A man who restores and sells fighter jets for a living has won an apology from internet auction site eBay after it shot down his latest venture.

The Harrier jump jet that Chris Wilson was advertising for £69,999 went missing in action from the site leaving him and 8,000 potential bidders stunned.

Former RAF mechanic Mr Wilson said the decomissioned jet was wiped off the site without a word.

He said: “It just vanished without an explanation. All bids were cancelled and everything was removed. No-one from eBay consulted me and no explanation was given to the 8,000 people who had been watching it.”

Mr Wilson’s company, Jet Art Aviation, bought the aircraft’s frame in November, 2009 and spent months turning it into a museum-standard display piece.

A spokesman for eBay said today the Harrier should not have been listed and that it was withdrawn because of its strict policies on the sale of weapons.

He said: “We do have strict policies in regards to the sale of such items, meaning the jet should not have been listed for sale. We would like to apologise to the seller concerned for the inconvenience this has caused to him.”

But Mr Wilson says the jet was removed this week after a sudden change of policy to add former military aircraft to its prohibited list – despite it already having attracted 80 bids with offers in excess of £90,000.

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