The BPAG are happy to announce that we will be attending this year’s Abingdon Air & Country Show on Saturday 11th September. This annual event has been running since 2000 and features aerobatic displays from warbirds, biplanes and modern aircraft with plenty to see on the ground too- static aircraft, cockpits, parts, components and memorabilia as well as a great mix of re-enactment stalls, classic cars and country fayre traditions and craftsmanship.
We will be digging deep into our collection and assembling a display of British F-4 items, many of which are rare and unusual. Merchandise will be available for purchase and the BPAG will be ready to meet you all and we look forward to chatting about all things Phantom. Check out the event website for more information- https://www.abingdonairandcountry.co.uk/
Hope to see you there!
ZE360 at Manston in 1991, in the company of visiting Hampshire Air Cadets. Wonder where all these smartly dressed boys and girls are these days? Many thanks to Dave Palk for the pic.
As mentioned above, the official launch of ‘Groundcrew Boys’ is now confirmed as being at Newark Air Museum on 3rd July, as part of the Aeroboot event. Come along and meet the authors and grab yourself a signed copy. More details here- http://www.newarkairmuseum.org/Aeroboot_Quick_Guide_2021
Here’s another little side project currently ongoing, which has been keeping our Quartermaster and instrument restoration expert Paul West busy on his days off.
As ZE360’s cockpit is some years away from being ready to have its instrumentation refitted, we thought a good way to showcase some of it would be to recreate parts of the instrument panels for use as display pieces at events. The instruments will be lit, and both the ADI and standby AH will be operational. It’s still a bit rough and ready at this point but this is the first fit. As you can see there are a few holes we need to fill and the point of this post is to say that if you have any instruments hidden away that you would consider parting with, then please feel free to get in touch. We know that they are out there somewhere, cluttering up garages and sheds…
Apologies for the slightly commercial nature of this post. Mods please feel free to delete if it breaches any rules. However, it is relevant to BPAG (see below) and all profits are going to charity- Captain Tom Foundation and BOB Memorial Trust have already received donations from pre-orders and SSAFA are next in line.
Our friend and associate Dave Gledhill is the author of a new publication ‘Groundcrew Boys’ which details the engineering efforts of the unsung heroes of the Cold War, the hard working technicians of the UK’s armed forces who kept the RAF and FAA aircraft aloft during a tense time in world history. The book also includes a chapter detailing some of the BPAG’s work to extract XV582 ‘Black Mike’ from RAF Leuchars in 2016/17.
Published by Grub Street Publishing on 30th June. More details here- https://grubstreet.co.uk/product/groundcrew-boys
While the focus of our efforts over the past couple of weeks have been on ZE360 and Manston, there is also significant activity happening elsewhere, as another important addition to the BPAG stable has recently been made.
As most of you will know, the cockpit section of XV490 is owned by BPAG member Mike Davey and it was the first restoration project the Group undertook, back in 2015. What has been the subject of much conjecture over the intervening years is the whereabouts of many other parts of the airframe. We were therefore surprised and delighted to suddenly discover the fin of 490, in storage in the Norfolk area and available for sale. Given the relevance of this component to the Group and its collective history, we had no hesitation in swiftly buying it for our collection.
So, on May 2nd, the fin was collected from the previous owner and has been taken to Wattisham Heritage Museum, where it will be stored until it can transported onwards to Kemble. Two separate teams of BPAG members volunteered their time to help load and unload the fin at each end and we would like to thank them, as well as a couple of unknown bystanders who noticed what was happening and offered a bit of extra support at the Norwich site.
A very special mention must also go out to Nathan Garrard and Tony Mallet who supplied the transport for the task and to Maggie Aggiss and the team at the Wattisham Heritage Museum who have generously offered to temporarily store the fin at their facilities. We are sure you will appreciate how important this item is to the BPAG and we hope you will join us in celebrating its acquisition. We will look forward to placing it on public display at the earliest opportunity.
30 Years Later. A couple of interesting comparisons from ZE360’s recent move to Manston Airport. Firstly, leaving airfield premises for a new life at the Fire School on 28/02/1991 and returning through the same gate on 25/04/2021.
Secondly, during the long tow around the airport taxiway, we were able to pause by the spot where the aircraft completed its final flight on 22/02/1991. We were unable to access the actual dispersal as it was outside the strict route agreed by the DFT but it was still a poignant moment.
As many of you will be aware, the closure of DFTDC Manston has been ongoing for some time. However, the Covid pandemic has thrown everyone’s planned schedules out of the window, including the date for moving ZE360. We have been fortunate in that the MOD have been very understanding and accommodating to the many changes in the situation and we are indebted to the officers and staff at Manston for their continual support for the work we have been doing (especially when you consider that the original target for the move was 31/12/19).
However, there is still a hard deadline to meet, which is the handover of the base to the Army later in 2021. The halt in activities due to both the lockdowns and winter weather has meant that we will not be ready for this deadline but an alternative solution has presented itself, in the form of space at the nearby Manston Airport.
Therefore, Saturday 24th April saw the aircraft start its journey by being pre-positioned by the exit, then, on the morning of 25th April, just over 30 years after it arrived and following months of careful planning, ZE360 finally left DFTDC Manston. This meant retracing the road journey it made after its final flight- through the fire school gates, along Manston Road, onto the old taxiway and across the B2050 and back on to airport premises itself.
Things have changed somewhat since 1991 (not the least of which being the presence of the DFT facility at the airport) which meant obtaining permission from local Police and Kent County Council to close the roads and from the Department of Transport, HMRC and Customs and Excise to pass through a secure area to reach the destination in question.
Despite pinch points and tight clearance along public roads and a somewhat circuitous route around the airport taxiway and runway, the aircraft arrived safely at the apron, having coped with the stresses of the day admirably.
We are very grateful to Manston Airport for their generous and timely offer and would like to extend our thanks to our crew of volunteers, who all arrived at the crack of dawn and carried out their duties with the utmost care and professionalism. We could not have done this without you. Special mentions go to Wing Commander Callender, Commandant of DFDTC and his staff, particularly Sgt Thackery, without whom the past couple of years would all have been a lot more difficult. We must also thank Tony Freudmann, CEO of RiverOak Strategic Partners Ltd (the airport owners) and to Gary Blake, the airport manager.
Appreciation also goes out to Skeltons, TBF Traffic, Reclamet, Hewbourn Ltd and Spey Bay Salvage for their invaluable help.
More updates to come very soon. Watch this space.
A little thing, but it’s the details that make all the difference. While all work on ZE360 is on hold, we continue to restore some of the the smaller parts. For instance, here is an inflation valve from one of the mainwheels which, after many years buried in the Kent soil, was a bit worse for wear. So, the internals were freed off and cleaned out, then the outside was treated to some attention on a wire wheel. Dust cap was also given a fresh coat of yellow (which is less orange than in the picture). Once we can retrieve the wheel from the powder coaters, they will be reunited and be ready for a replacement cover.
Also pictured are the mainwheel bolts. These hold the two halves of the wheel together and (like the valve) have suffered from thirty years of exposure to the elements. After cleaning they will be kept greased to prevent further corrosion before re-plating at a later date.
Following Newark Air Museum’s recent announcement that Cockpit Fest 2021 will take place this August (lifting of Covid restrictions permitting) we are pleased to confirm that XV490 will be taking part and the BPAG will be on site to conduct cockpit tours and meet and chat about all things Phantom. Exclusive merchandise will also be available. As a celebration of the return of public events, we may even dust off some extra rare items from storage for display. Watch this space for further details. Hope to see you there!
We have recently received a kind donation of a number of original F-4J(UK) parts from Mr Jamie White after he read about the restoration project on social media. We would like to say a big thank you to Jamie for reaching out and offering these instruments, which we believe may come from ZE360 herself. Note the North Island NARF stickers, confirming them as definitely from an F-4J(UK).
If you have or know of someone who may have parts that could help with ZE360`s restoration, please do get in touch. We’d be very interested to hear from you.
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