aviation - the past, present and future of flight

C

oncorde is clearly a huge attraction

at Aerospace Bristol, but the new

museum is far more than just a

chronicle of this supersonic airliner’s

life. The site at Filton Air eld has played a

huge part in building iconic military and civil

aircraft and that tale unfolds as visitors make

their way around the attraction.

The legacy of the British & Colonial

(later, Bristol) Aeroplane Company and its

successors unfolds in a timeline arrangement

of aircraft and vehicles built by this pioneering

manufacturer.

Thousands of visitors have  ocked through

the museum’s doors since it opened last

October. Many have come to see the star

attraction, Concorde, G-BOAF, which was

brought under cover after standing on the

air eld exposed to the elements for 14 years

since its last  ight on November 26, 2003.

The museum sits on a nine-acre site in two

refurbished World War One-era ‘Belfast Truss’

hangars together with a new building housing

Concorde on the northern perimeter of the

former air eld.

Millions of pounds have been spent on

the restoration of aircraft and bringing the

attraction to life. A Heritage Lottery grant, plus

sponsorship from Airbus, Rolls-Royce, BAE

Systems, GKN, South Gloucestershire Council

and engineering company Renishaw, helped

fund the project.

Funds are still required to help restore a

Bristol Freighter, which arrived earlier this

year. The last few miles travelled by the former

Royal New Zealand Air Force Bristol 170 Mk

31M, NZ5911, were by road on January 4 after

an 11,000-mile (17,703km) sea voyage from

Auckland, New Zealand, en route to Bristol’s

Royal Portbury Dock.

The aircraft is stored in the huge

Brabazon Hangar on the other side of the

air eld so not on show to the public, awaiting

a decision on its restoration and future

display. Donations for the work can be made

via the museum’s website, aerospacebristol.

org

http://www.aviation-news.co.uk 33

Main photo: Star of the show at Aerospace

Bristol is British Airways Concorde G-BOAF.

Visitors can discover how the aircraft was

created and what it was like to work on and

 y the supersonic airliner. All photos Adrian M

Balch unless stated

Above: The new museum at Filton tells the

story of aviation on this historic site, from

World War One to the present day. Aerospace

Bristol

Left: A projection onto the nacelle to give

an insight into the workings of Concorde’s

Olympus engines. Aerospace Bristol

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