costs less than 40,000 Euros (yes, that's well into Lexus territory but pretty cheap for an aircraft) though that quickly climbs when you start adding options and pre-assembly. Still, it's a pretty great deal for an aircraft. It also fits the European classification of an ultralight - or as a Light Sport Aircraft in America, at least with the fixed-gear version. Find out more at !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! .

All images courtesy the manufacturer's website. Edited for minor factual corrections (see comments).


DISCUSSION (4)


Kinja'd!!! Svend > No, I don't thank you for the fish at all
04/05/2014 at 11:12

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Very nice.

There is an Australian company that also now has a facility in Texas, USA that builds 80-90% replicas of the Spitfire.

http://www.supermarineaircraft.com/index.htm


Kinja'd!!! Makoyouidiot > Svend
04/05/2014 at 12:06

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Supermarine is actually based 10 miles from me. They occasionally come into O'Reilly and buy parts. And they had one of their lovelies at Dyess AFB for the airshow.


Kinja'd!!! Axial > No, I don't thank you for the fish at all
04/05/2014 at 12:37

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The Griffon engine was a V12, just like the Merlin. The Griffon was, more or less, an improved evolution of the Merlin with a larger displacement.


Kinja'd!!! Kerry > No, I don't thank you for the fish at all
04/11/2014 at 06:40

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I am not sure why you view this as a "bargain" when for $40k you could buy a navion and own something that actually saw military service in the 50's, you can put 4 people into, has a sliding cockpit, and you wouldn't have to assemble a damn thing. In fact for that number you could have your pick of a lot of older real, non-light sport, airplanes with decent cruise speeds. Like many kit airplanes I see most of these faux "spitfires" languishing in people's garage until that person's heirs end up selling for next to nothing or scrap just to get it out of the house they need to sell.