went out and back over Brooklands this evening as well heading West under 1000ft at 1915, as the para doors were closed I put the pitchfork away..

Particularly appropriate good news to read today, as today is the 70th anniversary of W4050’s first flight is it not ?

Sad as I (well, we all in the area I suspect) will be to see AB go, she does appear to have been a nuisance to the airline the way she has been tugged about over the years, She has had very little hangar time I can recall and I’m surprised she was not ‘dinged’ by something during the period in front of the Virgin hangar on the main airport ramp. I saw her a couple of weeks back on the main BA base by 27R backed into one of the engine run up bays.
For transport she will naturally have to be disassembled, but if that is done the same way the East Fortune and Brooklands airframes were and then put back together as neatly she will at least appear structurally complete. The work done on BBDG at Brooklands on a limited budget is I think magnificent.
If they have the money in Dubai to look after here out there good luck to them, they are obviously willing to take a pride in something we in the UK should have done, but we do have a few (6?) here still. I agree it should have gone in or near T5 but it evidently did not suit the public image required in the end by the airline and airport.

Hi Gareth
I passed through FCO on Monday on business but took the opportunity, as you do, to check it out from the enthusiast/spotter point of view. Certainly there are lots of uniformed officals about but there were decent views from the landside cafe’s where there is not much else to look at but the movements area. I would be careful with ‘optics’ and wouldn’t use a camera there though and it would be a lot of pizza/coffee to pay for over a day !
There is a Rome spotters website that shows the off airport locations and other details at http://www.fcospotters.altervista.org/index1.htm which I found helpful.
Regarding Ciampino, security there looks even tighter because of the military presence on the field, they look far more interesting aircraft there though.
One thing I could request from other forum members, is there a definitive identity known for the four ex AZ A300 stored there all white ? There were six but two have gone and various reports have quoted various identities for those left in the checking I have done so far.
Happy hunting
Philip

Much as I admire Concorde (why don’t they put G-BOAB in the Tate Modern rather than leaving it to rot at LHR), I voted with my heart too, particularly this week…………..Ahh Merlin’s.
Philip