Millom, have you managed to secure a real future for Mrs. M’s collection of bits, ie. the swift? NEAM were never able to restore the aircraft, and it always had to be publicly viewable… Always a big thorn…

We have the “Unimetals Collection” on loan for a min 5 years, once the dust has settled and they are properly in place we will see if we can persuade them to allow their restoration to move forward some what, or at least some preservation to be carried out.

Whirlwind Mk9 XN298 was collected on Saturday 11th and delivered on Sunday 13th, yes for those that are concerned she’s another one on the field.

We had to save her or she was going to be burnt out/scrapped and if I remember there are not many MK9’s about – about 6 at a guess. So she was an airframe at risk of being lost.

She was kindly dontated by Lancashire Fire & Rescue Service Training School.

XN298 being unloaded at the Museum.

XN298 going back together

where the heck are all these airframes comming from?
and
wheres all the money comming from to buy it?

A big vacuum cleaner and our own back pockets.

Milliom are a new museum so to make the place more interesting I can understand the desire to get aircraft into the museum even if they are a mixed bunch.

We have been around for 16 years, but last year took on 15,000 square feet of covered display space, hence the need for larger exhibits/airframes, we need to create the appeal to draw visitors in thus covering the costs of the new building.

Whirlwind XN298 Should be coming out of the Fire Traing School on Saturday, The ATP will be moving out after summer.

They are from a collection of documents/photos that belonged to a friends cousin who has just died, he and his sister want the collection to go on display at the Museum, however some of the other relatives want odd items from the collection assuming they are highly voluble, we are very much against breaking up the collection which was something she treasured and actively added to for many years

She served 4 years in the WRAF and met I understand most of the pilots in the collection and started to correspond with them during the war years and beyond. She herself was engaged twice and both times her fiancée were lost on operations.

I have now got him looking for her service medals, paperwork and other items and her fathers WW1 medals etc as he asked me what this badge was that fell out of a book – it was a WW1 Iron cross 2nd Class !.

She threw nothing away so who knows what else will be found in the many boxes of stored items, so hopefully we will be able to display an extended collection of family memorabilia.

I am hoping to get a more detailed inventory and descriptions after the weekend.

Started to move Shorts 360 G-SSWO today from Blackpool airport, all the flying surfaces have been removed and loaded onto transport, however due to road works en route to the museum the fuselage move has been delayed until next Friday when it will be transported to the museum during the late afternoon/early evening as it will cause quite a few traffic jams. 😮

Thanks also go again to John Robson Ltd for transport.