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Here at the TYPHOON LEGACY COMPANY LTD., we would like to let all of our followers know about a fantastic book on the subject of the piston engines that powered Second World War fighters, the men who designed them, and the secret intelligence work carried out by both Britain and Germany would determine the outcome of the first global air war.

Book now available for pre-order !

If you intend to buy one please do pre-order it as it helps the publisher to see how popular it will be and might mean we get a bigger print-run…

This wont be a print-on-demand, but a high quality hardback so its a good long-term investment.

With the cooperation of Gli Archivi Ritrovati an italian edition of the book will also later be released. It will contain added information on the italian engine industry (Con la collaborazione de Gli Archivi Ritrovati stiamo realizzando una versione specifica del libro, che conterrà capitoli aggiuntivi sugli sviluppi dell’industria motoristica italiana).

Direct from Publisher

From Amazon

Ian Slater has been able to make some reasonable progress on the fuselage frames we are producing for the Jet Age Museum over the past week or so. Complete in these images are all frame segments for frames D, E, F, G, H, and J (highlighted in green on the attached cutaway view).

As mentioned previously, the forward monocoque runs between the front ring and frame K. I’ve highlighted both of these in red on the attached cutaway view, these are the two frames that we will provide geometric data only for, as they are different on early and later Typhoons.

Moving forwards, I’ll be working on frames A, B, and C (highlighted in yellow); A and C frames being double frames, and the B frame being a heavy single frame. There are a few bits in this area to work on for JP843 as well, so I’ll complete them at the same time with the goal of having both sets done together, ours going off for heat treatment, and the JAM set to head over to the UK

We are nearing completion of the forward monocoque frames for JP843, and have a fantastic opportunity to help with progress at the Jet Age Museum and their early Typhoon static project.

The time and work that went into the development and production of fuselage form blocks has been significant, so with plenty of life left in the forms, we feel that it is a great opportunity for us to work with the Jet Age team and build them a non-airworthy set of frames for their Typhoon.

The work to date on the cockpit section at the Jet Age Museum has been wonderfully detailed in staying true to the design originality, and we hope that the frame set produced here at Typhoon Legacy will serve to advance this excellent work and allow for an even more significant Typhoon presence at the Museum.

The work that is being done here at Typhoon Legacy is intended to save time for the Jet Age Museum by providing them with a nearly complete set of fuselage frames from which they can build their forward monocoque section (from aft of the cockpit to the transport joint immediately forward of the fin). The term “nearly complete” is used because there are a few small differences between our versions of Typhoon, and we are producing only the common parts that will use complex form blocks to shape. The rear most frame (K) and the forward most frame (referred to as the front ring) will not be built here at Typhoon Legacy to allow for these changes, however templates for the forming of these frames will be sent to ensure profile continuity from front to rear.

There are many additional components and much more work to be done in completing this section of aircraft, however, we are positive that combining our efforts will help all involved with both projects. We look forward to the continued opportunity to work together with this talented group for the benefit of both projects and the preservation of this unique part of history.

With everything progressing nicely on the forward monocoque build, we’ve initiated some work on the next phase of the rebuild; the cockpit structure. Nicolas has committed years of design work put into this area, and incorporated some of the key components that were reverse engineered by our sponsor E3D Technology Corp. in Langley B.C.
This is busy assembly with many parts. While work is completed on the forward monocoque section, we will be plugging away at many smaller components of the tube structure, taking care of some of the heat treatment requirements etc. With a bit of luck, we will be ready to start assembling parts on the cockpit as the monocoque work winds down later this year.

As you can see, almost all of our fuselage frames are now formed and stringers are ready for fitting, I expect the momentum on these and other “in progress” aspects of the rebuild to advance well for 2020.

Due to the excellent progress in 2019, we will be starting with another significant Typhoon assembly earlier than we had anticipated; more news on this in the next few weeks

After getting a few hours of sleep in Normandy, Ian took off to the Somme to meet with our friend Pierre Ben and view his museum collection. Many followers will note that Pierre is the gentleman who provided the Typhoon wing spar fittings on loan to us, so they can be reverse engineered (an ongoing aspect of the project).
Arjan and Ian were amazed when they walked into the museum. It is packed with some of the most impressive display’s I’ve seen at any museum, all carefully preserved and displayed with a respectful history of the pilot and incident. This is a museum not to be missed if you are in the area: Website link below

https://www.somme-aviation-39-45.fr/

While there, Pierre also gave the project a few more parts to work with, so we will detail this in a future post!

One of Ian’s first stops after arriving at CDG airport in Paris, was to the D-Day Academy in Normandy. It was here that he met with Dr. JP Benamou, who very kindly opened the doors for our visit. While the purpose of my visit was to meet with Dr. Benamou and discuss his Typhoon cockpit section, he quickly found himself immersed in D-day equipment and history. The details of the invasion provided were unbelievable, and really helped tell a story that books and other media can’t prepare you for. While there are many commercial activities in Normandy that relate to the invasion, this group strive to tell the stories, and they do it in a way that no others do.

Ian highly recommends that everyone visits the D-Day Academy if they are in the area. (Website link below)

http://www.ddaca.com/en

During our meeting, Dr. Benamou very kindly donated surviving Typhoon Tailwheel pivot structure to the project, a component that will really help with development of this part of the build. We are humbled to have been provided with this part, and will ensure it goes to accelerate our efforts on JP843.

Ian’s visit through France and to the ceremony for William Hurrell was supported by Arjan Wemmers, project manager for the recovery of Hawker Typhoon MN954. A key part of the trip was to visit with Alblasserdam government representative, Laure ter Stege, at the crash site of MN954 in support of the potential recovery of the aircraft remains.
Mr. Wemmers has done outstanding work, and significant research regarding FLT J.N.C.M.J Vandaele, the pilot of this aircraft, and it is hoped that his efforts will forever remind us of the sacrifice made by this young man.
We will do our best to keep followers updated on the progress of Mr. Wemmers efforts on the recovery, and hope publish details on F/Lt Vandaele in the near future.

More information can be found at the following address: