84 FLYPAST June 2018
Type Serial Built Unit Fate / Status
Auster AOP.9 WZ672 1955 Farnborough Sold 1975, extant USA 1990
Avro Anson C.19 TX213 1946 Western Comm Sqn North East Land, Sea and Air
Museum, Sunderland
Avro Vulcan B.2 XL386 1962 Scampton Wing Fire training airframe 1982
AW Argosy C.1 XR106 1963 114 Sqn Scrapped 1975
Beagle Basset CC.1 XS779 1966 Southern Comm Sqn Sold 1974, crashed in USA 1993
Blackburn Beverley C.1 XH124 1957 Shawbury store RAF Museum Hendon,
scrapped 1990
Boulton Paul Sea Balliol T.21 WL732 1954 Boscombe Down RAF Museum Cosford
Bristol Sycamore HR.14 XG504 1955 Metro Comm Sqn Sold 1972, scrapped 1992
Bristol Britannia C.1 XL658 1959 99 / 511 Sqns Sold 1976, crashed Sep 30, 1978
De Havilland Devon C.1 VP960 1948 Northern Comm Sqn Retired by 1975, fi re training
airframe 1978, perished by 1992
De Havilland Heron CC.4 XM295 1958 Ex Queen’s Flight Sold in Canada 1968,
scrapped 1986
De Havilland Comet C.4 XR399 1962 216 Sqn Museum of Flight, East Fortune
(Dan-Air G-BDIX)
DHC Chipmunk T.10 WP861 1952 5 Air Exp Flight Sold 1975, to the USA
Douglas Dakota C.4 KN452 1945 Kemble store Sold 1969,
extant Singapore 1980
English Electric Canberra PR.3 WE139 1953 231 Op Conv Unit Royal Air Force Museum Hendon
English Electric Canberra T.17 WJ625 1954 360 Sqn Crashed Aug 3, 1983
English Electric Lightning F.6 XS931 1967 11 Sqn Crashed May 25, 1979
Folland Gnat T.1 XS105 1964 4 Flying Trg School Retired 1978,
crashed in USA 2013
Gloster Meteor F.8 WH364 1952 85 Sqn Jet Age Museum, Staverton
Gloster Meteor NF.13 WM367 1953 Boscombe Down East Midlands Airport
Aeropark, cockpit
Gloster Javelin FAW.9 XH849 1960 Exhibition airframe Fire training airframe,
destroyed by 1969
Hawker Hunter FGA.9 XJ642 1957 54 Sqn To Singapore Air Defence Cmd,
1970
HP Hastings C.1A TG527 1948 Strike Cmd Bomb Sch Scrapped Henlow 1969
HP Victor K.1 XA926 1958 57 Sqn Scrapped 1976
HS Andover C.1 XS600 1966 46 Sqn Royal New Zealand Air Force
Museum
HS Dominie T.1 XS731 1966 1 Air Nav School Private owner, Wiltshire
HS Harrier GR.1 (DB) XV281 1967 Hawker Siddeley South Yorkshire Aircraft
Museum, Doncaster
Hunting Jet Provost T.3 XM349 1958 2 Flying Trg School Beaver Falls Museum, USA
Lockheed Hercules C.1 XV215 1967 Lyneham Tac Wing Retired 2000, to Mexican
Air Force
North American Harvard T.2B KF183 1944 Boscombe Down Sold 2016, airworthy Duxford
Percival Pembroke C.1 WV734 1954 Metro Comm Sqn Retired 1972,
became range target
Percival Provost T.1 XF877 1955 Cen Air Traffi c Sch Sold 1968, crashed Jul 8, 2009
SAL Twin Pioneer CC.1 XL993 1958 Shawbury store Royal Air Force Museum
Cosford
Short Belfast C.1 XR362 1964 53 Sqn Sold 1977, scrapped 1994
Vickers Valetta C.1 VW197 1949 Metro Comm Sqn To Elmdon Air Scouts 1969,
scrapped
Vickers Varsity T.1 WJ917 1953 5 Flying Trg School Catterick fi re school, 1970
Vickers Valiant BK.1 XD816 1956 Vickers, Wisley Brooklands Museum, cockpit
Vickers VC10 C.1 XV107 1968 10 Sqn Retired 2011, scrapped
Westland Whirlwind HAR.10 XP360 1962 Central Fg School Paintball site, Herefordshire
Westland Wessex HC.2 XV719 1967 72 Sqn Crashed Apr 27, 1990
Westland-Bell Sioux HT.2 XV316 1967 Central Fg School Crashed Apr 22, 1971RAF 50 ABINGDON JUNE 1968 - OPERATIONAL AIRCRAFT
1918 2018was sold to a civilian operator and is
today preserved in Sunderland.
Thirteen days after the Abingdon
public display, the venerable Anson
was paid off from RAF duty. A
formation flypast of the Southern
Communication Squadron’s last six
examples was staged at Bovingdon,
bringing to an end 32 years of
service by the ‘Faithful Annie’.
Another ‘tail-dragger’ twin at
Abingdon close to retirement was
Valetta C.1 VW197, on charge with
the Northolt-based Metropolitan
Communications Squadron. In
January 1969 it was delivered to
Elmdon, Birmingham Airport, for
the local Air Scouts, but was soon
reduced to just a cockpit.
At Lindholme in Yorkshire, the
Strike Command Bombing School
operated Handley Page Hastings
as crew trainers. C.1A TG528
was flown to Abingdon and after
the event was ferried to the RAF
Museum’s store at Henlow, but was
scrapped there in 1969.
The appearance of Boulton Paul
Sea Balliol T.21 WL732 raised a few
eyebrows. This was ‘standing in’ for
the RAF’s Balliol T.1s which had
retired in 1957. After the show, it
was intended to send it to Coltishall
so that the Battle of Britain Flight
could make use of its Rolls-Royce
Merlin 35. Instead it was delivered
to Henlow in February 1969 and
today is on show at Cosford.