Mosquito NZ2308

[baz62]

Cant see anything posted on here about this but spied this post on Facebook by the Mosquito Pathfinder Trust regarding NZ2308 (put it in this section as it's ex RNZAF):

"The Mosquito Pathfinder Trust today announces a commercial understanding with the Aircraft Restoration Company (ARC), owned by the highly respected warbird pilot John Romain.

Based at Duxford, ARC are renowned for their aircraft restoration and maintenance services to classic and warbird aircraft on behalf of owners and operators such as the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight.

ARC have been engaged by the Trust to provide the suite of Engineering and Design Services to NZ2308 (the aircraft selected for airworthy restoration). These services are necessary to have the aircraft approved for flight in the UK, and together, the Trust and ARC are already well advanced in their preparations with the CAA to meet the necessary airworthiness requirements, important to begin whilst NZ2308 is being completed by Avspecs in New Zealand.

The Mosquito Pathfinder Trust have also engaged with ARC to provide flight test and validation program services before bringing the aircraft back to the UK, and to continue to be responsible for flying standards and pilot services when the aircraft is operational.

Once in the UK, ARC will also be carrying out all maintenance requirements for the Mosquito.

The team at The Mosquito Pathfinder Trust are also looking into the prospect of basing NZ2308 at Duxford, the historic airfield in Cambridgeshire, thereby giving the public access to the aircraft when it is not displaying at airshows.

Completion of NZ2308 is anticipated to be within 24 months and with the support and generosity of the public, The Mosquito Pathfinder Trust is confident a Mosquito will return to the skies over Britain in 2020."

Certainly good news for the UK getting a Mosquito back in the skies that it first flew in as a type. Shame its ex-RNZAF and couldn't stay here but at least we have three static examples here.

[Dave Homewood]

Yup.

[jp]

It will be interesting to see what impact this has on TPM's efforts...

[ZacYates]

Fantastic news. Bravo to all involved and I'm excited to follow along with progress.

[ErrolC]

FLYING VISIT -- Warren Denholm has been in the UK, visiting John Romain's Aircraft Restoration Company at Duxford, along with some of our Trust's senior guys. All part of the mission to return NZ2308 to the skies. Don't delay, donate today!!

[steveh]

I've been out of the loop for a bit & confess to some confusion re TPM & The Mosquito Pathfinder Trust. To me, the latter appears to have a more substantial base than the TPM & I'm pleased that the UK will get a Mossie sooner rather than later which is what TPM seemed to be offering. Reading this thread & the DZ542 thread with their links to the Avspecs Facebook response to jig sales has been instructive to say the least.
Steve.

[Dave Homewood]

I think right now both UK groups are very much pie in the sky, but the Mosquito Pathfinder Trust are much closer to grabbing significantly larger and more palpable slice of the pie.

The other lot come across as misleading, bumbling, amateur, raving loonies.

[Brett]

Posted on the Mosquito Pathfinder Trust website www.thewoodenwonder.org.uk/ on 17 April 2019.


JOINT STATEMENT From the Mosquito Aircraft Restoration Ltd (MAR – NZ 2308 Owner) and The Mosquito Pathfinder Trust:

Since announcing in 2018 that The Mosquito Pathfinder Trust had selected NZ 2308 as the airframe to restore to airworthy status, a great deal of work has been done to prepare our organisation for this undertaking.

Our team was able to secure new corporate support and several substantial pledges from private individuals which would enable us to sign agreements to purchase NZ 2308 and start work, in addition to significant progress in the certification value of the airframe.

So we were on track to begin the build in the first quarter of this year. To do so we needed to be able to convert those pledges into donations. However, political uncertainties and instabilities have been influential in slowing our progress.

It is the expressed wish of Mosquito Aircraft Restoration Ltd (MAR), the owner of NZ 2308, that the Mosquito should be owned, completed to full airworthy status and find its new home in the UK with The Mosquito Pathfinder Trust. Yet it would be negligent of our organisation to complete on the purchase and to instruct the build programme until sufficient funds are secured, irrevocably, to underwrite, at the very least, a significant element of the project.

All our work to establish the Trust, build our structures and systems, identify successfully the most appropriate airframe in NZ 2308, and to have achieved all the necessary acknowledgements and understandings with regulators in New Zealand and UK CAA, remain intact.

All the extensive legal packs and contractual documents necessary for the purchase and to conduct the restoration remain valid by both parties.

A commercial understanding to maintain and operate the aircraft in the UK has been secured.

Working with MAR to safeguard any circumstance that might compromise it while the necessary funding is being secured, the Trust decided that the only fair and proper position we could take (if we were not able to complete as planned) was to agree that the airframe be made available on the open market.

Whilst wishing we were already into production, it is useful and important for everyone to see the testing circumstances we face as a charity trying to secure financial support. Furthermore, it demonstrates that our efforts are genuine, strenuous and illustrates just how much our project depends upon financial donations.

The Mosquito Pathfinder Trust would like to extend sincere appreciation to all of its supporters and stakeholders who are working to help return a de Havilland Mosquito to the skies over Britain and Europe. We now, more than ever, call upon the support of the British public, private donors and corporations from across the UK and Europe to help make this a reality.

[ErrolC]

Interesting discussion on test flying 'new' and original Mossies at the MPT Facebook