05/06/2026
Warbirds Over Scone - Sunday, Scone, NSW, Australia. 29 Mar 26
Ex Kiwi Warbird No. 16. Hunter Warbirds Curtiss P-40E / Kittyhawk Ia 41-25109 / ET433 / VH-KTY / NZ3094
NZ3094 is a long-standing member of the Australian Warbird community, having been bought by Colin Pay in 1994, and returned to flight in December of 2004. She is displayed in the colours of Bobby Gibbes DSO, DFC and Bar, OAM from when he commanded No. 3 Sqn in North Africa. It is noteworthy that this is one of two aircraft in his colours, with one of the Spitfire VIIIs also carrying his scheme.
In this post I have added photos from a previous visit to Hunter Warbirds back in 2022 after the ones from the walkaround. I expect to add a second post to this to capture the photos once the props were spinning.
My next post will show a short video of the third ex-RNZAF P-40 that was at the airshow - NZ3009.
Aircraft history
P-40E 41-25109 was constructed in Buffalo NY in 1942 and originally allocated to the RAF as a Mk. Ia Kittyhawk, ET433. This identity was not taken up and the aircraft was diverted to Australia later in 1942 and allocated to the USAAC (United States Army Air Corps) 68th Pursuit Squadron, Tonga. Then on the 27th of October 1942 the P-40 was transferred to the RNZAF as NZ3094. It is believed that the aircraft served in RNZAF 15Sqn at Fuamotu, Tonga from 27 October 1942.
Post war the P-40 was sold on 02 March 1948 to J. Larsen from Rukuhia New Zealand as scrap along with 50 other P40s and remained there in Asplin’s Supplies scrapyard from 1954 until when it was recovered by John Chambers and then Mike Subritzky. In 1994 the aircraft was purchased by Col Pay.
