Wonderful Wildcat (updated)
At the sacred grounds of Duxford aerodrome, UK, the second British registered Grumman Wildcat, G-KINL, was recently revealed to the public.
The fighter is an Eastern built FM-2 model with BuNo86690 (c/n 5744) The FM-2 is an improved version of the original F4F Grumman design. It has a 1350 hp engine and a taller fin than the F4F.
BuNo86690 was struck of charge in 1946 and flown by consecutive civilian owners as N20HA, N70637 and finally N49JC.
As such the Wildcat was sold to the Shuttleworth Collection in Old Warden, UK, where it arrived dismantled in 2012. It was then painted in a USMC livery with code ‘2-F’.
It was then taken up in the British Civil Register as G-CHPN. However the Shuttleworth Trustees decided to sell the plane instead of rebuilding it.
The Wildcat was then sold to Mr. Thomas Harris of Leighton Buzzard, UK who registered it as G-KINL in 2016. He entrusted its restoration to John Romain's Aircraft Restoration Company (ARCo).
The new colours of the Wildcat are authentic and represent a Royal Navy Martlet Mk lll with serial number AX733 and coded K which flew with No 805 Squadron based in Egypt in 1941. G-KINL took off from Duxford for its first flight post restoration on 12 October 2022!
Photo George Land via Flickr.