W & R lookup please.

Lee’s data has more detail than Viscount’s above so here goes:

(c/n WA/H/21) FF 18.5.50; Delivered Gosport 13.10.50; 705 Sqn Gosport 18.10.50; WAL Ilchester 8.10.52 (Cat.4 recon & conv HR.3); WAL Yeovil 24.9.53; RDU Gosport 25.11.53; 705 Sqn Gosport (‘703/GJ’) 14.1.54; Lost control in manual, tail rotor hit the ground, Cat L 9.7.54 (L/C P Snow); Pilot cut winch wire in misunderstanding during experimental double lift, crewman & acting survivor fell 15ft into sea, Stokes Bay, Gosport, Cat SS 16.12.54 (Lt PL Hort, Lt TR Coombs OK, N/A RJA Williams injured); RNAY Donibristle 6.7.55 (recon); AHU Lee-on-Solent 25.6.56 (STS); SF Warrior 4.9.56; HHU Lee-on-Solent 21.10.56 (LTS & conv HR.5); Stn Flt/SAR Flt Brawdy (‘904/BY’) 25.2.58; Loss of engine oil pressure, autorotated safely onto playing field at Kete, Cat SS 18.10.58 (Lt AW Dobson); Tail rotor hit notice board when landing at RNAD Treown, Cat LQ 30.5.59 (Lt DK Hale & Mr D Dell, Assistant PPS to 1st Sea Lord); Tail rotor blades damaged by foreign body in flight, Cat LX 23.5.60 (Lt HF Coton & Army officer cadet passengers); RNAY Fleetlands 14.9.61 (Cat.4 repairs, NPW; to LTS 16.5.63); HHU Lee-on-Solent by road by 6.63 (LTS); To Whale Island by road 5.5.64 (gun/mortar blast trials, seriously damaged by gun blast); RNAY Fleetlands by road 12.5.64; To BRNC Dartmouth by road 19.7.64 as GI Class II; SOC 22.9.64; RNEC Manadon by road by 6.68 – 7.72; BRNC Dartmouth 1974; Cornwall Aero Park, Helston by road 28.9.81; British Rotorcraft Museum, Weston-Super-Mare, by road 14.1.88 (marked “904”); Extant in derelict state [TFH 1080.00]

That’s it. If you need help with the acronyms, shout.

Hi all

Many thanks all for your efforts on this it is much appreciated.

I looked at this site and could not find any mention. Seems the history must have been on the web all along! Well done ‘Skyskooter’. Devils own to get the PC to open up the full account, which provides quite a decent history.

The listing is attributed to David Taskis. I’ve expanded on some of the abbreviations and place references. Also towards the end needed correct the history, mostly based on facts uncovered on posts in this thread.

VZ962 with C/no WA/H/021 built by Westlands at Yeovil, UK as a WS-51 Dragonfly HR.1. First Flight 18th May 1950.
Delivered to RNAS Gosport 13th October 1950.
With 705 NAS (Naval Air Squadron) based at RNAS Gosport, by November 1950.
Suffered a Cat.5 accident during 1952. Repaired by Westlands and uprated to HR.3 during 1953
With 705 NAS again, known to have been coded 703:GJ by February 1954.
Tail rotor clipped ground 9th July 1954. Repaired at RNAY Donibristle by August 1955. Back to 705 NAS at Gosport.
To Lee-on-Solent by October 1956 for conversion to HR.5 standard
With RNAS Brawdy Station Flight, coded 904:BY by March 1958
At RNAY Fleetlands by September 1961 after Cat.4 accident. Not returned to flying status.
To Whale Island for blast trials, where further damage was sustained. (In Portsmouth Harbour, Navy Command Headquarters, HMS.Excellent).
To BRNC at Norton Helicopter Station, Dartmouth by August 1964 for Ground Instructional use. Uncoded.
Struck Off Charge September 1964.
At RNEC Manadon between June 1968 and August 1972. (RNEC = Royal Naval Engineering College, near Plymouth. HMS.Thunderer)
Returned to BRNC at Norton helicopter Station, Dartmouth. (BRNC = Britannia Royal Naval College. HMS.Dartmouth)
To Cornwall Aero Park, Helston in September 1981 and marked 912:CU (This last part of the entry is incorrect, the 50’s schemed Dragonfly on public display at Helston was marked ‘WG754‘ coded 912:CU (really WG725), as far as I am aware VZ962 was never restored for public display).
To British Rotorcraft Museum, Weston-Super-Mare by 1990 (our research above shows the year to actually be 1987 and entered store with the ‘reserve collection’ of the IHM, rather than BRM)
To Malta, date needed (our research above shows transported mid 2011 from the IHM to Malta for restoration by the Malta Air Museum)

Unlike RAF Record Cards which list each change of unit as a single record, for FAA machines the history has to be put together from various records. Use of the word ‘by’ stands for ‘on or before’ and is the earliest mention found, although the helicopter could have arrived months before, or just days. Codes worn are usually from observation as they are not officially recorded.

To ‘Lynx815’ – is the history you have in Lee Howard’s book the same as the above ? Appears Lee does not notice he has PMs! (much easier to miss on the newlay out).

This is as good as it gets, unless Lee Howard can come up with more information.

Glad we have got this one sorted out, as ‘Lion Rock’ has been asking on several different threads over a period of time. Hope this is what he wanted!

Does anyone know the Royal Navy service history for Westland WS-51 Dragonfly HR.1 VZ962 ??

Does this link provide the answer?

http://www.helis.com/database/cn/33984/

According to W&R23 2012 (yes, we are back with the book that started this thread) VZ962 departed to Malta from the IHM reserve collection store at Weston-Super-Mare mid 2011. Looking at some of the web photos of the Dragonfly while at Weston-s-Mare, she was in poor condition prior to export.

I’m surprised no-one suggested looking in Lee Howard’s book Fleet Air Arm Helicopters Since 1943. The extensive service history is published there but too lengthy to be written here. I’ll let Lee reply. If it’s in Malta now then an amendment to the book is needed!

Have sent a PM to Lee Howard alerting him to this (now misleadingly named) thread, in the hope that he can help. Thanks ‘Wyvernfan’ for providing a name to go with my memories of reading past threads. Hopefully we are getting there.

If its royal navy helicopters you need information on then best you contact forum member Lee Howard.

Rob

Although ‘Wrecks & Relics’ has helped to confirm and put dates to VZ962’s movements around the UK since retirement, it has been of no help in tracing the information that ‘Lion Rock’ really desires, which is the aircraft’s service history 1951 to early ’60s

Does anyone know the Royal Navy service history for Westland WS-51 Dragonfly HR.1 VZ962 ??

Certainly it must have been researched by someone! Were Dragonfly histories detailed in ‘Helicopters of the Fleet Air Arm’ Air Britain (or similar title), published a fair few years ago? Indeed I seem to recall that someone involved in the production of this work used to contribute here on the mammoth ding-dong debate threads discussing the shade of red that was ‘day-glo’ red (no, don’t start that subject again!). Equally David Taskis of Hornchurch on a helicopter website details other Dragonfly service histories, so surely knows VZ962 too? I’ve tried to contact him via that site’s e-mail message system, but with no contact (as yet). Was there ever an Air Britain VZ… serials monograph? I know the answer to Lion Rock’s question is out there, and that the Malta Museum really deserve to know about the service background of a helicopter that they are actively restoring.

I visited Cornwall Aero Park in July 1988, either just before or just after the open day at Culdrose which I think was on the 27th. My photos from that time show a Sea Vixen (XJ575) and Gannet (XG831) outside the gate and in good condition, but with grass growing a little taller than one would like. I have no photos from inside on that occasion and I recall it was shut – whether that was shut to turn it fully into Flambards or just that I got there at the wrong time, I can’t now say with any certainty, but I would think that was the end of the Aero Park. A great shame, as I remember from a couple of previous visits that their attitude to visitors in general, and enthusiasts in particular, was far more welcoming and accommodating than many other museums at the time.

I note that information from ‘Skyskooter’ in an earlier reply provides a date for the move from Helston to Weston as 1987. I don’t know exactly when Cornwall Aero Park became Flambards Village Theme Park, perhaps ‘Skyskooter’ could look at his W&R11 1988 again and report what the entry for Helston states about the name of the museum there.

W&R 11Edn. 1988 lists Flambards Triple Theme Park (sic) under Helston. It is worth looking at Flambards website which sheds some light on its history. Established 1976 as Cornwall Aircraft (later Aero) Park by an ex Fleet Air Arm guy it was subsequently renamed Flambards after the Yorkshire TV series of the same name taking over aircraft which had been used in the making of the programmes.

Many thanks for your efforts chaps, its history is indeed proving elusive. Hopefully someone can find the answer………..

Thanks again

My older copies of W&R simply state: BRNC, Helston, Weston-super-Mare. BRNC = Britannia Royal Naval College, a training establishment at Dartmouth in Devon. Helston = location of Cornwall Aero Park (this was the name in the 1984 edition, Flambards came later). Also looked in Ken Ellis’s ‘British Museum Aircraft’ 1977, but this appears too early for VZ962 to have been at Helston -while his more recent ‘Lost Aircraft Museums of Britain’ 2011 does not include that collection. Unfortunately for you, it is much more difficult to trace the unit histories, codes etc for FAA aircraft than it is for RAF ones due to the way records were kept.

Inserted later on edit No mention in W&R2 1963. Loaned out and lost W&R3. W&R4 1974, W&R5 1976, W&R6 1978 (with small b&w photo) and W&R 7 1980 all state that VZ962 Dragonfly HR.1 continues to act an instructional airframe with the BRNC at Norton Helicopter Station. W&R8 1982 states that VZ862 arrived at Helson late 1981 from the BRNC at Norton Helicopter Station at Dartmouth. W&R9 1984 and W&R10 1986 both state still with Cornwall Aero Park. At this stage I become no longer involved in the production/sales of W&R, so my next copy is W&R14 1994 by which time Cornwall Aero Park is now Flambards Village Theme Park and VZ962 has moved to the International Helicopter Museum at Weston-Super-Mare as a donor of spares, rather than an exhibit. I note that information from ‘Skyskooter’ in an earlier reply provides a date for the move from Helston to Weston as 1987. I don’t know exactly when Cornwall Aero Park became Flambards Village Theme Park, perhaps ‘Skyskooter’ could look at his W&R11 1988 again and report what the entry for Helston states about the name of the museum there?

I have a note that I saw VZ962 in a hangar at BRNC Dartmouth on 8th August 1966. I recorded VZ962/-, WG709/96, WG719/97, WG750/95 all Dragonflys, no camera in those days though. BRNC also had Tiger Moths and Chipmunks flown from Roborough/Plymouth Airport. BRNC has an entry on Wikipedia as the RN initial officers training school.

Have a feeling that the fairly recent Air Britain book on the Helicopters of the Fleet Air Arm would be a better source of information than W&R – but I don’t have one (indeed never examined one), so I pass the task on to someone who has …… Was there ever a VZ… Serials monograph from Air Britain?

I note that on a website www.helis.com that a contributor ‘Dave Taskis’ of Hornchurch, Essex clearly has access to outline FAA Dragonfly in-service histories. Anyone able to draw his attention to this thread?

Dare I suggest it on this forum, but perhaps someone who has access to Air Britain aix information exchange members forum, might re-post your enquiry there, then inform us if there are any positive replies.

I don’t like the idea of an enterprising and dynamic aviation museum not knowing the history of their particular airframe, which they are working hard on preserving. Somehow I suspect that between entry into service October 1950 and becoming an instructional airframe with BRNC this helicopter probably had quite an active career in the days when helicopters operating from ships was still very much in its infancy!

Perhaps a change of thread title (on ‘edit’) to ‘Looking into history of VZ962 Dragonfly HR.1’ would help as ‘W&R Look-up please’ is clearly not reaching the right people to come up with the information you desire, although hopefully has added a little to your knowledge and dates of the machine’s whereabouts since retirement.

LR………..

In a couple of words, “not a lot”!!! I have checked several editions of W&R for you and all mention “BRNC” which I believe is Britannia Royal Naval College. Wish I could bring you more information.

Planemike

No unit history but the 11th Edn. of W & R published 1988 lists VZ962 under Weston’s British Rotorcraft Museum as it was then known stating it arrived 1987 for spares ex Helston and the Royal Naval College Dartmouth.