I’d like to think that the removed one from G-BPIV at DX will be faithfully converted into an electric estate car in due course, once the MK1 is finished…:D

Gas detection panels were generally painted on an upper surface of aeroplanes, vehicles and even trolley-accs. The theory was that a gas attack would result in the incoming vapour or chemical droplets activating the chemical within the patch and causing it to change colour, thus advisng everyone it would be a good time to don ones gas mask. We were still using the same basic high technology in the 1980’s-’90’s when I was in the RAF. The idea then was that the “three colour detector paper” would change colour and indicate what nasty Ivan had decided to lob at you and your aeroplanes. You would then instantly remember what they had taught you in some boring Rock-ape lecture many moons previously and the colour would match the symptoms you would be looking for. They always used to go on about the “smell of newly cut grass” being a good indicator for nerve agent (other death causing smells are available). That didn’t seem to hold a lot of sense being based on an expansion period station where there were lawns everywhere being furiously mown to keep the SWO happy. Personally I didn’t have a lot of faith in the advice. It seemed to me that by the time some Liney had decided things were getting serious and he wasn’t going to be getting to the pub that night and there seemed to be a funny smell going on, he would be foaming at the mouth (not unusual on my Sqn), suffering pinpointed vision (Hmmm), sniffing furiously at the lawns or just turning into a multipling giant red blister. None of these were going to be too helpful and pulling on an S6/S10 Rubber-face (no doubt full of stale biscuit debris) wasn’t going to make things any better and certainly wasn’t going to impress the good looking females of the local town. I did enjoy puffing the fullers-earth bottles into fellow Lineys hair and down each other necks etc all in the defence of the realm and no doubt at great expence to Mrs T and her budget. Funny thing was when the poor guys were packed off to a certain North Norfolk Tornado base to get kitted out for the first Gulf war, they all got given gas mask filters that were for training purposes only and only any use for tear gas! They probably don’t even do the gas chamber any more due to health and safety:rolleyes:

As the bunkers are owned by the same person as the SE5e, I would not imagine there’s too much problem on the storage front, though a plan to commercially rent the site for external car storage fell foul of planners over access issues. I understand the bunkers were somewhat vandalised and unofficially stripped out before they were bought by the present owner and as such I very much doubt the “climate control” (if there ever was any) you speak of would be working as I was told most of the wiring for the buildings got nicked!

Who would have thought that over a couple of decades, a Spitfire wreck looking like a pile of “scrap metal” would become airworthy and a perfectly airworthy Hovercraft would become a pile of scrap metal…:eek:

Nice authentic colours on the P40, I understand they consulted a “local” specialist at DX, eh Beaufighter VI… 😉

Somewhere, from many years ago I have one of the museum magazines from the HAM at Aviation Way. In it there is a news item which mentions the removal of the leg for this ferry flight. From memory it was the flight to Shoreham (surely its last?). It’s in a box somewhere in the house, but I’ll try to check it out. It also had an in depth article on the ATEL Prentice fiasco and a list of then surviving aircraft including the one in the childrens playground next to the railway on the way from Southend to London. It was replaced by a tractor at some point. Probably a faster method of transport 😀

Bill Gent (?) told me the turret was loaned for the “We’ll meet again” TV series as it was actually a B17 turret and he said they never retuned it.