Archive for May, 2010

More prizes confirmed for 2011 Calendar Competition

Monday, May 31st, 2010

Great news as this years prize pot passes £600. Ebury Publishing have confirmed 3 copies of the “Boys Book of Airfix” (retailing at £20 each) as runners up prizes in this years Calendar Competition.

Free advertising again for the top 3 places on ANY Uradnet banner network – worth £12.50 each.

This years total prize pot now stands at £605 – with half going to the first prize winner.

I am still expecting to add more prizes during the coming weeks – so keep a look out and remember.. you gotta be in it to win it!

Good Luck, and I look forward to receiving your entries.

http://www.airscene.co.uk/competitions/2011calendar.php

Armed Forces Day for all 3 Services

Friday, May 28th, 2010

Saturday 26th June 2010

10.30am – 3pm

All guests must pre-register

Come and celebrate the Museum’s annual joint service Armed Forces Day on 26th June.

The Royal Air Force Museum Cosford is inviting Veterans, young and old, from all three services to join as one to celebrate the Museum’s Armed Forces’ Day on Saturday 26th June. During this special reunion, hosted by Museum staff, all Veterans will be treated to a full day’s programme of events and activities including a talk entitled ‘An Event on 30th August 1940′, plus special film screenings. Both depict the Battle of Britain, marking this years 70th Anniversary.

Veterans will be treated to tours around the Museum’s Conservation Centre. Here, Veterans and their guests will be able to view work on current restoration projects, such as the Handley Page Hampden, in an area not normally open to the public.

In addition to these activities the Museum will be holding a raffle on the day enabling Veterans to win tickets to some of the top local attractions, specially commissioned items and much much more.

Attendance at this event is by pre-registration only; with all pre-registered Veterans and their guests receiving a FREE drink on arrival. There will be a special lunch available at a discounted rate for guests to enjoy together in a designated area surrounded by aircraft. There will also be a chance to speak to some of the exhibitors including the Aerospace Museum Society, Robert Harrop figurines and Tony Bramham military drawings.

All-in-all this promises to be an exciting day that will enable Veterans to meet up with old friends, reminisce over shared experiences, and enjoy themselves in the authentic atmosphere and setting of the Royal Air Force Museum. With former Service Men and Women joining in from across Shropshire and the West Midlands, Armed Forces’ Day is set to be a truly memorable and sentimental gathering for Veterans and their guests to enjoy.

To make your reservation please call 01902 376 252 or send an email to the Museum at cosfordarmedforcesday@rafmuseum.org, stating your name, telephone number, service you were in and the name of your guest.

Entry to the Museum is free of charge. The Museum is open daily from 10am to 6pm (last admission 5pm). For further details about Armed Forces’ Day please visit www.rafmuseum.org.

F16 Leads Dynamic Airshow Programme

Thursday, May 20th, 2010

The Belgian F16 is leading a packed line up for Airbourne 2010 as the international aircraft is the latest to be confirmed to appear at this year’s Eastbourne Airshow. 

Airbourne is getting set to welcome a packed display of fast planes in 2010 as the Blades Aerobatic Formation team are also confirmed to be flying at the event this summer joining a programme that already includes the iconic Red Arrows.

Organisers of the world’s biggest free seafront airshow have just confirmed that the high performance international jet and Blades display team, famed for flying for the Beckhams, will dazzle visitors when Airbourne returns from 12-15 August.

Eastbourne Borough Council Cabinet Member for Tourism and Leisure, Cllr Neil Stanley said “We are very excited to be welcoming the international F16 and highly skilled Blades display team for Airbourne 2010 and adding to what is already shaping up to be one of our best airshows yet. With the Eurofighter Typhoon already confirmed to fly in this year’s programme, the addition of the Belgian F16 makes Airbourne a truly international affair and I hope airshow enthusiasts have made a date in their diary for what promises to be a flying extravaganza!”

The F16 and Blades are the latest displays to join an action-packed programme that promises crowd favourites, the Red Arrows, as well as the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight commemorating 70 years since the Battle, and the Breitling Wingwalkers set to dazzle with their gravity-defying stunts aboard the wings of their Boeing Stearman Biplanes.

The agile Eurofighter Typhoon will impress visitors with its display over Eastbourne seafront this summer, with the RAF Tucano, Hawk and Tutor also set to display.

It’s not just the skies that will be filled this August either. Airbourne promises just as much action on the ground, with entertaining arena displays including the Essex Dog Display Team, evening concerts at Eastbourne Bandstand, an interactive RAF Village with replica aircraft, plus the return of the Friday evening Come Fly With Me display.

For more information on Airbourne 2010 or to find out how to upgrade the airshow experience with a day out in the Aviator Club hospitality marquee, visit www.eastbourneairshow.com or telephone 0871 663 0031.

The Battle of Britain Beacon

Friday, May 14th, 2010

At a fundraising dinner last night, The Royal Air Force Museum announced its vision for the future.

 

As part of its modernisation and development plan the Royal Air Force Museum has undertaken the initial planning for a new Battle of Britain Exhibition building at its London site.

The provision of suitable funding, and the agreement with interested parties and authorities with whom the Museum is consulting widely, will dictate when the Trustees of the Museum will take the final decision to proceed with construction.

It is very fitting that in the year of the 70th Anniversary of the Battle of Britain the Royal Air Force Museum, as part of its modernisation and development plan, has undertaken the initial planning for a new Battle of Britain exhibition building at its Hendon site in London. Provisionally called the “Battle of Britain Beacon”, the plan looks towards the construction of a striking, landmark building which will do appropriate justice to this most defining event in the world’s history. The exciting concept will allow wider public access and ensure that the Museum’s unique collection of Battle of Britain aircraft, memorabilia and archives is preserved for the education and enjoyment of future generations. The building in its final form will include the latest audio/visual techniques to bring to life all aspects of the Battle, from the work of the groundcrews, whose tireless endeavours kept the aircraft in the air, through the life of the civilian population, to the gallant efforts of those who fought in the skies above Great Britain.

The new exhibition building will complement the successful modernisation already achieved at Hendon with the refurbishment of the Graham White Hangar, the imminent refurbishment of the former airfield watchtower and the opening of Milestones of Flight exhibition building. It will also allow the current somewhat restricted Battle of Britain Hall on the site to be used to display more of the Museum’s aircraft and archive collection. The Museum’s Cosford site has also seen the opening of the impressive National Cold War exhibition building opened in 2007 which has ensured the preservation of many of the important Cold War aircraft which we under threat

Currently the Museum is consulting widely about the ‘Battle of Britain Beacon project.’ The Museum hopes to complete the project within the lifetime of the surviving Veterans of the Battle.

http://www.battleofbritainbeacon.org/

Museum Launches National Photography Competition.

Friday, May 14th, 2010

The Royal Air Force Museum has today launched a national photography competition as part of its calendar of activities to commemorate 70th anniversary of the Battle of Britain. Accordingly, it is inviting members of the public to send via the Museum’s website , www.rafmuseum.org, their photographs of various Battle of Britain Events that will be taking place around the country this summer. 

Paul Hudson, Head of Marketing, at the Royal Air Force Museum states:

‘ During the course of summer 2010 all organizations who are part of the Royal Air Force Family, will be holding a range of events from air shows to historic weekends to commemorate the bravery and sacrifice of those young pilots who fought so hard to protect our freedom and liberty during the summer of 1940.

The Museum would like members of the public who are attending such events to help us document this summer’s events by submitting their photographs via the Museum website so that we may create an electronic archive of this year’s commemorations for future generations.’

To participate in this competition, all that people have to do is to attend one of the 70th anniversary events listed on the Royal Air Force’s website, www.raf.mod.uk, and then send their best images online to the Museum. The competition is open to all UK residents and has two categories; one for best image taken by a child and one for best image taken by an adult. Prizes will be awarded for each winning photograph with each image being displayed at the Museum as part of the Museum’s annual RAF PR Photograph of the Year exhibition in January 2011.

For more information about the competition please visit www.rafmuseum.org or call 020 8205 2266. To view the Calendar of 70th anniversary Battle of Britain events please visit http://www.raf.mod.uk/history/battleofbritain70thanniversary.cfm

 

New Acquisition at RAF Museum

Friday, May 14th, 2010

BRISTOL BRIGAND TF.1 RH746

1946 Built by the Bristol Aircraft Company at Filton to contract 4628, c/n 12634, as one of the first production batch of thirteen Bristol Type 164 Brigands, RH742 – RH754, equipped as TF.1 torpedo-fighters, which served at Development Units at Gosport and Thorney Island from May 1946, but never entered service with first-line Coastal Command Squadrons.

16 Mar 46 Awaiting collection from Filton.

5 Apr 46 Issued via Controller, Research and Development (CRD) to Bristol, Aircraft Co, Filton.

18 Jun 46 Aeroplane & Armament Experimental Establishment (A&AEE), Boscombe Down, Wilts. Photo – Air Enthusiast September/October 1999 p.29. See also RAFM P005275-6 and PC79/1/7-8.

Air Torpedo Development Unit (ATDU) Gosport, Hants -present 31 July 1947.

15 Oct 47 Bristol Aircraft Co for unspecified repair.

29 Apr 49 ATDU Gosport; still present 31 December 1949.

(Undated) Ministry of Supply – Controller of Supplies (Air) – CS (A)

(Date unknown-possibly 1956-58) Struck off Charge for scrap and delivered to the famous Clayton Vale, Failsworth (Droylesden, South Manchester) scrapyard of Unimetal Ltd, situated at a former mill.

Noted as being present at Failsworth in the 2nd Edition of ‘Wrecks and Relics’ (1963)

Part of a large collection of aircraft, including Meteor 7/8/9s, Provost T.1s, Vampire T.11s, three Supermarine Swifts, many Balliol T.2s, Neptune MR1s and Firefly AS.5/6s, acquired by the yard in the mid 1950s which remained dumped and decaying until the yard was cleared in May1981.

The Brigand lay for many years on its side with one wing lying on top of the gutted fuselage and the other nearby, corroded and covered in graffiti, with the cockpit area particularly battered and the engine nacelles also extant in the 1970s.

18 May 81 Fuselage by road to North East Aircraft Museum (NEAM), Usworth, Sunderland (along with Swift F.4 fuselage, a Balliol cockpit and Firefly fuselage), being on loan from the yard’s owner. Placed in store.

19 Apr 2001 Fuselage and a few smaller components including rudder and tailcone to Kemble Airfield, Glos for display with Bristol Aero Collection (BAC),Photo as displayed – Wrecks and Relics 18th Edition, 2002.

April 2010 Aircraft remains purchased by RAF Museum.

This is the only Brigand in the UK, albeit incomplete. The only other known partial survivor is one wreck recently reported in Malaya – the Malaysian jungle wreck is former 45 Squadron aircraft RH755 which crashed in January 1951. It comprises several large components, including a tail fin, undercarriage leg, propeller unit and complete engine. Some parts possibly recovered for Malaysian AF Museum.

 www.rafmuseum.org

New Director General Appointed

Wednesday, May 5th, 2010

The Royal Air Force Museum Trustees are pleased to announce that Air Vice-Marshal Peter Dye OBE has been selected as the Director General, Royal Air Force Museum with effect from 9th June 2010.

Peter Dye is the current Director Collections and Deputy Director General. He has been Acting Director General since 1st February.

Prior to joining the Museum, Peter served in the Royal Air Force for over 35 years. With a degree in aeronautical engineering from Imperial College, he has more than 20 years experience of frontline operations, including the maintenance and support of numerous aircraft types ranging from the Victor and Vulcan to the Jaguar and Tornado. He was awarded the OBE for his achievements in support of the Jaguar Force during the Gulf War.

His grandfather and father both served in the Royal Air Force during the First and Second World Wars respectively, imbuing him with a deep affection for the Service and a passion for its people, achievements and traditions. This has been reflected in his writing on aviation history and, in 2004, his successful efforts to erect a memorial at St-Omer to those members of the British Air Services who had served in France and Belgium during the Great War. He is currently studying for a part-time PhD, at Birmingham University, on the Royal Flying Corps.

Air Vice-Marshal Dye says:

“Since joining the Museum I have been hugely impressed by the enthusiasm and dedication of its staff and their many impressive achievements in the face of considerable challenges. I am delighted to be able to lead the Museum as it builds on these successes and to have the opportunity to work with its many friends and supporters in creating an exciting and innovative future”

www.rafmuseum.org

Airscene now on Facebook

Saturday, May 1st, 2010

It has been a little while coming, but Airscene is now available on Facebook.

You may already be aware that the Airscene News feed is available in several formats – recently including Twitter. As it has been pointed out that some people do not use RSS Readers, Toolbars, Twitter or even browse the internet that often; it was decided to see if Facebook can help for those who mainly come online for social networking purposes.

The page will receive an automatic feed from Airscene News, and occasional updates relating to Airscene content.

To view Airscene on Facebook…

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Airscene/122382211110257