Herald G-AVPN scrapped Elvington

Visited Elvington last week – here is what remains of G-AVPN.

Thanks Jagx204, looking at the pictures on the web it was indeed the Booker one.

Not sure about their choice of route to Bournemouth at around 4pm last Thursday, a Tube and rail strike day, though!

After the Dakotas became freighters the mainstay of the Blackpool Isle of Man service was the Herald. The hum of the Darts was the backdrop to many happy hours of spotting at Squires Gate.I flew on them a few times thanks to an ex Polish Air Force officer who managed to get air cadets to fill otherwise empty seats on a weekly crew trainer to Prestwick.It was a very comfortable type to fly in. A big UFO sighting happened on a Blackpool based Herald ,turned out that the passenger had filmed part of the tail unit distorted in the edge of the window.

I have fond memories of flying on the Brymon one to Newquay.

My fluffy memories too are of G-ATIG. It was part of the scenery at St.Mawgan for such a long time, drifting in and out amongst the Nimrods and Canberras. Always worth a walk along the lane to the Airport to see it start-up and taxy out 🙂

The road running example is the ex Booker one, ironically returning to Bournemouth Museum.

That could be the one from Booker. All this Herald love just highlights the short-sightedness of YAM’s decision. No response yet, I see, from anyone at Elvington. I’m sure someone is reading this. I’d have expected better from a good museum like that.

No offence intended Webpilot, but I must be the exception to the rule because I DO have fluffy memories of the HP Herald, flying off on holidays from Heathrow in the early 80’s, sitting facing backwards at a table, taxiing out almost underneath 747s etc… I’m glad the one at Duxford is being restored and my local one at Woodley being repainted.

Anyway, more to the point, there was a scruffy looking Herald cockpit section in Channel Express colours on a lorry heading towards the M25 junction of the M40 this evening, so maybe that bit at least has been saved.

Saw that too, about 4:30 on the M25 near LHR and what an awful state the M25 was too this evening.

No offence intended Webpilot, but I must be the exception to the rule because I DO have fluffy memories of the HP Herald, flying off on holidays from Heathrow in the early 80’s, sitting facing backwards at a table, taxiing out almost underneath 747s etc

I have fond memories of flying on the Brymon one to Newquay.

No offence intended Webpilot, but I must be the exception to the rule because I DO have fluffy memories of the HP Herald, flying off on holidays from Heathrow in the early 80’s, sitting facing backwards at a table, taxiing out almost underneath 747s etc… I’m glad the one at Duxford is being restored and my local one at Woodley being repainted.

Anyway, more to the point, there was a scruffy looking Herald cockpit section in Channel Express colours on a lorry heading towards the M25 junction of the M40 this evening, so maybe that bit at least has been saved.

Can the petty squabbles cease ….!

I’m afraid I echo markb’s comment about it not being good enough, YAM.

We at Speke would have discussed having it, though realistically, it was only a slim chance. However, if the word isn’t out there then no-one saves it – period.

It’s such a shame that these home-grown, perhaps less glamorous types such as Heralds and 748’s (and lots of others like Herons, Doves, Devons and the odd Drover too) seem to get little care and attention whilst other types, such as that (foreign) contemporary of these machines the Fokker F-27 seem to abound in preservation.

Saving stuff isn’t easy and scrapping stuff is. It’s the path of least resistance usually backed up by a load of baloney and excuses. With a bit more will and a relatively small number of armchair and other enthusiasts dipping not even deeply into their pockets I’m sure something could have been done with this lovely aeroplane.

It never fails to break my heart when I see complete aeroplanes being trashed – especially for inadequate reason.

Is there anyone from YAM willing to put their head in the lion’s mouth and comment?

Anon.

In any case, “putting out feelers” to a couple of other museums isn’t good enough. The aircraft was, rightly or wrongly, listed as “significant”. As a museum, YAM has a duty to explore every avenue to finding the best outcome. Not just ringing a couple of people up and then sending for the scrap man. Why was it not publically tendered for disposal? Or just posted on here and a couple of other forums in advance, to allow funding to be arranged if someone did want it. Heck, even a facebook page or a tweet might have alerted a buyer. Who knows where it might have been picked up. A private individual might have bought it. The first I heard that the aircraft was at risk was reading here that it had been scrapped. Not good enough, YAM.

Nothing personal, but you just keep spouting inaccurate stuff.

East Fortune has the following: BA Concorde, Dan-Air Comet 4C, BA BAC 1-11, BA Viscount, BOAC 707 fuselage, as well as smaller civil types such as Beech 18 and Twin Pioneer. Only two of the large airframes have a real Scottish connection. Why shouldn’t a Herald fit with that collection too. It’s not “irrelevant” as you say, is it.

Keep it non personal, there’s a Good chap. And You’re not a moderator, so your comments on my politely stated personal opinions and observations are irrelevant. Fair point on Brooklands I’d overlooked. that collection. As I said, aeropark has noses and the Argosy so that seems to be accurate. East Fortune has civil types with a mostly Scottish Aviation connection so irrelevant to this discussion. I’ve never said there’s no interest in airliners but that it is limited for incidental stuff like heralds. That opinion doesn’t change from your very short list of types being added to collections. I’m not aware that anyone has any first hand knowledge of what Elvington may or may not have communicated to other collections. If they have, it’s not been mentioned but I’d be surprised if feelers hadn’t been put out.

Can’t see NEAM or the Aeropark wanting it – they have enough work already already and like Elvington neither really feature airliners in their collections. As I recall they both have a couple of civil type cockpit sections, plus NEAM has a Dove and Aeropark the Argosy. Speke is a possibility, but similiarly they already have their hands pretty full. Other than Speke, Dx and Wroughton, I can’t think of anywhere that makes a point of collecting civil types – Dx already has one, Wroughton seems to have gone into stasis.

I’m sure scrapping was a last resort for Elvington..

Dear Webpilot, perhaps you could confine your comments to subjects of which you have some knowledge? NEAM is currently restoring a Trident. Aeropark has an Argosy and a Varsity, plus Viscount and Vanguard noses. The Vanguard should have been donated complete, but for a communications ****-up at Hunting. Aeropark actually wanted a Herald – specifically G-ATIG (ex-BMA) at Norwich, which was also scrapped without notice a couple of years ago. If airports, museums etc gave adequate notice that airliners were for disposal, it would be possible to save them – as THIS FORUM did with 748 G-BEJD, now under the care of the Speke folks after we all chipped into get it moved from Blackpool. Who’s to say that the same couldn’t have been achieved with VPN? It would have fitted well at Speke, being a regular visitor when with BIA and with Channex.

As for museums with airliner collections – how about Brooklands, or East Fortune, or the Northern Ireland museum? Your not very extensive knowledge contributes little to this discussion, does it. Stick to your Spitfires.

The Booker nose is G-BEYF, scrapped when the Bournemouth museum closed. The last flyer and the only surviving military 400 series Herald.

‘Wish’ doesnt come into it! The BAPC is quite clear that there is an onus to offer to other groups surplus items. Unfortunately a few groups ignore the principles of the BAPC and in many cases fail to grasp the register and its potential !

The BAPC register has proved its worth time and again, it is the responsibility of the member organisations to highlight things like this…if they wish.

Pete

It does beg the question of what, ultimately, is the point and value of this register, if a ‘Significant’ airframe can be there one day, gone the next, without, apparently, any other BAPC member organisations having any knowledge of its plight.

NAH Register link is the bottom button on the left hand side of the BAPC homepage, open to all!