Britains Cierva C30 Autogiro, $2100 (£1680) at Old Toy Soldier Auctions.
Always keen to keep up with the latest in military technology, a 1:32 scale model was one of the last new designs produced by the Britains toy factory in London before it was mothballed following the outbreak of the Second World War. None of the several variants are easy to come by.
The November 10-11 sale at Old Toy Soldier Auctions (23% buyer’s premium) in Pittsburgh included boxed examples of two different models the factory produced in 1939-40.
Set 1392 is the Cierva C30 Autogiro, a civilian craft painted blue with cream detailing and the letters G-ACIN. Considered ‘very good’ with a box that was described as ‘fair’, it took $2100 (£1680).
Britains autogiro in US Army livery, $9000 (£7200) at Old Toy Soldier Auctions.
Rarer still is set 1899, essentially the same model painted with the livery of the US Army Air Corps.
Cierva autogiros were made under licence in the US by the Kellett Autogiro Company and a few served in the US air force heading into the Second World War.
Only a handful of these models are known (even playworn examples can bring close to $500), with this one rated very good in a good box. Estimated at $3500-5500, it hammered for $9000 (£7200).
