Spitfire MH415 on sale for £4.5 million

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4 years 5 months

Posts: 456

The ex Connie Edwards Spit is reported in the Daily Telegraph  to have an expected sale price at auction of £4.5 million.

The aeroplane is currently at Sywell, and for sale on a website of  The Aircraft Sales Company, which is run/owned by Richard Grace and others Introducing our Warbird Sales Team | The Aircraft Sales Company

Where or when the auction is supposedly taking place is unknown.  Perhaps they just mean it will go to the highest bid/offer, as in, 'it is for sale'. 

''The plane has an extraordinarily high number of original components, a “continuous history” and remains airworthy, all of which contribute to its high value.

Some 82 years after they played a key role in its finest hour, up to 70 Spitfires are still airworthy and able to grace the skies above Britain. Few, however, can claim to be as complete and original as the 1943 Supermarine Spitfire Mark LF IXb – MH415.

The Aircraft Sales Company, which is auctioning MH415 on behalf of an Australian consortium, claims that 90 per cent of its components were those originally fitted at the factory in Castle Bromwich, Solihull, in 1943.

That includes the interior of the cockpit, which is still in its Second World War specification, including the pilot seat, throttle, control column as well as the gunsight and trigger.

Most surviving Spitfires have undergone multiple restorations, often using cannibalised or new parts to replace those damaged during combat or lost from ageing.

Many “new” Spitfires are recovered wrecks with barely any remaining parts that are heavily restored and assume the identity of the crashed aircraft.

The parts of the MH415, however, can almost all be traced back to Castle Bromwich and August 1943.

Four wing spars, which were usually replaced during regular maintenance, are the only major part not to be original.

MH415’s combination of traceable original parts, confirmed combat history and post-war fame all combined to give it its unique value, said Andrew Durston of the Aircraft Sales Company.

“This is the real deal and has endured all the way through,” he told The Telegraph, “it is extremely rare.

“To actually sit in a piece of history that is that significant, it really is quite emotional, actually. With all your senses, you can just feel the aura that's come with it.”

Of the 70 or so flying Spitfires, perhaps only two others compare to MH415, he said. Its sister aircraft, MH434 and the Silver Spitfire, which recently circumnavigated the globe.

The value of vintage aircraft has surged in recent years, with investors drawn away from the oversaturated classic car market. According to those in the industry, prices have doubled since 2016.

The value of MH415 alone has increased by £700,000 since 2021.

Although it would be a record price, £4.5 million could still prove a snip for MH415. Mr Durston said that he was “99.9 per cent sure” that the engine currently in the Spitfire is the same one installed at the Castle Bromwich factory in 1943.

Photo-Martin Jones

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Member for

4 years 5 months

Posts: 716

CRIKEY ! I guess about 2.4 mill above most Spits although I have not bought one lately !

Member for

4 years 9 months

Posts: 17

So finally we maybe can compare the price of a newly build Spitfire ( dataplate restauration )  versus the real thing .....

It's funny if this Spitfire crashes and is rebuild it will be the first Spitfire which lose a lot of it's value

Member for

4 years 5 months

Posts: 456

Yes, interesting point. I had forgotten 603 had such, shall we say, humble origins. For snake valley photos and description by Peter Arnold,  take a look at this mega scrapyard photos thread. https://www.key.aero/forum/historic-aviation/37357-scrapyard-photos-any…

MH603 (to SAAF as ......): shipped, arr Cape Town 10.3.49 5589 • South African Metal & Machinery Co, (Castle Bromwich) Salt River, Cape Town: disposal as scrap 55/80 SAAF Museum, Snake Valley AB (10 hulks recov. from scrapyard 11.77, stored at Snake Valley AB:

MH603 was just a derelict forward fuse.) Steven W. Atkins, Rye, Sussex 5.89 (forward fuse. hulk shipped to Sussex .89) John Sykes, Oxford, UK 89/93 (basis for rest. project in Oxfordshire) Joseph Scogna/ Vintage Air, Yardley PA .93/03 (shipped to USA, arr. Fort Collins CO 3.94 partially rest., stored at Ft Collins 94/98)

Provenance Fighter Sales, Murrieta CA 4.08 (N603MH) reg. res: Provenance Fighter Sales, Murrieta CA 4.08 Ross Pay/ Pay’s Air Service, Scone NSW 2.09/11 (arr. Scone 10.09 partially rest., rest. continued, wing sections restored in UK) VH-IXF Pay's Air Service Pty Ltd, Scone NSW: reg. 28.7.11/21 (rest. continues at Scone NSW as “MH603 FN-B”, first engine runs 16.6.21, ff 11.12.21)

https://www.goodall.com.au/warbirds-directory-v6/vickers-supermarine.pd…

Member for

15 years

Posts: 1,712

Looking at that old thread above Prop Strike is amazing. It is such a shame that Peter Arnold doesn’t post anything on the forum now, he had such a wealth of knowledge.

Member for

4 years 5 months

Posts: 716

but I thought he still writes for Flypast Mag

Member for

15 years

Posts: 1,712

Yes I believe he contributes occasionally but no longer contributes on this forum