Canberra WK163 – any news?

Really ! Your incredibly negative about the former Classic Varsity and its prospects ! However the guys at Newquay are giving it a go -more than the IWM were prepared to do -with an almost certain prospect of scrapping at Duxford otherwise ! Now we have the potential doom of the Canberra WK163 – another aircraft that Classic/Airbase have financed over the years -indeed it was saved by private enterprise and not in any way by the national museums !

Maybe its time to cut the guys at Coventry some slack rather than painting a picture of dereliction and dispair which certainly doesn’t encourage potential volunteers or visitors!

The problem is David that if aircraft of a larger size aren’t put under cover then their long term future is at risk. More needs to be done to address this nationwide.

Howard, that’s interesting to know although one wonders what they would need a photograph of?

I hope that at least eases the fears around one Canberra which has suffered a troubled retirement until now.
Not sure that there are any fears for that Canberra’s future now – but it’s still hard to understand how CAF acquired the aircraft with a view to flying it and it wasn’t so long ago that a TV documentary traced its stately progress to St.Mawgan, complete with occasional comments about how the aircraft would fly again one day. Now it’s simply abandoned, never to fly again. As I said a few posts back, CAF seems to have had a major shift in fortunes and/or attitude and yet very little has been said as to why.

Really ! Your incredibly negative about the former Classic Varsity and its prospects ! However the guys at Newquay are giving it a go -more than the IWM were prepared to do -with an almost certain prospect of scrapping at Duxford otherwise ! Now we have the potential doom of the Canberra WK163 – another aircraft that Classic/Airbase have financed over the years -indeed it was saved by private enterprise and not in any way by the national museums !

Maybe its time to cut the guys at Coventry some slack rather than painting a picture of dereliction and dispair which certainly doesn’t encourage potential volunteers or visitors!

David, you’re wasting your time, move on 😉

WH904 -I have read precisely what you said:

This was March :

‘Secondly, we should bear in mind that the St.Mawgan relocation was not about setting-up a public attraction as such. It was to set-up a maintenance/preservation base, the public’s access being a secondary issue.’

This is today :

‘Maybe it’s just my perception but I can’t help thinking back a while when CAF were making lots of announcements about future plans and how Coventry would develop and St.Mawgan would be a big attraction, etc.’

Maybe I am misreading this but your attitude towards Classic / Airbase can be a little hard to fathom at times !

One of The 163 team was at sywell taking pictures for the restoration .

I know nothing of the intention with WK163 but without wishing to thread drift or hijack and certainly not with a view to debate the pros/cons of the situation, I can at least report that WJ874 is being extremely well cared for by the CAHG guys at St Mawgan/Newquay and she has been receiving attention from an ex 39 (1 PRU) Sqn rigger who has history with the aircraft.
I hope that at least eases the fears around one Canberra which has suffered a troubled retirement until now. Let’s hope WK163 follows suit whether airworthy or static. Canberras are for life not just for Christmas..

At least Midair have stated their position and they’re still planning to fly again. CAF seem to have lapsed into complete silence 🙁

I thought you were destinctly under the impression that St Mawgan was mainly aimed at maintainance !
I’ve had to say this before to you David – try reading precisely what I’ve said. It would help.

With the news that Midair Squadron have abandoned attempts to get their aircraft flying for 2015, I wonder when (or if) we’ll ever see a Canberra in the air again. 🙁

Are Avon engines supported by RR now?

The official press release from Midair. Posted without further comment.

http://www.midair-squadron.com/mint-project/uploads/582026580.pdf

What happened to the Midair one Mike? Seemed to be all roses last year.

On a wider theme, the rapid contraction in the number of classic British postwar designs being operated is becoming ever more obvious. It is however, quite understandable. I would hope that Classic will, perhaps scale down a bit, and concentrate on keeping just a few types alive, rather than covering such a broad theme.

With the news that Midair Squadron have abandoned attempts to get their aircraft flying for 2015, I wonder when (or if) we’ll ever see a Canberra in the air again. 🙁

‘Maybe it’s just my perception but I can’t help thinking back a while when CAF were making lots of announcements about future plans and how Coventry would develop and St.Mawgan would be a big attraction, etc’

I thought you were destinctly under the impression that St Mawgan was mainly aimed at maintainance !

I hope they don’t abandon the Canberra or if they do, then at least try and transfer it to someone who might be able to make some progress. I just got the feeling that the whole enterprise was really winding down. As you say, I think CAF are being pretty laid-back about visitors but to be fair I didn’t check-in with them, I just went to see the Shackleton guys, but the place was incredibly quiet, just one guy walking around. The Canberra out on the grass, hangars devoid of any people, and the Twin Pin looking very sorry for itself – and I really don’t know why it is sat outside partially assembled if it is supposedly being restored to flying condition. Maybe it’s just my perception but I can’t help thinking back a while when CAF were making lots of announcements about future plans and how Coventry would develop and St.Mawgan would be a big attraction, etc. Now the situation seems to have turned full circle. The St.Mawgan venture has ended very badly, the Canberra T4 is evidently never going to fly again, the Varsity, VC10 and 111 aren’t ever going to move at all, the Twin Pin looks like it’s not going anywhere, and there’s certainly no talk of any other new restoration projects. The most frustrating thing is that CAF now seem to be unwilling to even say much about the situation or the future. I take no pleasure from it all, it’s a very sad business.

The last that we heard down here prior to closure was that they had run out of money for this particular project. Also that one of the engines sourced abroad had been damaged on delivery….at the docks I think it was. That said, the intent to return to flight still seemed to be a serious one.

I think Coventry CAF is only open on a few days of the week now, preferring instead to concentrate on specific events and I am led to believe that the entrance fee is now ….free ….outside of these events.

‘Such an important record breaker should have gone to Cosford. Whats happening with the Varsity?’

Some parts of it are the record breaker – a lot of it isn’t !

The last news I heard was that the restoration had been abandoned and they had decided to reassemble the aircraft for static display and push it outside.

I sincerely hope not but it looked pretty much as it does on the photo above when I saw it yesterday. Surely they wouldn’t just abandon the project without even telling anyone? Or would they? The whole CAF site was astonishingly quiet yesterday – I only saw one other person walking about. The Canberra is parked out on the grass and the Twin Pin is partially assembled and parked in front of the office block – which doesn’t seem very encouraging.

Whats happening with the Varsity?
It’s staying at St.Mawgan it seems – parked outside the HAS area at the mercy of the elements.

The more time goes by, the once-exciting future for CAF seems to get more and more depressing. I hope happier events unfold eventually.

Such an important record breaker should have gone to Cosford. Whats happening with the Varsity?

It’s a real pity – would be great to see it flying. Photograph taken just last week –

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