aardvark wrote:Mick, Mick, Mick. How can you say the Spitty is a beautiful plane? Sure, it did it's job, but it looks like a pile of pus next to the gorgeous 'stang!!
Mate, the Mustang is my favourite WW2 fighter, but I have a soft spot for the old Spitfire. Horses for courses though, the Spit was up and running at the beginning of the War, if the Mustang was around at the same time the Battle of Britain might have been a different story. Interestingly I read somewhere that the Hawker Hurricane was the mainstay of the BofB, but the Spit gets the kudos (better PR).
BTW, I had a walk-through of the front part of a Halifax bomber. Not only are they incredibly cramped (I'm not a big lad and I had to duck AND got wedged sideways in it) but they are build of the sheet-metal equivalent of tissue paper. You get better thickness metal in a can of baked beans. I can't imagine what it was like flying in one at night over Germany at 15,000 feet with flak making confetti of the fuselage, scary shit
.
I'm in the British Airways Club World Lounge in Heathrow, flying back in 3-4 hours. Caught up with most of my relatives, with the notable exception of my Gran, who I haven't seen since I was seven. She was deemed too frail to accept my presence, and as she's already had a couple of minor strokes and is 82, I guess that's it from me
. Pity.
I did catch up with all my cousins (bar one anti-social one) and my mum's brother and sister, so it wasn't all bad. Stayed with mum's older brother and my aunt, they treated me like a long-lost son even though it was 35 years ago since the last time they saw me and I was about 25% of the size I am now
.
BTW, the weather up north was
fantastic, but when I got back to London this arvo it was
STILL fa*£king raining. WTF???
After three weeks still not used to it still being light at 10pm, nor light again at 4am. Looking to seeing Ros and the kids and sleeping in my own bed.
Catch up with you all back in Oz
.
Mick
.
, glad to see your enjoying the weather 
Stay safe
.
