ARmy Rumour SErvice

**Manod Bach** · 14-04-2012, 11:28

They're underneath the apron at Yambon International Airport.

This search has been going on for over 14 years to my knowledge and has also involved "interested parties" in Israel...

Folks have been using post-delivery air photography taken by the RAF of the former RAF Mingaladon airfield and comparing it with modern "overhead". The key suspect location is, as I said above, under the main terminal apron...

**Chef** · 14-04-2012, 11:52

A thought occurred to me, when Coppola filmed 'Apocolypse Now' the aircraft he assembled was the fifth largest in the world. Now ignoring everything else, condition, location, etc. If someone like Abramovich, rolls up and says 'Here's lots of cash, fuel them up I'll take them now.' Where would he rank in the world air force league table?

It has to be more fun than a football club, and cheaper too.

**littlejim** · 14-04-2012, 13:37

Sounds like crap to me. By 1945 the Japs were on their last legs in Burma. The chances of them capturing an airfield were remote and even if they did they'd have as much chance of flying the Spits as the typical British brigade of today would have of finding twenty fast jet pilots in its ranks. As for destroying them, so what? The RAF should have been switching over to Mustang production from 1943 anyway. The Spitfire had the operational radius of a pissed pelican and never did anything useful in the offensive role.

Massive numbers of lend-lease aircraft were disposed of in SEA in 1945. They were craned onto RN escort carriers, taken a few miles out to sea and pushed over the side. Job done. Can you imagine RAF ground crew digging a bloody great trench in the tropical sun just to carefully lower some untouched Spitfires into it and then carefully cover them up again? "Eh, Ernie, bet our great grandchildren are going to be really chuffed when they find this lot, hey?"

"Reet enough, Joe. And I'm leaving them some V for Victory fags and soya links as a special treat."

Somebody will be re-loading the Goon Show eventually and reporting that the 3rd Imperial Armoured Thunderbox Regiment is still fighting the Japs on the road to Mandalay.

**SomersetMan** · 14-04-2012, 13:57

Would they fit on the new carriers?

**Biscuits_Brown** · 14-04-2012, 14:32

Bad reporting. They were ordered buried to prevent them, or parts of them, falling into the hands of a foreign power.

Naebody, save the reporter chappy, said owt about Japan.

**Stooriefit** · 14-04-2012, 15:02

Mk2 Spitfires 'straight off the production line' in 1945?

**Chef** · 14-04-2012, 15:16

Originally Posted by Stooriefit

Mk2 Spitfires 'straight off the production line' in 1945?

The only theory I had on that was they were in storage in the UK and sent to make up numbers; the far east seemed to get all the clutter off the Q bloke's shelf. Must have been a bit like a permanent fire at Donnington.

Mind you, they did get Bomb. Atomic. Mk1. Before anybody else. Plus a spare.

**4(T)** · 14-04-2012, 16:54

Originally Posted by Stooriefit

Mk2 Spitfires 'straight off the production line' in 1945?

If its the Dail Mail, then its lucky they know what a Spitfire is, let alone the mark number....

Probably Mark XI (a PR varient right for time & place), mis-written as Mk11, then mis-read as Mk2....?

**threesend** · 14-04-2012, 17:09

how much is a single mk2 spitfire worth nowadays?...

**rgjbloke** · 14-04-2012, 17:20

An interesting story whatever the facts actually are about the condition of these aircraft. It's also a good excuse to start building some serious bridges with Burma or Myanmar as they want to be known now. There could be immense diplomatic value in this both from a goverment point of view and also from a British public perception point of view particularly for Myanmar. The riots and the killings that took place over there which highlighted the kind of regime it has been in the past are not that long ago.