Whirlwind XN299

Sad to read this on the Tangmere website

‘On 12 April (2011), the Curator of the Royal Marines Museum, Ian Maine, and our Curator, David Coxon, signed the accession document that gifted Westland Whirlwind HAS Mk 7 helicopter (XN299) to the Tangmere Military Aviation Museum. This helicopter has been displayed on loan at the Museum since 1997. Our intention is to remove the corroded tail section and convert the front part of the aircraft to a No 22 Squadron HAR 2 Search and Rescue (SAR) helicopter, allowing access to visitors to enable them to see into the cockpit.

This was I believe the last piston powered Whirlwind in British military service and was last in service at JEHU Old Sarum . This really deserved a better fate than becoming a cockpit!