Historic airframes preserved…then lost again

Here it is in happier times (27 May 1972 … official opening of the HAM)

Just to set the record straight -The Proctor in the photo took on the identity of G-ANZJ / NP303. It was actually a composite airframe combining the fuelage of G-ANZJ with the wings of NP339/G-AOBW.
I think I posted before that the fuselage of G-AOBW was sawn in half and the rear fuselage with the fin and tailplane was stripped to show the structure. It was exhibited at various places prior to the museum opening including South Essex Motors at Basildon and probably a North Weald airshow but it needed regualr repairs due to glue rot. We burnt the front fuselage (except for the 24 volts door which I managed to rescue) some time before the museum opened.
The composite NP303/G-ANZJ was sold at the museum auction. I think Trent Aero bought it then found it was so far gone that an airworthy restoration was too difficult. I heard it passed to someone who wanted the engine and the rest was burnt early/mid 1980s.
I never did find out what happened to the original wings from G-ANZJ. Last I saw of them they were in the hangar the museum rented on the airport site in the block between the back of the Airport Hotel and the old Tradair hangar.

It is my understanding that the cockpit from the A1 Lightning survives and is owned by a forumite! 😉

It was bought from a tender. It was just as likely to be bought for preservation as even then the F.2A were rare in the U.K. As is clear there was never an intention to ‘preserve’ it -indeed mutiple enquiries to try and do something effective with it over the years were always met with a negative response from her owner. Therefore it was an attraction .

Cool, we’ll agree to disagree :eagerness:

It was bought from a tender. It was just as likely to be bought for preservation as even then the F.2A were rare in the U.K. As is clear there was never an intention to ‘preserve’ it -indeed mutiple enquiries to try and do something effective with it over the years were always met with a negative response from her owner. Therefore it was an attraction .

The A-1 Lightning wasn’t preserved.

Not in its later life, no. But it was certainly saved from the chop and put on display after its military life came to an end.

Yes looking forward to the Time Team episode where they dig on the far side at Duxford!

You’ll have a long wait 🙁

Should of read the whole post,it’s the iss fury I have pics of.

I’ve got a few pics of it on a drops rack at shiaba 2005/6 and a extra tail section,will put them up when I get to the computer.

Yes looking forward to the Time Team episode where they dig on the far side at Duxford!

The Hermes fin was supposedly ‘lost’, legend has it that it ended up as landfill somewhere on the Duxford site. A great shame, it would have made the exhibit a little more complete (and eye-catching) and survived for many years, repainted and on display lashed to a hangar support, until it vanished one day.

Some preserved by Dan Air were lost over the years

The Dakota than went on to Disneyland Paris then was sold on for use as a film set and ended up as a burned wreck.

There was also Comet 4 (G-APDK?) that was donated to the Air Scouts as a swap for the York Dan Air wanted back.

Another act of sheer vandalism was the Herald at Bournemouth.

What happened to the fin/rudder of the Hermes that was at Gatwick for many years before going to Duxford?

The A-1 Lightning wasn’t preserved.

Wittmund had the special scheme Phantom 37+11 on display on base which was removed and stripped for spares in 2011.

Has anyone mentioned the ex-A1 Lightning and the Blackpool Vulcan?

not sure if it is classed in the same category as the thread was intended but Tangmere Museum recovered the remains of DN293 from Pagham harbour in the 80’s but the remains were sent to the scrap man years after ( from the photographs I have seen the cockpit would have done wonders for the project I am working on )…..the Sabre was recovered as well but not sure what happened to it. If Tangmere1940 reads this, was there anything left of the wing spars when you originally recovered it?

I have also seen reference to the RAF scrapping the last complete Typhoon in the 1950’s before realising they actually had none left now!!! It was a composite from a number of airframes but I think it retained a serial number in the DN range.

Nobody’s recently mentioned the Lyneham Comet XK699-although its cockpit of course survives with BDAC!

2nd French Lizzie

In 1980, I brought home, from Manitoba, the skeleton of a Lysander, and a more complete Bolingbroke. (see pics). I traded them to Eric Vormazeele, for a complete Stampe and a lot of spares. He (E.V) then did a deal with the French authorities, and both aircraft were stored at Le Bourget. It was a few years later that they were both destroyed in the tragic hanger fire at Le Bourget.

[ATTACH=CONFIG]224846[/ATTACH]

Well VM360 is still with us at East Fortune under very long term restoration to I believe civil markings as G-APHV.

http://www.nms.ac.uk/highlights/objects_in_focus/avro_anson.aspx

What about the Strathallan Ansons. One to Sunderland and 2 to East Midlands 1 being scrapped the wings going to the MK1 in Australia and the other G- AGWE rumoured to the USA.

We’ll, the RAF Museum have done a pretty good job of preserving every type that has left RAF service in the past 3 decades or so, up until the recent VC-10 fiasco.

A Jaguar GR3 in Hendon would be a good start too!

We’ll, the RAF Museum have done a pretty good job of preserving every type that has left RAF service in the past 3 decades or so, up until the recent VC-10 fiasco.

I would like to see a preservation order placed on 1 of each aircraft that remain or 1 is earmarked
in service so we can stop our heritage disappearing before people realise that they have just cut up the last one… I don’t want to see it on the internet or in a book ,I want to see the real thing