There are good special editions and bad special editions and then there is a one-off Caterham Seven made with bits of a former Royal Air Force Puma HC2 helicopter. Nothing about this is not cool. For one thing, it’s about supporting Mission Motorsport and the RAF Benevolent Fund - very worthy causes both, obviously - for another, it’s a glorious and uniquely British mashup of car and chopper, even allowing for the fact that the latter is, of course, quite French.
For those not acquainted with the Puma, it has served the military very well indeed for over half a century. Indeed, alongside the more famous Chinook, it has provided the backbone of the RAF’s ground support contingent, and has served in virtually every conflict which has seen in the insertion of British troops. And while it’s not done yet (the New Medium Helicopter programme isn’t due to select a replacement till next year) the end is now vaguely in sight.
We know this to be true because the RAF deemed one of the earliest airframes - XW232, which entered service in 1972 - fit for turning into a car. Or at least they’ve used elements of it to extensively modify a 360R, including the aluminium skin from the aircraft’s tail boom and doors, which have been used as exterior panels, and in the rear bulkhead, where it has retained the door jettison handle.
Nice details like that abound. The Puma’s quilted soundproofing lines the door panels, tunnel top, and forms padding for the carbon fibre seats. Under the bonnet, an ammunition box now contains the car’s battery. But our favourite has to be the military-grade switchgear on the unique satin black dashboard, which apparently includes a three-stage ignition sequence to fire up the engine.
As you can imagine, a lot of love has been poured into the project, not least because assembling the car was a joint effort between Caterham and serving personnel from RAF Benson, the latter in support of the Science Technology Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) division, which includes external opportunities for those participating to grow their skills.
“It has been an honour to be a part of the Caterham project,” commented one of the team. “As an Aircraft Technician (mechanical), I volunteered my time to remove the decommissioned materials from the Puma for the Caterham RAF Seven 360. To see the transformation of the materials has been fascinating.” The car will make its public debut at the British Grand Prix before being offered for auction later in the summer, with the aim of raising more than £100k for the charities involved. Tally ho!
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