As for Jetstream G-AXUN, the following is a picture of it at Cranfield on 8 September 1973, looking exactly as it did when you photographed it two years earlier, still in “dirty yellow primer”…
G-AXUN became G-BCWW on 29/7/74, when bought by the Distillers Co Ltd – the famous makers of scotch whisky (hence the call sign “Whisky Whisky!) See here: http://www.caa.co.uk/docs/HistoricalMaterial/G-BCWW.pdf
It then became G-CTRX on 19/4/84 when sold to Centrax Ltd see here: http://www.caa.co.uk/docs/HistoricalMaterial/G-CTRX.pdf. UK registration cancelled 25/9/95
XW938: Piper Twin Comanche 160 (c/no.30-439) Built 1964. Ex N7385Y, ex G-ATMT, registration cancelled 20-1-71 as “to military marks”. d/d 19/07/1971, returned to G-ATMT 22/5/75 and believed still currently registered, based at Turweston, Buckinghamshire
Source G-INFO (CAA online database) at http://www.caa.co.uk/docs/HistoricalMaterial/G-ATMT-1.pdf – and this is what she looks like now (well, July 10 2011 to be exact):
It would be interesting to know exactly WHY a Piper Twin Commanche needed to be in military makings for four years (1971-75)…
Spadeadam Decoys
You presumably mean THIS
and
Main problem – the pictures are dated 20 July 1989: I suspect that you are looking for pictures that are more recent. To the best of my (limited) knowledge at least two of the Belgian T-33s were scrapped in the late 1990s/early 2000s (certainly before 2005). Problem is, the markings/serials have become either faded/weathered over the years or deliberately obscured, or the aircraft photographed at an angle where the serials are not visible. So, it is hard to tell what is still there and what has gone or been scrapped.
Have you had a look at http://www.flickr.com/search/?q=spadeadam&f=hp which turns up 1,555 results. Main problem is that most of the pictures are of the now derelict Blue Streak rocket launcher facilities, and not of aircraft
However, the official picture gallery at http://www.raf.mod.uk/rafspadeadam/gallery/targetsanddecoys.cfm may be worth a look
Going a little deeper, this link http://www.raf.mod.uk/rafspadeadam/gallery/targetsanddecoys.cfm?start=1&viewmedia=12#pageContent confirms that at least two ex-Belgian T-33s were parked out on the ranges on 26 January 2007
Plus http://www.raf.mod.uk/rafspadeadam/gallery/targetsanddecoys.cfm?start=13&viewmedia=21#pageContent shows one Belgian T-33 on 30 October 2007 looking “the worse for wear” after some near misses/being shot up/standing out in the Cumbrian countryside for 20 years…
More pictures to look at can be found here: http://www.visitcumbria.com/car/gilsland-spadeadam.htm which is part of the Cumbria Tourists Board site(!).
An earlier (2010) thread discussing Spadeadam can be found here http://forum.keypublishing.com/showthread.php?t=102227 and to qoute from that: “There’s the ex-Luftwaffe Su-22M4 98+10 at Prior Lancy (where the engine test area is) and a few T-33As and Mysteres at ‘Collinski’, Wiley Sike and the mock runway.
And of course the Mil Mi-24. They’ve painted over the original colourscheme and markings – better not to ask what markings it wore originally…but if you do ask and they do tell you, I’d be interested in knowing!!
And the various AFV and SAM vehicles and vehicle mock-ups”
Bulldogs for sale
BAe tried to buy the Jaguars from Nigeria in the early 1990s when they were still in reasonable condition. The aircraft on the tender have been for sale for a while -Nigeria I guess comes within the list of places deemed as ‘dangerous’!
“The final export success for the Jaguar was to Nigeria, which placed an order for eighteen aircraft (plus 18 options) in June 1983. Deliveries of the thirteen single-seaters and five two-seaters began in early 1984 to the sole Nigerian Jaguar operating base at Makurdi. Despite a military coup in Nigeria in December 1983, Jaguar deliveries continued and were completed in 1985.
The Nigerian Jaguars had the LRMTS nose, overwing rails for Sidewinders, and Adour Mk811-58 engines.
Four aircraft (three single-seaters and one two-seater) are known to have been written off:
NAF714 on July 14th 1985 in west Nigeria;
NAF702 on April 26th 1985 at Ikereku;
NAF7… on March 29th 1989 at Makurdi;
NAF7… in April 1989.
The last flight of a NAF Jaguar occurred in early 1990. Despite the small number of hours clocked up by these aircraft, they were left to rot at Makurdi. Attempts by BAe to recover the aircraft and refurbish them came to nothing”
http://www.targetlock.org.uk/jaguar/service_nigeria.html and http://www.targetlock.org.uk/jaguar/production_nigeria.html
If I recall correctly, there was serious interest from Oman in BAe refurbishing and acquiring these “nearly new” Nigerian Jags, which was defeated by a combination of Nigerian beaurocracy and corruption. Apparently, as alluded to above, it was due to the issue of who owned these airframes, and who had the authority to sell them on…
..it’s also worth nothing that the documentation attached to the twin-tub Jag states a total airframe time of 150 hours. Which probably confirms that this airframe has not seen any daylight under its wheels for some 20 years!
Does this help?
.
Although this picture shows the undersides better: http://www.flickr.com/photos/amisbk196/2428488919/
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