Hawker Typhoon RB396 has landed back at Duxford for the next stage of her rebuild to flight. Since May 2019 the original rear fuselage of RB396 has been at Airframe Assemblies (AA) on the Isle of Wight undergoing restoration. It has been a stop-start endeavour, due to many things – chief amongst them the covid pandemic and cost of living putting a squeeze on funding. It had been originally estimated that the rear fuselage would have been completed in approximately two years.

However, it is now complete and looking stunning. The workmanship is exquisite, inside and out, with a hyper focus on originality and attention to original detail. For example, the battlefield repair technique of stringer repair, allowing more original material to be utilised in the rebuild. Final figures of original material used from RB396 are still being awaited, however it is in the order of approximately 80%. Aside from the pauses due to global issues, this is one of the reasons the rebuild of this section took a considerable time, testing and reworking of original components takes significantly more time, and more money, than creating new from pattern. The labour requirements are considerably more.
The rear fuselage is now complete and signed off. A major step in the return to flight of Hawker Typhoon RB396 and proof that with determination, a small, all-volunteer team is starting to achieve what many people have said is impossible. Some continue to say it. It is believed that this rear fuselage section is the first major section of Hawker Typhoon to be (re)built anywhere in the world since the end of WWII. It is certainly the first airworthy section to be delivered to the Aircraft Restoration Company’s (ARCo) premises.

ARCo have been the engineering support partner for the Hawker Typhoon Preservation Group (HTPG) since late 2018, with this first section of the rebuild being subcontracted to AA.
So what’s next?
This question has been front and centre for some time. It all comes down to funding. As regular readers will be aware, the HTPG is not fully funded, and relies on contributions and donations from supporters to fund the rebuild. Thanks to those supporters, the rebuild has got to the stage it is now, with the first section complete. The natural next steps are cockpit and/or tail section. The former likely to cost approximately double the latter.
With the funding currently available, the decision has been taken that the tail section will be the next to be rebuilt. The engineering team at ARCo are already busy analysing this section (which is actually from a Tempest) to ascertain what is usable, what is not, what is “Typhoon” and what is “Tempest” – as both airframes shared a lot of commonality. There is a large collection of drawings which fill in some of the missing areas of data, and in addition the team at the Royal Air Force Museum, Hendon, are very accommodating when it comes to the HTPG accessing MN235, the only surviving “complete” Hawker Typhoon, for information.

Until the engineers, lead by Chief Engineer Martin “Mo” Overall, at ARCo have conducted their survey of the tail an exact cost and time estimate won’t be known, however it is expected to be in the region of two years at current funding availability, i.e. the amount the HTPG has available on a monthly basis for restoration work. As soon as this figure is known it will enable subsequent planning of this section, and further fundraising work to ensure there is no shortfall.
The tail section comes from the collection of parts associated with Hawker Tempest V project JN768 / G-TMPV, which was purchased by the HTPG from the late Richard Grace in 2019 as a package which included use of jigs to assist the rebuild. The jig used to recreate the tail section for the recently flown Tempest MkII MW763 / G-TEMT will now be put to good use, with modification, to recreate the tail section for Hawker Typhoon RB396. On the subject of Richard Grace, the entire project team would like to put on note how helpful Richard had been to the HTPG over the years and what a sad loss his is to the warbird community.

Looking further ahead than the tail section, next up is likely the cockpit, followed by wings, front end, and of course, the engine. The latter being a regular question. All that is stopping all those sections progressing at the same time is funding. Current funding allows one section to progress at a time, and not as fast as it could. For example, the tail could likely be rebuilt in less than one year, it is only funding which will cause it to take approximately two.
Increased funding and support would enable multiple sections to progress concurrently and the first flight date to be brought closer and closer. With free-flowing funds, it is possible to see RB396 take flight at the next major D-Day anniversary in five-years’ time, D-Day 85 in 2029. To play your part in making that happen, please consider signing up as a supporter.
Regardless of the pace of the rebuild, it is a tantalising time. The first major section of airworthy Hawker Typhoon rebuilt since WWII, and the second about to commence. As soon as there is more information it will be shared. The HTPG is in the process, after the survey, of organising a visit, which will be the first of many to see the rebuild at ARCo, for the many Bronze, Silver, Gold, Platinum and Diamond supporters of the project. If you’re not already one of them, then please consider signing up to be on the invite list to those visits.
Lastly, the HTPG would like to thank everyone who has supported the project to date and enabled this first section to be completed.

