GRUMMAN WILDCAT AX733
Wildcat AX733
FM-2P Wildcat ‘AX733’ (G-KINL) is a rare airworthy example of one of the key American-built naval fighters of the Second World War with just two currently flying in Europe. The Wildcat was the successor to the Grumman F3F biplane and retained some of its most notable features like the hand-cranked, narrow-track main undercarriage - a Grumman concept which dated back to the 1920s. The prototype first flew in September 1937 however initial examples gave unremarkable performance, and the US Navy initially opted against the Wildcat in favour of the Brewster Buffalo. However, when war broke out, the Buffalo quickly showed its limitations and Wildcats largely replaced these in service. The Wildcat struggled against the Japanese Mitsubishi Zero fighter and was eventually replaced by the more capable F6F Hellcat, however the Wildcat stayed in US service throughout the war as its small size allowed it to be operated from smaller escort carriers. Another operator of the type was the British Fleet Air Arm, where it was initially named the Martlet. Renowned Navy test pilot Eric ‘Winkle’ Brown flew the aeroplane operationally and regarded it as ‘one of the finest shipborne aeroplanes ever created.’
This particular Wildcat was constructed at the General Motors Maryland factory in 1943 with the build number 86690 and delivered to the US Navy thereafter. It only flew 9 hours over the next three years before being turned over to the civilian market. The Hardwick Aircraft Company of California acquired the aeroplane, registered it as N20HA and converted it to a crop-spraying platform – fitting it with two wingtip tanks for additional fuel and two underwing tanks which carried the chemicals. Ownership of the Wildcat changed hands several times over the proceeding years and in 1972 Jack Lenhardt of Oregon acquired the aircraft. He set about restoring it back to its former glory with a whole host of restoration and overhaul work, and the Wildcat returned to flight the following year resplendent in a US Marine Corps scheme. In mid-1978 the aeroplane was grounded and shipped to the Pensacola Naval Museum where it remained for some 15 years.
John Dimmer of Seattle acquired the aircraft in 1995 and it then flew regularly until 2006 when it was placed on display at the Museum of Flight. In 2012 the Wildcat was purchased by the Shuttleworth Collection and exported to the UK, arriving at Old Warden in due course. Here it was partially assembled and remained on static display. In 2016 the Wildcat was acquired by its present owner who had the aircraft moved to Duxford Airfield where the Aircraft Restoration Company subsequently began a return to flight. The fuselage was in a largely good condition structurally however the wings had been heavily modified to accommodate pipework for the additional tanks and thus needed converting back to their original configuration. All the aircraft systems were overhauled and gradually reassembled. Major fabrication work was required particularly in the cockpit area to totally return the Wildcat to stock condition as per the wishes of her owner. The Wildcat flew again upon completion of the restoration in October 2022 in the capable hands of company founder John Romain, who conducted the test flying alongside Paul Bonhomme.
The aeroplane is painted to represent AX733, a Royal Navy desert-schemed Martlet III. AX733 was originally part of an order for Greece however the country fell prior to the arrival of the aircraft so the Martlets were redirected to the Fleet Air Arm’s 805 & 806 Squadrons in North Africa. It was normally flown by Royal New Zealand Navy Volunteer Reserve Pilot Sub Lt. Don Nairn, however on 28th August 1941 Sub Lt. Robert William Meade Walsh (previously a Fairey Battle pilot during the Battle of Britain) successfully downed a Fiat G-50 in AX733 during an engagement at the Libya/Egypt border.
This diminutive little fighter with its distinctive engine note makes an interesting addition to the fleet of aeroplanes maintained by the Aircraft Restoration Company – as well as being a tribute to Walsh and Nairn, the Wildcat serves as a reminder of the lesser-known desert work performed by this distinctly naval aeroplane.
