What Aircraft is this

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Shipped from USA in June 1945 aboard "USS John Wise".
Assembled at Corsair Assembly Unit, Los Negros and BOC Los Negros on 17 August 1945. Ferried to New Zealand September-October 1945.
Ferried to Aircraft Storage Unit, Rukuhia in October 1945.
Advertised for sale by WARB tender number 9207 dated 09 May 1949 and sold from Rukuhia to J. Asplin on 26 May 1949.
Originally displayed at Asplin's garage it was later restored to static condition by members of the Waikato Aero Club during the early 1960s and displayed in the open at Hamilton Airport.
In it's latter years at Hamilton it was painted as NZ5611 "JOSEPHINE".
After suffering the ravages of weather and vandals it was removed in 1968 to MOTAT for restoration and display.
Sold by Asplin to Ed Jurist in 1971 and exported to the USA.
To Jim Landry and Pat Palmer in 1973.
Restored over the next 9 years at a cost of US$300,000 and flew again on 17 July 1982.
Painted in US Navy colours as "Big Hog" it flew with the registration NX55JP.
On display at the Lone Star Flight Museum, Houston, Texas until 1989.
Sold to Doug Arnold and exported to Britain, it was removed from the American Civil Aircraft Register on 23 March 1998.
Joined the UK Civil Aircraft Register as G-BXUL on 25 March 1992 with The Old Flying Machine Company, Duxford.
Later repainted into it's RNZAF colour scheme and flew in Europe as such.
Total hours as at 31 December 2002 were 522.
Arrived back in New Zealand in February 2004 and made it's first flight from Whenuapai in the hands of Keith Skilling on 10 February 2004.
Currently airworthy in New Zealand.
 
GrauGeist said:
It does look to be an F8F, as the maingear covers extend to the tires, where the A-1's gear covers extend only halfway and wouldn't be seen in the photo.

Also, that looks to be a Spitfire behind the Corsair (off the Corsair's port wing).
Click to expand...
Agree with both.
 
I see what Graugeist is saying about the wheel covering, but I don't think that's what we're seeing here. I think that's actually something from another object and the wheel just happens to be superimposed over it due to the angle of the shot.
I also see what the others are saying about the F8F, but I looked at comparing shots from a similar angle as we see here and I still lean A1, just slightly.
Something about the nose, in relation to what can be seen of the canopy, just doesn't look right for the F8F.
However, both the F8F and the A1 share a similar profile in that section of those airplanes.
I agree about the Spitfire, too.

Elvis
 
It looks very much like the aircraft in question has wheel bays doors, on the fuselage, indicating an inwards folding landing gear, as per the Bearcat.
The Skyraider had rear-folding gear legs, so I think it can be discounted.
 
My two cents:

The photo looks like an air show. There isn't anything in the photo to give me a solid guess as to date, but the typography and graphics logo on the object to the left are fairly contemporary, looks post 2000 certainly post 1990. Most likely puts it back in New Zealand, but could be UK. Vegetation doesn't give us a clue. So, either UK or NZ.

There is one airworthy A-1 in the UK according to wiki owned by Kennet Aviation. It is painted naval white. There are no airworthy A-1's in NZ. Probably not an A-1. There are no airworthy F8F's in NZ, but one in the UK at the Fighter Collection at Duxford. It is painted naval blue. Given that, I would say its a Bearcat.

Another thing to look at is the shadow of the plane to the right. Although distorted by the perspective, the wings are fairly compact again making me think Bearcat versus Skyraider which has a much larger wing.

So let's go with a Bearcat at a UK airshow.

As for the plane on the left, from everything I can see my best guess is that it is Spitfire MkIX MH434.

Just the thoughts of another bored on lockdown working from home drudge.
 
I agree.
I think the photo was possibly taken at Duxford some years ago, when the flight line was then aligned on both sides of the taxi way, and probably using film, not digital imaging.
Another clue is that the cowling as seen in the pic has a more pronounced curve to the upper surface, compared to that of the Skyraider, which leads me to believe that the aircraft is the Bearcat shown below.


 
fubar57 said:
Click to expand...
Thank you Fubar.
I see now what I thought was the canopy is the tops of trees in the background.
I think I see the aforementioned partial covering over the wheel now, too. I was thinking that was part of the dark rectangular thing behind the plane.
This changes everything....I am now inclined to side with the rest of you. It's probably an F8F...or maybe a P47.
 
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Airframes said:
I think the photo was possibly taken at Duxford some years ago, when the flight line was then aligned on both sides of the taxi way, and probably using film, not digital imaging.
Click to expand...

I don't think it was DX Terry, I'm thinking more like Fighter Meet at North Weald, which has/had parallel rows of warbirds on either side of the taxiway. In fact I might have been at that very airshow. And yes, you're right as far as the Bearcat goes; it's the Fighter Collection example based at DX.

That Corsair still flies here in New Zealand with the Old Stick & Rudder Company at Hood Aerodrome, Masterton and is a staple of the New Zealand airshow scene. At the time the photograph was taken it was part of the Breitling Fighters display, which comprised four fighters, one of which was indeed Spitfire IX MH434, owned by the Old Flying Machine Company at Duxford and run by the Late, Great Ray and Mark Hanna (of which the former was a New Zealander) and displayed around airshows in the UK and Europe. You can see the Breitling Fighters badge on the aircraft's nose; this was a tie-in for sponsorship with the watch manufacturer.

Excuse me while I carry out a shameless act of self promotion and post a few of my images of the same aircraft as it is today:

Corsair -1

Corsair -2

Corsair -3

Corsair -4
 
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