It must be a little bit alarming for the passengers especially if it’s the exit side that catches!
Wouldn’t it make sense to have a crewman with extinguisher ready at the wing during engine start just in case?
Third time luck.

We always do this with the Air Atlantique Rapides, and I’m pretty sure that Classic Wings do to. It is a known issue. Thankfully in the six years that I have been involved with Air Atlantique’s we have only had it happen once, to Tango Mike in Jersey, quick reaction from the extingusher guy saw the damage limited to a size less than 2ft square. Strangely the incident happened at the exact time that most of us were attending Sybille’s funeral (for whom the aircraft is named after), make of that what you will.

Hello Paul,

The aircraft in question is the original T5 prototype XM967. She was built as a T4 at Samlesbury but did not fly as such and was moved by road to Filton for conversion to T5. After having a long and useful life as a development aircraft she was retired to RAF Honington in June 1974 for their fire section. Somebody must have been keeping an eye on her as she was later claimed for the ill-fated RAF Colerne Museum and was flown there on the 5th January 1975. Unfortunately things didn’t go quite according to plan and the collection was disbanded not long after with XM967 meeting her fate at No.5 MU RAF Kemble during 1976. 🙁

Thanks DGH!

I think the possible tax break that comes with this new development zone is probably the incentive to move to Newquay, my worry is when the council come knocking for their full rates, something they are known for.

Thankfully with the collection now being a charity the maximum business rates that might be due would be 20% of the norm, which is a considerable saving. 🙂

The collection has no future at Coventry, the airport and the area on which AIRBASE is currently located is going to be redeveloped, perhaps not in the immediate future but soon. One thing that will be happening relatively shortly is that the West Gate and the entrance road will be closed, this will cause serious issues for access for visitors etc.

So where do you move a large collection of aircraft? I can assure you that there are very, very few airfields out there that are interested and even less with the appropriate facilites.

Newquay have offered the collection not only a great facility but also the opertunity to be located in a tourist area that recieves 5 million visitors per year.

The Pembroke has had a lot of work carried out on it but she’s still a little way from flying yet.

G-AMPY is airworthy and on 24hr call for pollution control work with RVL.

My interest was always in the big-props like the DC6s and DC3s and the Twin Pioneer. So aside from the move to somewhere I can’t get to easily, its become evident those aeroplanes aren’t really where CAT’s interests lay.

I think that’s unfair Skymonster. It has been clear that operating two DC6’s is just to ambitious, so finding a good use for G-SIXC was a good move, meanwhile much work is continuing behind the scene’s on returning G-APSA to the skies. Off the 3 Dakotas, G-AMPY and G-ANAF are on lease to RVL and producing good revenue and G-AMRA is undergoing a wing pull. There is also a team working on the Twin Pioneer who have made good progress with finding the drawings for the cruical part that is required to get the aircraft airbourne again, all that is needed now is that important thing called cash to undertake an overhaul of the aircraft and fabricate the required part.

The Dak is on lease to RVL and will be returning to Coventry once her work is done.