Hi everyone, just in from a long day in the workshop, where we continue to work on the old girl. Thank you for the continuing support. I don’t want to comment too much on the details of these politics, not with it being an ongoing and fluid situation, though suffice to say there is a LOT more to it than appears from that ‘statement’.

Thank you everyone for the support :eagerness:

Alas, the idiots brigade have seemingly somehow managed to turn Gina Campbell on us- there’s an awful lot more to it all though, a lot that isn’t- and probably shouldn’t -be made public. Suffice to say we’re taking an unnecessary hiding, to the delight of a very select few. Thanks for your support.

I received a letter from the LLA Council of management this morning responding (rather huffily I felt) to the recent criticisms online following their announcement to withdraw support for the BBMF.

They point out that as a charity, they have never funded the BBMF- this is done via the tax payer. I think most people already realise this, and would also have been aware of the support they DO give- i.e, paying for things for the Lanc, making a big contribution to the new Spit’s wings, digitising the old manuals some years ago, etc.

The letter basically ends by saying that they’ll carry on with this charity work if the membership thinks it worthwhile!

Personally, I don’t like the tone of the letter very much, especially when you remember how the remaining LLA management apparently turned on Stuart Stephenson the moment he had to leave; I don’t want to be a member of something that is only helping the BBMF grudgingly.

The management at the LLA decided to stop supporting the BBMF- then we have a public outcry, so they respond to that with a reluctant-sounding U-turn?! Not convinced.

Grateful for the statement from Mr Stephenson- it must be so sad for him that the LLA went the way it did the moment he retired. Thank you Mr Stephenson for all you have done- Lest We Forget.

It’s certainly true that last year, the membership renewals in particular went to pieces, though this year I received my reminder bang on time. (Of course, I could have gotten my own finger out and saved them having to remind me at all!)

I don’t say this lightly and I don’t mean to offend, but I do feel that the LLA was run by an older generation who certainly struggled to cope in the modern world of the internet- the LLA should have been properly online a long time ago, including renewals, whereas instead we had one aborted website and another one now that is rarely updated. In this age of instant information, they just seemed horribly outdated. For example, online today we’ve had the news, the discussion, the official statements from the BBMF, and so on; what will the LLA do- send another letter? Wait for the next journal? They could at least have easily set up a Facebook page (free, and incredibly easy) and packed it with content, but no.

I’m wary of the alleged commercial side of the new BBMF Club, but the monetary support simply has to go with the Flight; Lest We Forget.

Aw no, I wouldn’t be so churlish as to ask for my money back! The LLA have done some brilliant work supporting the BBMF for a very long time, but with their admin difficulties and aborted attempts at getting online, and the old stuffy feel of the twice yearly journal, I’ve wondered for a while if their time might be up. Perhaps now they will shift allegiance to supporting NX611, staying true to their original ‘keep a Lancaster in Lincolnshire’ mandate.

However, any new organisation that rakes off a profit BEFORE the BBMF gets anything doesn’t appeal either…

Can’t see though how folk are suddenly making this into a ‘BBMF for the chop’ story.