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Photo by David Crookes, courtesy of RM Sotheby'sA stunning example of the early age of modern aviation with a feature in an Academy Award-winning film is up for auction this March. The 1929 De Havilland Gipsy Moth flown in the movie Out of Africa is being sold at auction by RM Sotheby's. The plane is being sold to raise awareness and money to build a sanctuary for critically endangered rhinos.
The Gipsy Moth is a remnant of a golden age in the early years of modern aviation. Built in the same era as the Model T Ford, another transportation innovation of the early 20th century, the Gipsy Moth is a beautifully restored aircraft in flying condition. RM Sotheby's states the buyer's premium for the lot is 12 percent of the hammer price up to and including $250,000 and 10 percent of the hammer price in excess of $250,000.Photo by David Crookes, courtesy of RM Sotheby's
Hundreds of De Havilland Moths were built in the late 1920s and 1930s. Sotheby's states that the owner said this Gipsy Moth is a later production model with an all-metal frame and built under the De Havilland license by the Moth Aircraft Corporation of America in 1929. Gipsy Moth was later one of the first American Moths to enter the United Kingdom while still flying on its American registration N585M. The plane was later registered G-AAMY in honor of British aviation pioneer Amy Johnson in May 1980. In 1930 Johnson became the first woman to fly solo from England to Australia in her Gipsy Moth, Jason.
The then-owner Cliff Lovell supplied the Gipsy Moth for the 1985 filming of Out of Africa, starring Meryl Streep and Robert Redford in the love story of the Danish countess Karen Blixen and British aviator Denys Finch-Hatton. RM Sotheby's reports that Lovell rebuilt the aircraft's engine before the plane was dismantled and shopped in two crates to Frankfurt, then flown by cargo plane to Nairobi, Africa where it was reassembled and re-rigged for filming. Lovell and Jens Hassel flew the plane for the movie, appearing in many scenes with the temporary letting of G-AAMT. Many notable scenes from the award-winning film feature the Gipsy Moth in flight in Nairobi and in Tanzania's Serengeti Game Park. The plane was used at Shepperton Studios and Walkeridge Farm for close-up sequence shooting and survives as one of the few hero vehicles to be used in both action and close-up shots. Out of Africa went on to win several Academy Awards, including Best Picture and Best Cinematography, with the latter attributed specifically to the work done with the Gipsy Moth.
Photo by David Crookes, courtesy of RM Sotheby'sThe Gipsy Moth was acquired by well-known Moth historian Roger Fiennes in the late 198s and passed to automobile collector Evert Louwman in the early 1990s. Louwman maintained the aircraft well and in fully airworthy condition, using it regularly for events like the De Havilland rally in New Zealand.
The plane is powered by a De Havilland Gipsy II engine uprated to 135 horsepower for operating in Africa, due to the more readily available parts. The propeller was made by Hercules to an original design and the owner recounted having 1,525.1 hours on the airframe and 27.1 hours on the engine since its last overhaul. The original undercarriage and spoked weeks are offered alongside the star-studded aircraft in Miami.
The Gipsy Moth has been maintained by De Havilland Moth specialist henry Labouchere, who has decades of experience. Labouchere can be contacted in advance of the sale and will be on site in Miami if any potential buyers have questions. He is also happy to offer his services to the new owner and with any post-sale assistance at the buyer's expense. The plane is being sold on behalf of the owner to raise awareness and money to build a new rhinoceros sanctuary in Central Kenya to return critically endangered rhinos to the Segera Conservancy. This is part of the ongoing effort by the Zeitz Foundation to create one of the largest sanctuaries of its kind in the world. RM Sotheby's said 100 percent of the hammer price will go toward the formation of the sanctuary. Star of Out of Africa Robert Redford has also provided a signed letter in support of the sale, praising the cause.Photo courtesy of RM Sotheby'sThis is a fine example of a surviving Gipsy Moth and an incredible opportunity to own part of aviation and film history.