The Spitfire with Nine Lives : The Enthralling Tale of TE566, Wrecked, Rescued and Rebuilt to Fly Again

Shortly after TE566 was delivered to the RAF, it was one of several Spitfires gifted to Czechoslovakia at the end of the Second World War. Sold to Israel in 1948, it was left to rot. After passing through several pairs of hands, the aircraft was rebuilt once again by Colin Wills and Tom Gilbert and converted to a two-seater to fly once more.

Shortly after TE566 was delivered to the RAF, it was one of several Spitfires gifted to Czechoslovakia at the end of the Second World War. Sold to Israel in 1948 and later left to rot in a kibbutz as a children’s plaything, it was rescued, recovered to England and lovingly restored. A new life on the display circuit and on film began in 1992, first in the UK and later in South Africa, where it was all but destroyed in 2002 in a fatal accident. The wreckage was bought, returned to England, then sold to an Australian aviation training institute which eventually sold it back to the previous owner. After passing through several pairs of hands, the aircraft was rebuilt once again by Colin Wills and Tom Gilbert and converted to a two-seater to fly once more. Much more than the tale of a Spitfire’s resurrection, it’s a story about the fascinating individuals linked to TE566’s 80-year existence. Foremost among these are a heroic Czech airman and those who formed the backbone of the nascent Israeli Air Force. Many were ‘Machalniks’, overseas volunteers, not least the brilliant and daring individuals who delivered the first of Israel’s Czech Spitfires. Meeting those involved in every aspect of TE566’s globetrotting life — its challenging restorations and those who owned and flew the aircraft too — makes for an unforgettable and at times barely believable tale.