Hi, Laura
> And lastly--reality you say? You drive a Spitfire! ;-)
Sorry Laura, you fly it - even if it is on the road. On Saturday afternoon,
I was taking a 'constitutional' in the hills near home when I heard a very
familiar but all too rare sound these days.
It was that of a Rolls Royce Merlin V12 engine, attached to arguably the
most beautiful small airframe yet devised by man - namely the Supermarine
Spitfire. The pilot was up there in the clear blue sky having the time of
his life and he entertained me for all of 15 minutes. Stall turns, diving
for the ground, barrel rolls, loops - it was sheer magic and almost
entirely overhead. I was standing on top of this hill frantically waving
both my arms at this beautiful little aeroplane and quite enchanted by its
antics. Of course, there wasn't a chance for the pilot to have seen me - a
mere speck of humanity - and eventually I gave up the arm work. I watched
as he flattened out of a dive and peeled off to fly away from me. About two
miles away he turned again, and then flew straight at me, waggling his
wings. As he passed overhead, no more than fifty feet above me in a roar of
propellor and Merlin, a fuselage shining with camoflage and an underside of
pale blue, I noticed the cockpit canopy was slid back and a hand waved from
it. And he was gone.
Up till now, my Spitfire has been named OIK - but I think BATTLE is now far
more appropriate. As he dived at me waggling those beautiful wings and
absolutely end on, I now know the view of a Spitfire from the pilot in a
Messerschmit (in the Battle of Britain) or a Zero in the Far East. It's one
of the most menacing yet beautiful sights I've ever seen. Thank goodness he
hadn't got me lined up in his sights with the Brownings and Cannons set to
FIRE. I'd have been blown off my hilltop.
If Rover ever come out with a small sports car again, I truly hope they
call it a Hurricane - though as the company is now owned by BMW - I doubt
this name would even be considered.
John Mac
|