One of Europe’s top specialist auctioneers of collectors’ vehicles, H&H are also successful sellers of selected items by private treaty, and are delighted to now be offering the only airworthy Hawker Demon fighter remaining in the world today.
The result of a painstaking 35,000-hour, 18-year restoration, K8203 is understood to have been the 23rd of a third batch built by Boulton-Paul’s Wolverhamton plant to Specification 8/34. Delivered in October 1937, it was initially assigned to No.64 Squadron at RAF Church Fenton, and it is their livery that adorns the aircraft again now. Following spells at No.9 Maintenance Unit at RAF Cosford and No.9 Air Observer’s School at RAF Penrhos, it was apparently pensioned off as a ground training aid for No.1 Service Flying Training School, RAF Netheravon in September 1940. From this point the history is less well documented, but K8203 is thought to have ended up at No.413 (Aldershot) Squadron of the ATC some three years later, with the rear fuselage eventually finding its way into the RAF Museum’s storage facility at Cardington.
The fuselage was acquired by the vendor from Aero Vintage in July 1991, together with a fin, rudder, tailplane, elevators, centre-section, plus some parts of the wings and under-carriage. Other components were rescued from an Irish tip and the supercharged Rolls-Royce Kestrel VDR engine came from Australia, having been originally installed in a Royal Australian Air Force Demon. The over-riding intention was to make the finished aircraft as historically accurate as possible and a great deal of research and development went into the refurbishment of original parts and the manufacture of replacement ones as required. The task of bringing the Demon back to life was entrusted to SkySport Engineering of Sandy, Bedfordshire and a full account of this marathon achievement appeared in the December 2009 issue of Aeroplane Monthly.
Apparently the CAA inspector assigned to the project delayed his retirement specifically so he could personally sign off the test flight programme, and, having been grounded for almost 70 years, the restored Demon finally took to the skies once more in June 2009. Following completion of the test flights at RAF Henlow, a CAA permit was issued the following month, allowing K8203 to make its airshow debut at Old Warden on August 2. The aeroplane is now hangared at this airfield – the home of the world-renowned Shuttleworth Collection – and is regularly displayed there and elsewhere by Stuart Goldspink.
SPECIFICATION
Engine
Single 600 hp Rolls-Royce supercharged Kestrel VDR unit driving a two-bladed Watts wooden propeller
Weight
3336 lb empty; 4464 lb loaded
Dimensions
Span – 37 ft 2 in; length – 29 ft 7 in; height – 10 ft 5 in; wing area – 347 square feet
Performance
Maximum speed – 182 mph at 16,000 ft; time to 10,000 ft, 7 minutes 25 seconds; ceiling – 24,500 ft
Armament
Twin forward firing 7.7 mm Vickers machine guns; one dorsal ring-mounted Lewis gun
Crew
Two – pilot plus observer/gunner
| Gordon Bruce Associates
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