Lindy’s LadThanks for adding that LL 🙂 I was going to mention that but didn’t want to upset anyone and put my foot in it somewhow. 😉
Jon
Quite OK Jon. I just didn’t want anyone jumping in and potentially upsetting the balance.
Back to your addition in the thread – yes, the infernalnet has helped in increasing the speed at which data is available, and I think that more people are aware of the national / global state of things partially because of it. After all, how could we all share our views and opinions otherwise? I don’t think that organisations such as the BAPC would or could be replaced by an internet community such as FP forum, WIX, or any of the others – some have said that ‘a new breed of aviation presevationists are undermining the usefulness of the BAPC etc’, but I really don’t think that this is the case. We all have to work TOGETHER to really make a difference and improve our industry.
So far, the general concensus on NAHR is that, yes its good, and yes it helps, BUT it needs to be more readilly available to everyone…. my thought there would be for more collections and private individuals to join the BAPC and have access to the information, but perhaps the BAPC could make the content MORE available to its members?….. via online publishing?
So aside from data distribution, how can it be improved IF it needs to be?
Lindy’s LadThe IWM stripped out all of the flight deck instruments from both aircraft a few days after they touched down.
actually, so did we…… a few car loads (probably a Vauxhall Viva) of stuff went to make 319 into a live aircraft again….
Lindy’s LadHere are some pictures I took at NEAM earlier this year
Not sure on the identity of the Balliol, shame its outside!
The tail is off a Firefly and the cockpit was indoors and I didn’t have access to it for pics.
The biggest firefly section is the cockpit of WD889 – engine firewall, pilots compartment and up to the front of the rear crew compartment. The tail of the firefly is of unknown number – obviously VT… (I can’t get into the archives to find out)
The Balliol has no identifying marks other than the fact that it is a T2. All of them belong to the same (very) private owner of Swift WK198. It is heavilly corroded and moving it is not something we will risk doing at this stage without absolute authority of the owner. (Same archive problem)
Lindy’s LadHas the age of the internet made any difference in helping identify airframes and saving them?
Take the 748’s at Blackpool for example – say someone said you can preserve any one you want. I guarantee that straight away people would be on the likes of google and other information resources and with maybe 30 minutes come back and say G-BEJD as its last surviving mk.1. Go back say 20 years and how long would it have taken to reach the same conclusion? The fact that she is the last remaining mk.1 and is quietly rotting at Blackpool though maybe highlights some fine tuning is still needed…… :rolleyes: :rolleyes:
Jon
Before everyone jumps on the bandwagon and gets in touch with Blackpool – there are two groups (talking to each other too…!) about this airframe. The two groups have already viewed the aircraft and are awaiting further instrutions from the company which owns her.
Lindy’s LadMy grandad was a steel worker during the war, and on one of his night deliveries he was supposed to be making a trip to Manors Station in Newcastle. As it turned out, he couldn’t make it and postponed his visit til the next day. During the night, Manors was completely destroyed by a German raid. Had he made that trip, he’d have been right in the middle of it!
Does anyone have any information on an aircraft which was allegedly a german bomber, visible at low tide somewhere along the Northumberland coast (south of amble?). I vaguely remember my mum telling me about it during a family beach trip many moons ago…. It was visible until at least the mid 1960’s.
Lindy’s Lad………. Must be a few museums who would love a new hanger and one with a history.
Peter
yes there are…. what is the deal with it? Time scales? How big is an A type? Any photos?
Anyone moved a hangar like this before? Can it be done and how much would it cost?
LL
Lindy’s LadThere were also two or three Vulcans delivered to Catterick in the 80’s. They were spares recovered! To an extent anyway….
Lindy’s LadTry e-mailing Brian Pears, webmaster, he got the info from somewhere so he may be able to help.
Hi Riggers, I remember the SAR unit very well. A bit before your time, 1965, we, Coquet Lighthouse, had our mail delivered via the Whirlwinds. Not everyone gets mail like that: low past the kitchen window then landing to the rear of the garden. Excellent.Best Wishes.
Robert.
Mr. Pears has already been e-mailed, and his name has gone onto the ‘useful information ‘ list. Phil – I need to send you an e-mail regarding that database….:D
Lindy’s LadVX927 – THANK YOU! Thats the one. I knew I’d seen it in a magazine somewhere, but since I’ve just read through the FP and others back issues from 1995, it is difficult to remember which mag anything is in!
As for a hydraulic head – that would requite some serious alterations to the airframe which would mean that it could not be used for anything else. I’d be looking at keeping the aircraft as intact as humanly possible.
Thanks guys! (as always)
LL:D
Lindy’s LadThere was one done by Gerry Coulson which featured Spitfires from Leconfield flying over the mouth of the Humber estury…..
Lindy’s LadHi Gents,
The RAF Museum at Cosford employs an apprentice in the Conservation Centre and she is doing rather well.
Hopefully the first of many others.
http://www.raf.mod.uk/news/index.cfm?storyid=68C06EA4-1143-EC82-2E38107C21D4D752
Regards
Ross
An excellent idea… interesting quote from the above site…
‘The scheme also offers a unique opportunity to fill a skills shortage of technicians qualified and skilled to work on the conservation and preservation of historic aircraft.’
Lindy’s LadRight, im 16 and im taking my gcse’s. i have also been given the opertunity to take enginering at college and i have gained NVQ L1 and i am workig on level 2
i help out at hangar 11 and i would like to go into aircarft engineering, should i say on and do level 3 e.t.c or move onto aircraft engineering in particular? and where can i do this at a place thats local to where i live (west essex)?
Thanks
My advice would be to go to college and do level 3, and look towards a local college which supplies as many aviation engineering qualifications as possible – we do BTEC and C&G in a single 2 year course. We also run a Saturday club which focusses on people such as yourself and gives them an introduction to aircraft maintenance as a career. Our main outlet for these semi-skilled graduates is an EASA 147 training facility where they then study for a foundation degree and the EASA modules for the B1 licence – again 2 years. The nearest university which runs 147 is Kingston in West London. (I think…)
Stick with Hangar 11 too – you will learn more hands-on stuff actually on the shop floor than you will stuck in a classroom for 2 years! (Again, thats something we are addressing in our new facility)
All of which is well and good for civillian aircraft maintenance within EASA / CAA legislation. (and from september will include fixed wing aircraft below 5700kg)
Good luck with your career in aerospace engineering – its a good career to be in… rewarding and good money. Keep the passion!
Lindy’s Ladvery interesting idea for an exhibit, i take it that high torque electric motors would be used instead of the actualy hydraulics, ie lack of maintenance and cost of operation. maybe not an idea for purists, as i would have thought that some fairly substantial mods would have to be carried out to allow this idea to work?
LL i was honestly being sincere 😀
I’ve had more than a cursory glance at a project like this… It would be feasible to use the complete aircraft systems. Yes, wear would inevitably take place, but after how many cycles? An aircraft with H515/OM15 hydraulics would be a bit more user friendly than something with Skydrol! Something like a Jet Provost would be good, but the problem would be to try and link the flying controls to a seperate panel. Flaps and gear would be easy, as would lights.
The aircraft would have to be pole mounted for effect, an electric hyd rig (almost silent) permanently attached and running, DC and where appropriate AC power applied. Some serious mods would have to be done, just to pole mount it and feed the cables/hoses/controls through the fuselage, but it could be done sympathetically with a view to be able to return the aircraft back into a normal static exhibit…..
Lindy’s Lad…….. you need the people to train, & they arnt beating the door down !!!
Steve
because there are very few people prepared to train them at reasonable cost . There are no incentives to become a volunteer and no possibility of real employment through it. its a catch 22 situation.
Lindy’s Ladhang on a sec, im pretty sure the last time i was at DX i heard something about a voulnteer restoration thing, where one could go and learn all of the above mentioned skills (to one degree or another) and as you became proficient at this, you got a card that went into a little booklet folder, seemed to be a fairly central voulnteer thing, though i believe you had to pay something aroun £150 for it, i honestly can’t be sure? can anyone shed any light?
That’ll be NAHSI…. its a BAPC run initiative, funded primarily by the Heritage Lottery fund (Please correct me if I’m wrong – I really aught to check the website), based at DX. As far as I am aware, it teaches basic metal skills – solid rivetting, filing, etc.
The course I was thinking of would run between NAHSI and the BTEC in aerospace engineering. We are in immediate danger of losing the old skills, and I feel that someone should make an effort to retain the knowledge that is slipping from our grasp…
Look at it this way – how many YOUNG volunteers would automatically know where to look for the correct type of rivet, or know which grade of file to use, let alone know how to fabricate aluminium panels with any degree of accuracy – how many of us under the age of 40 have ever used an English Wheel to make compound curved cowls?…. While a year long course in the basics would not make instantly employable engineers, it COULD make the aircraft maintenance industry as a whole a bit more appealing.
Mainenance managers, museum managers, and anyone involved in the hiring of staff (paid or not) – which would you prefer to take on?:
a) The experienced engineer with only modern aircraft experience
b) The experienced engineer who knows how to fit Dzus fastner bushes manually and at least knows about the niceties of preserving the original material?
Can we look to the future engineers (who are about to sit their GCSE’s) and who will enrole on a BTEC and finally EASA licence exam course, and foster their interest in old aeroplanes? If not, in the future (20+ years) how many people are going to be able to dope and fabric an airframe to an acceptable (if not airworthy) standard? We are going to have to rely on speciallist (expensive) companies more and more…… have a think about what will happen in years to come…
This has been an idea of mine for many years – when I was 17, I wrote to the Fighter Collection and asked how I would become one of their paid engineers. They replied very politely and helpfully by saying that I would need to be a volunteer at my local museum to gain experience, and then apply at a later date. I duly did as I was advised, then joined the RAF as an engineer, then became a qualified civvie engineer, and now teach the very subject I wanted to learn about 13 years ago, and then re-joined my local museum….. I have worked on modern (ish) aircraft since I was 17, but never lost the need to be around ‘real’ aeroplanes. If I was inspired from an early age, then why not others? People with a passion for old metal will return to the fold when they have served their time on the modern stuff….
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