The raising of a Skua

By Birger Larsen

April 8th. the first phase of the recovery of Skua L2896 (Green “A”) was performed in Orkdalsfjord close to Trondheim. The operation was made possible by the use of the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU) vessel “Gunnerus”, the professional work of ROV operators from “Sperre AS” and finally the use of a crane barge and two tugboats from the “Taubåtkompaniet AS, BOA- group”.

The operation could not have been performed without the use of equipment and the great help and enthusiasm of the professionals from these three institutions.

Because of bad weather on the 7^th, this day was used to survey the condition of the wreck as well as planning the recovery. The wreck was at a depth of 242 meter hanging on a cliff ready to slide down an additional 200 meter. Actually the left wing had more or less free space all the way down.  A shift in the position of the wreck could cause it to slide down. In addition to this, ROV operation was limited because of the narrow space between the bottom and the wing. To make matters even worse, close to the trailing edge of the right wing were another cliff making it difficult to operate the ROV. Loose silt reduced the visibility, sometimes to zero, when the ROV came close to the bottom. This slowed down the work of connecting the lifting straps even more.

The original plan was to raise the Skua in a horizontal position. A special steel frame was made so that the tail end of the aircraft could be supported during the lift operation. We knew from the surveys on the 7^th that the tail of the Skua was a problem. Most of the rivets were gone and only connection were the steel control cables, the compound used in the sealing of the tail section and steel bolts in some of the joints.  However, supporting the tail even better, would mean an extra day of ROV operations. We did not have that extra day. “Gunnerus” was scheduled for other operations on the 9^th.

The lift had to be performed with the risk of parts from the tail section falling off.

Late in the evening on the 8^th.the ROV- pilot had done the strapping of the wreck and the Skua could start its journey back to the surface. Almost at once, the centre piece of the tail broke off, separating the tail plane from the fuselage.

Through the years much silt had collected inside in the area of the open aft cockpit. This put on a rather heavy load aft of the wing main spars. Due to the rather frail condition of this area and the weight of the accumulated silt, the lifting straps tore into the structure and made the front section turn to a nose up position for the rest of the lift. This resulted in the loss of several parts of structure needed for the reconstruction of the aft cockpit area.

The winching of the Skua to the surface was performed without problems. The load was then transferred to the crane barge in a relatively short period of time and taken ashore.

The next day the crew from the Bodø Aviation Historical Society and the Norwegian Aviation Museum started to dismantle the Skua for the journey to Bodø. Already on the 11^th the Skua was on its way to Bodø by rail.

Some work has already been done at Trondheim in regards of markings, finding registration number L-2896 and preservation of special parts. However the main work will be done at Bodø where the Skua will be dismantled piece by piece, preserved, registered and stored for later use.

As several parts were lost in the operation, the NTNU will use the position of the wreck for further training. By use of sophisticated navigational equipment aboard “Gunnerus” it is possible to go back and pick up most of what we lost. This will take place on Wednesday April 16^th. High on the list of priorities will be the recovery of the engine that was torn off the Skua in the crash landing. Components and structure from the aft cockpit area lost in the operation will hopefully be found.

Already the Norwegian Aviation Museum has approximately about 60 % of a Skua. Some internal parts are in store and even enough for three/four aircraft. On display inside the museum is the restored engine of Skua L2903 force landed at Roan close to Trondheim. (Torin/McKee) Also on display is the cockpit section of another Skua. Several other smaller components for the type are restored and in storage awaiting installation in a future airframe.

The rebuild of a complete Skua will come down to priorities and money. What is now done will give us most of the know-how of the structure. Hopefully we will be able to find the lost parts from the aft cockpit area. These parts will in turn help us further in the project.

The Yeovilton Skua is missing its wing centre section and cockpit and gunner/observer positions. This recovery will help the FAA museum to rebuild the missing areas of their Skua if they so like. The Norwegian Aviation Museum and the FAA museum have for years had a close cooperation in regards of preserving our common history of the FAA operations in Norway 1940. We even have parts enough to help a third museum in a rebuild.

A joint project between museums will cut the cost of rebuilding and bring the possibilities for Skuas on display in museums very much closer to a reality.