Bruntingthorpe VC10 Opens Up
Enthusiasts are being given the opportunity
to sit in Vickers VC10 K4 ZD241 as it carries
out high-speed taxi runs at Bruntingthorpe,
Leicestershire. The VC10 Preservation
Group, which maintains the aircraft in
ground running condition, was able to take
36 passengers for a high-speed taxi run on
May 27, during the venue’s Cold War Jets
Open Day. Formed in 2017, the group has
recently obtained the necessary cover from
Lorica Insurance Brokers to run up to 40
people aboard the four-engined jet.
“The reaction of passengers to the
sights, sounds and smells, not to mention
the mighty acceleration of the jet, wasextremely positive,” commented trustee
Keith Wilson. “All left with big smiles
on their faces, with many promising to
return to repeat the experience in the
future, particularly when the full length of
Bruntingthorpe’s 06/24 runway is once
again available.”
This VC10 first flew in February 1968
as G-ASGM and was initially operated by
BOAC. After being retired from airliner
service in the early 1980s, it was stored
at Abingdon in Oxfordshire. It then went
to Filton, Gloucestershire, where it was
converted into a K4 tanker for the RAF’s
101 Sqn in 1995.The jet was flown to Bruntingthorpe
at the end of its RAF days in 2013,
but was made ‘live’ again the following
year by a team of volunteers and
with the support of Gary Spoors’ GJD
Services. They subsequently formed
the VC10 Preservation Group to ensure
the long-term future of the airframe as
a live exhibit. The next opportunity to
ride aboard ZD241 – for a donation
towards the running costs – will be on
Sunday, August 26. Those interested in
securing tickets, or wanting information
about the group, should visit: http://www.
vc10preservationgroup.orgFilm Star ‘Messerschmitt’ Re-Flies
Sywell-based Air Leasing has completed the
restoration of Hispano HA-1112-M1L Buchón
‘White 9’ (G-AWHH). The Spanish-built,
Merlin-engined, version of the Messerschmitt
Bf 109 returned to the air on June 28. This
aircraft served with the Spanish Air Force
as C4K-105 from 1958 until 1965 – it alsoflew in the Battle of Britain film in the UK
during 1968. It was then shipped to Texas
for decades of storage. The project arrived
in Northamptonshire in 2017 for overhaul
and has been finished in the colour of the
Luftwaffe’s Uffz Edmund Roßımann’s aircraft
circa, September 1941.His Royal Highness The Earl of Wessex
attended the opening ceremony of the
transformed RAF Museum London on June- After arriving in a 32 Sqn helicopter,
Prince Edward met museum staff,
volunteers and partners who worked on and
supported the transformation and unveiled
a commemorative plaque. Other VIPs at
the ceremony included ACM Sir Stephen
Hillier (RAF Chief of Air Staff), HE Mr Khaled
Al-Duwaisan (Ambassador of Kuwait – the
Gulf state being a major contributor of funds
to the project) and Viscount Trenchard
(grandson of the founding father of the RAF).
The massive overhaul has included the
redevelopment of two display halls, a new
shop and café, plus reconfiguring the site’s
landscaping. The new exhibitions are ‘RAF
Stories: The First 100 Years’ and ‘RAF: First
to the Future’, which are located in the former
Battle of Britain Hall, which is now called
Hangar 1. The third new display, ‘The RAF
in an Age of Uncertainty’, has been installed
in Hangar 6, which was previously known as
the Milestones of Flight building.
The latter display includes two recent
aircraft acquisitions for the museum – the
nose section of Lockheed C-130E/WC-130E
Hercules 64-0553, which arrived on June
14 and General Atomics MQ-1 Predator
03-3119, used by the USAF in Afghanistan
and on operations in Africa. The Predator
Unmanned Aerial Vehicle, on loan from the
National Museum of the USAF, is the only
one of its kind on show in the UK and was
delivered to Hendon for display on June 18.
The museum fully reopened to the public on
Armed Forces Day – June 30.His Royal Highness Prince Edward The Earl
of Wessex being welcomed to the museum
by its CEO, Maggie Appleton on June 29.
RAF MuseumGeneral Atomics MQ-1 Predator 03-3119 on show in Hangar 6. RAF MuseumRAF Museum Refurbishment Completed
http://www.aviation-news.co.uk 17Swift Goes on Show
Southampton’s Solent Sky Museum
took delivery of Supermarine Swift F.
XF114 (formerly G-SWIF) on June 7.
The 1959-built jet had previously been
in storage but has now been placed
on ‘limited’ display at the Hampshire
attraction. A lengthy restoration awaits.16-18_preservation_newsDC.mf.indd 17 04/07/2018 16: