You never know what you can find.... https://www.warhistoryonline.com/world-war-ii/mosquito-4.html?chrome=1
I'm not sure that you could class this a "barn find" as John Smith's collection was fairly well known amongst the NZ aviation community, though he never would part with any of his collection while he was still alive. He should be thanked for preserving such a large slice of NZ aviation history. The quoted article was written in 2020 and considerable progress has been made on the Mosquito since then. While it is not able to be returned to flying status - due to issues with the wood glue deteriorating I beleive - it will be on display for the first live ground running of the two Merlin engines at Omaka, just out of Blenheim on 24 April 2022: https://rnzaf.proboards.com/thread/30083/omaka-mosquito-day Unfortunately I live on the wrong side of Cook Strait otherwise I would be there myself. If you ever get the chance to get to Blenheim NZ do take the time to visit the Omaka Aviation Heritage Centre, its WW1 aircraft collection in particular is world class. The Omaka Aviation Heritage Centre
The links haven't been entirely clear to me, but are any Hudsons or parts thereof included in this find?
Visited the WW1 exhibit some years ago and the WW2 just 3 months ago, well worth visiting. From their website "The first a Messerschmitt Bf108 once owned and flown by German ace Franz Stigler, and the second a Lockheed Hudson, an American-built light bomber and coastal reconnaissance aircraft which has been suspended in a dramatic crash scene in the depths of a Pacific island jungle. The Griffon-powered Spitfire Mk. XIV (one of fewer than a handful of flying spitfires in Australasia), is still in residence as is the Focke-Wulf Fw-190. Full Noise, a Russian Yak-3Ua and a Reno Air Races' Gold Class alumni is on display alongside fighter ace Lydia Litvyak. This aircraft is capable of speeds up to 407 mph and is available for joy flights! In 2021 the John Smith Mosquito was added to the exhibition also. "
Yes, there was a Hudson hidden away in there too - NZ 2049. It went to Omaka for display in 2019 but was not restored, but instead put on display as a "crash site" exebition. You can see it if you scroll down this thread a bit: https://rnzaf.proboards.com/thread/28222/yealands-classic-fighters-2021
