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Miles M38 Messenger 2A for sale

Miles Messenger for sale.

As far as I know, there are only six Messengers flying in the world, so here is a rare opportunity to be part of an exclusive club. At the same time there's a unique set of criteria. A Messenger was made in Britain in the 1940s, seats four people, and can get them in and out of short strips, but is able to cruise at 100 knots - which is still a decent turn of speed nowadays - so you and your family can actually go places and get back the same day. It hasn't been in hiding for years and only just emerged from a hugely expensive restoration either; it was a regular at air shows during the late 1990s, and that's a role which it could very easily resume. It's definitely not a showpiece, but it was an exhibit Goodwood Revival's Spirit of Aviation this year.

Messenger serial no 6339 was built at Miles' Newtonards factory in 1946, ferried across the Irish sea on a military "U" registration, then on September 6th that year, granted the UK civil registration which it still wears. It has a continuous history since that day and I have all the Journey Books showing those first flights at Woodley, and the many subsequent trips throughout the 1950s, to Le Touquet, Ostend, Le Mans and as far as Bilbao, Biarritz, Cologne and Dusseldorf, and of course, Skegness beach in 1954...

The aircraft continued to fly with a CAA Certificate of Airworthiness until the 1970s, by which time the logs record only about 1300 hours. Fortunately, it wasn't left outside like so many but went into storage until it was "discovered" in the 1980s and completely dismantled, overhauled and reglued with modern adhesives, at the same time acquiring the identity of "RG333" which involved conversion to its current military Mk4 appearance, with the large back windows and skylight. In 1942, the Air Ministry had rejected Miles' proposal for a liaison aircraft, choosing the Auster instead, but a group of Army officers disagreed with the decision and persuaded the Ministry to order around 20 Messengers as liaison aircraft and "VIP Transport". RG333 was one of a pair provided for Field Marshal Bernard Montgomery's exclusive use during the Normandy Campaign. Which is presumably why this one has acquired the soubriquet "Monty's Messenger." Continuing use of that tag remains optional...

Marshal of the RAF, Lord Arthur Tedder was another Messenger fan, but Montgomery's choice for the D-Day campaign amply reflects the Messenger's ability to carry a load in and out of short and rough fields, at the same time providing the occupants with an unrivalled view of everything they needed to see on the ground. More than 80 years on, it still does all of that, and remains delightful to fly, in a way that most more modern aircraft aren't. There are no cables anywhere in the flight controls, everything is via rods and bellcranks, so there is little or no breakout force. And as you can see from the photos, the plan view remains unlike anything else in the air at the moment.

Any Blackburn Cirrus problems - both perceived and real - have also been addressed such that they are unlikely to reappear and there is a large spares package available which could keep the aeroplane flying for as long as we are allowed to. There is also a full set of covers. Miles aircraft have been consistently undervalued throughout the years but this one still represents good value at £75,000, especially as there's nothing else like it. It has taken many years of toil and investment to get this aeroplane to where it is now, and I really don't want to sell it, so rather than pack out the advert and challenge you to read right to the end, I will send a document to interested parties on request, setting out the essential details.