Vulcan XA894 takes off, from the look of it on the power of the one underslung Olympus. It was not to last long.
Photo c/o Rolls Royce plc
On the 3rd December 1962, XA894 was positioned on the detuner at Filton for a ground run and full power check; the detuner was to the north of the main east/west runway. At around 3.30pm, power was increased to maximum reheat; the exhaust flame evident in the darkening winter evening. Seconds later there was a sudden burst of orange flame above and below the aircraft. The whole aircraft lurched visibly forward. Inside the cabin the four occupants clearly felt the shock as the engine abruptly failed. The bomb bay fire warning lights flashed and then abruptly went out as the firewire cabling was cut. The crew did not hang about. They began evacuating as fast ignoring the crew ladder. The last man out noted that the LP disk cooling air gauge still read within limits; so that had not been the cause.
The cause of the failure was the last thing on the test engineers minds at this stage as they ran for cover. Within seconds the fire took hold as burning fuel poured from the aircraft, which was on a very slight slope. The attendant Filton fire truck, required for all ground runs was parked in front of the aircraft. But so fast did the fire move that almost before the firemen knew it the flames had completely engulfed the tender. They tried vainly to extinguish it but the fire was still being fed by fuel from the aircraft; they had no choice but to just monitor the total destruction of XA894 and their fire tender.
The airfield fire crews had been very proud of their tender, which was kept in immaculate condition and had won several awards. They continued to monitor the fire, which burned well into the evening with brilliant white balls of burning magnesium rising in a continuous fountain above the fire. It made quite a display for the factory staff who witnessed it.When later they were able to reconstruct the failure and establish a chain of events it transpired that again the LP turbine disk had been ejected from the engine. But not before first travelling around the strengthened bomb bay carving open two 150-gallon stainless steel fuel tanks in its progress out. It exited the airframe and hit the ground shedding what remained of the turbine blades, which bouncing back up like shrapnel, puncturing each wing tank. The disk itself ripped a ten foot gash in the port wing leading edge before proceeding east, in great 150 foot bounces; the marks of its passage were clearly visible on the ground and it finally came to rest just short of a T188 supersonic research aircraft being prepared for a test flight.
B1 XA903 on retirement from the Blue Steel programme was converted to carry the Olympus 593 destined to power Concorde.
Welcome to the forum Robert, I would like to wish you luck with the project. Any idea how much you will have to raise to realise your dream/aims ?
Here is a potted history of BL628
Built at Castle Bromwich, Birmingham, 1942.
12MU, Jan. 1942.
401 RCAF, Gravesend, Feb. 1942 to become the regular mounto of G.B. Murray who named it Marion after his girlfriend, during this time credited with two Fw190`s damaged, one Fw190 destroyed.
308 Sqn, August 1942.
167 Sqn, August 1942.
610 Sqn, October 1942.
Transferred to Royal Navy, 1943 and converted to hooked Spitfire configuration at Cunliffe Owen Aircraft Ltd, June 1943
899 Sqn FAA for training at Belfast transferred to St Merryn Cornwall 1944 where if suffered a collaspsed undercarriage 5 February 1944.
Finally transferred to 719 and then 794 Sqns FAA at St.Merryn, eventually being struck off charge and abandoned.
Remains found on a farm near St. Merryn 1977 purchased and shipped to Australia by Peter Croser & Michael Aitchison.
Shot of BL628 with 401 Sqn, apologies to the person who sent me this I’ve lost the email.
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