Who Fancies working alongside Spitfire aircraft?

[Saleen836]

As voluntary ground crew
https://www.wiltshirelive.co.uk/whats-on/chance-wo...

[E63eeeeee...]

So are you effectively working for free for a business? Nice.

[Simpo Two]

E63eeeeee... said:

So are you effectively working for free for a business? Nice.

That's one way of looking at it, which I can't disagree with. Another is that if you're retired or have lots of spare time you can do something interesting rather than stay at home and watch Netflix. I do wonder what sort of skill level they need though; you wouldn't want knuckle-draggers anyway near your tail-dragger....

[Tony1963]

E63eeeeee... said:

So are you effectively working for free for a business? Nice.

Miserable money driven git!

I doubt they’re asking people to do 40 hours per week, 47 weeks per year, for free. It’ll be a few hours, to suit the volunteer. For some it’ll be a life long dream come true.
You know, like some volunteer for all sorts, help the needy, do unpaid overtime occasionally.

I’d take a pay cut to work in the Antarctic for a year, but life gets in the way!

[Arnold Cunningham]

Some, if not many, of the ground crew that work with Boultbee Flight Academy @ Goodwood do it for free. I asked them why - they said they love spitfires and they love being part of the team. Sometimes if there's a ferry flight they also get to go in the back seat.

[Mark V GTD]

I have worked as volunteer ground crew on Spitfires and other warbirds for over thirty years (although not with the organisation mentioned in this thread) and it’s a very rewarding thing to be involved in. These aircraft need a lot of labour to keep them airworthy and some of the necessary jobs are less than glamorous but being part of a team that keeps these incredible machines in the air is well worth the effort.

In more recent years I started a business involved with warbirds but still do some volunteering.

Let me know if anyone has any questions.

[Crumpet]

I should imagine there’s a decent social side to it as well. A chance to meet new, like-minded people, if that’s your thing! I know someone who flies them and his photos and videos always look amazing.

[Mark V GTD]

Yes that does come in to it too - particularly if you get in to the airshow scene.

[Siko]

A guy I follow on LinkedIn started out that way and is now flying their Spitfires - he posted a long article about it which was fascinating, but volunteering has got him into a regular slot flying the two and one seat Spits for one of the operators. Clearly a talented and determined individual anyway but good to see that hard work and volunteering does get rewarded

[Mark V GTD]

Interestingly there are probably more qualified Spitfire pilots now than there has been since 1950!

[lufbramatt]

I know a few people that do this and have had flights in spitfires or the two seat hurricane as a result, they get calls along the lines of “got a empty seat on a ferry flight, can you make it down here tomorrow” and off they go. If you consider one of those flights is around £3000 it’s a cheap way of getting in the air.

[Yertis]

Compton Abbas is a nice place to work, lovely airfield. But a bit too far for me and I have no useful aircraft-related skills.

[croyde]

I'd love to do that.

Unfortunately I'm too far away.

[85Carrera]

croyde said:

I'd love to do that.

Unfortunately I'm too far away.

Same here. If I was retired and local, I’d be all over that. Is exactly the sort of thing I hope to do when retired/semi-retired.

Whether they’d let someone as ham-fisted as me anywhere near a Spitfire is another matter!

[s111dpc]

Very interesting, thanks for posting.

[Mark V GTD]

Yes that can and does happen (free flights). I have probably had around 50 odd in my career in various types from Spitfires, P-51 and P-40 through to bigger stuff such as the B-25 and Catalina, all FOC.

Edited by Mark V GTD on Saturday 21st January 07:25

[LukeBrown66]

I think the issue for some here, is that yes it would be great, but when you see how much these twin cockpit things go for, you do begin to wonder that someone, somewhere is making an awful lot of money here, and asking people to work for nothing, well it does come across.well a bit you know.

[Eric Mc]

I don't think it does at all. Running these warbirds is VERY expensive.

The aircraft restoration movement has always depended heavilly on volunteers - and long may it continue.

I wish there was a Spitfire (or any other warbird) local to me that I could help on.

[croyde]

The people who run steam trains around the country are mainly volunteers.

Passengers still have to buy a ticket.

Again if one were near me, I'd love to do that too.

[Riley Blue]

The concept of volunteering seems to be difficult for some people to understand.