Halifax Restoration Part 3

While the external restoration of the aircraft is complete, the building that houses the plane is not, due to funding delays. Once complete, the building will house all of the exhibits in the existing museum building, and will allow some of the aircraft currently on display in the outside air park to come out of the harsh southern Ontario elements.

The nose, which was heavily damaged in the crash, was completely rebuilt. It looks as good as new now. The pilot sits surprisingly high in this aircraft, much more so than a B-17, for instance.

This overall view of the port side gives some impression of the sheer bulk of this plane.

A closeup of the engines on the port side. Of particular note is the flame-dampening "hedgehog" exhaust which, unusually, feeds back into the engine nacelle. The landing light faired into the underside of the wing is also visible.

While the exterior of the aircraft is now complete, work continues on the restoration of the aircraft's interior by a dedicated group of volunteers. Barely visible at the top left of the photo is a patch covering the opening where the top turret would have been installed. As dedicated support aircraft for the Airborne Forces, all A. Mk VIIs were built without the dorsal turret, but could be quickly converted back into bombers if necessary.

The complex Boulton-Paul turret with its quadruple .303 Brownings dominates the rear of the aircraft. Below the tail, immediately behind the tailwheel, can be seen the glider towing hook.