Archive for May, 2018

Tribute to the V-Force 2018

Friday, May 11th, 2018

Newark Air Museum - Tribute to the V Force

Saturday 19th May 2018

The preparatory work for the 2018 Tribute to the V-Force event on Saturday 19th May, 2016 is now almost complete. This will be the sixth time that the museum has hosted a V-Force Reunion event for former personnel who operated Valiant, Victor and Vulcan aircraft. On the day an area will be set up for former V-Force personnel to sign-in, collect their badges and this will be staffed by museum volunteers and some former members of the V-Force.

The event is also open to the general public and museum trustees, volunteers and staff have put together a range of visiting special displays and activities. On both days a number of museum aircraft will be open for people to visit – this will include the Vulcan, Hastings and Varsity. A small additional charge will be made for each aircraft visited (proceeds towards the museum’s various aircraft restoration projects).

There will also be a Vulcan XM594 systems demonstration, which utilises the Rover APU to operate various systems on the aircraft, including opening and closing the huge bomb bay doors.

Visiting Displays

V-Force Display – Gary O’Keefe
Mainly Military Model display
Walk-Round print signing – Garaeth Cooke
Airfield Research Group display
Royal Institute of Navigation – Astrovan c/w Smiths Mk2 periscopic sextants as per the V-Force; Hughes Mk.IX sextants Astro Compass Mk.II
Static display of radio controlled model aircraft
Tony Redding Research/contacts – PhD project
Lesley Hayward-Mudge V-Force log books & photos
Newark Air Museum model display
Grubb Street – Book sales by V Force authors Tony Blackman/Tony Wright
Vulcan to the Sky – table top display
John Cox & museum – Falklands book of remembrance & scrapbook

Programme of 4 V-Force related talks in the Dambusters Hut, these are free but please book a ticket when you arrive at the event.

BBMF Flypast

Saturday 19th May – Dakota

(These will be subject to serviceability & suitable weather conditions)

Normal museum admission rates apply: Adults £9.00, Over 65s £8.00, Children £4.50 and Family ticket [2 adults & 3 children] £24.00.

Opening times; 10am to 5pm; last admission 4pm

Full event details and exhibit lists can be found on the News & Information page of the museum website: www.newarkairmuseum.org

Wings & Wheels at Air Day!

Saturday, May 5th, 2018

SAS Land Rover at Yeovilton Air Day by Chris Bowman

As wings and wheels always complement each other so well, we’ve made sure that there’s more to Air Day than just aircraft! Our extensive vehicle exhibition includes an array of ex-military vehicles, classic cars and high-performance supercars to view and even sit in.

Significantly, we are delighted to have the Sporting Bears join this year’s Air Day for the sixth year running. They will be displaying a selection of their members’ cars for all to see, including classics, sports and supercars like 2017’s unforgettable £2 million Pagani Huayra! The official HASBRO Optimus Prime truck and his good friend Bumblebee will join them once again.

The Sporting Bears are a club made up of volunteers from across the UK whose sole purpose is to raise funds and smiles for children’s charities. To date, they have raised over £2 million and support over 110 different charities. They are very proud that 100% of all funds raised or donated go directly to the charities.

Alongside the wings and wheels, this show has everything to keep the whole family entertained. There will be a vast range of showground attractions from the latest defence technology exhibitions, engineering fairs and service displays to trade stalls, arena displays, military bands and the chance to meet pilots and even sit in the cockpit! For the thrill seekers, there will be simulators, fairground rides and helicopter pleasure flights to enjoy.

To book tickets and to see the full list of participating aircraft, visit www.royalnavy.mod.uk/yeovilton-airday.

RNZAF Jet To Make 11,000 Mile Journey To Join RAF Cosford Air Show

Friday, May 4th, 2018

Royal New Zealand Air Force B757

Travelling from the other side of the globe, the Royal New Zealand Air Force will be celebrating RAF100 alongside the Royal Air Force on Sunday 10th June at the RAF Cosford Air Show, with their B757-2K2 airliner set to perform in the flying display.

The Boeing 757, which first flew in 1982, is more commonly used by commercial airlines and many visitors to the Air Show may have travelled on the aircraft type during their summer holidays! The Royal New Zealand Air Force, however, use their aircraft for strategic airlift operations, carrying cargo and personnel, including VIP transport and humanitarian aid delivery. This includes operations to deliver supplies to research facilities where the aircraft operates from an ice-runway.

On its trip to the UK, the aircraft will carry exhibits from the Air Force Museum of New Zealand which will be on display at the Air Show, spread across the ‘Vintage Village’ ground displays. Air Show Deputy Director, Marilyn Summers, said, “Showcasing the relationships that the Royal Air Force has with countries around the globe is an important part of our RAF100 celebration. It’s fantastic that the RNZAF will be sending their B757 to display at the Air Show and to have input from the Air Force Museum of New Zealand as part of our unique ground displays.”

Tickets for the RAF Cosford Air Show are selling at an unprecedented rate due to the unique nature of this year’s centenary celebrations. Organisers are advising the public that they should buy their Air Show tickets as soon as possible to avoid disappointment as they look set to sell out in the coming weeks. They are available from the Air Show website and a selection of local outlets including Tourist Information Centres and the RAF Museum. Further details can be found at www.cosfordairshow.co.uk.

The RAF100 Baton Relay is en route to Cosford!

Wednesday, May 2nd, 2018

RAF100 Baton

Date: 5 May 2018
Time: 10am – 4pm

On 1 April, one hundred years since the formation of the Royal Air Force, a specially designed baton set off on a journey around the UK and abroad. On Saturday 5 May the baton will be heading to the Royal Air Force Museum Cosford and will be an opportunity for members of the public to see and be part of this historic journey.

The baton is being carried by RAF personnel, cadets, veterans and members of the many sporting associations that make up the RAF. Over 100 days the RAF100 Baton will visit sites associated with the RAF, throughout the UK and across the globe.

Amongst many means of travel, the baton will be transported by boat along the River Thames by the RAF Rowing Club, carried by the RAF Falcons as they parachute from an aircraft, be ridden on horseback and power kited along Benbecula.

The relay team will be heading to RAF Cosford on Friday 4 May to meet with Station Commander, Group Captain Tone Baker for a tour of the station and an overnight stay in the Officers’ Mess, before spending a day at the Museum on Saturday 5 May from 10am to 4pm meeting with members of the public.

In addition to meeting the team and plenty of time for a selfie with the baton, the relay team will be offering a free ‘Name Your Plane’ activity for families, a nationwide call to action, inviting schools, community groups and members of the public to commemorate one of the 4,805 British Air Service personnel who lost their lives in the First World War. Visitors can cut out and decorate their plane template, and emblazon the name of a RAF, RFC, RNAS or WRAF service person across the wings. The completed planes from events across the country will then be collected up and included in a display at an iconic location later on in the year. All materials for this free activity will be provided.

The relay began its journey at the Royal Courts of Justice on 1 April 2018, followed by a trip to the RAF Museum’s London site where they were met by CEO Maggie Appleton who ran the last leg of the relay with them. The journey will end 100 days later on 10 July on Horseguards Parade.

RAF Museum Cosford General Manager, Alan Edwards said:
“It’s an honour to be part of the RAF100 celebrations and commemorations and to share in the RAF Baton Relay Team’s journey. We hope that visitors and local residents will show their support by joining us on Saturday 5 May and take the opportunity to speak with the team, participate in the free activity before they set off on the next leg of their journey which will take them on to Tywyn and Snowdonia.”

RAF Cosford Media Officer, Squadron Leader Chris Wilson said:
“The Baton has already been travelling throughout the UK and Cyprus during April so it’s great to see it arrive in Shropshire. Working in conjunction with the RAF Museum we have a unique opportunity to not only highlight some of the great activities that RAF personnel get involved with but to share the Baton with lots of members of the public.”

Keep up to date with the relay team on social media by searching #RAFBatonRelay or for more information about the relay route visit: https://www.raf.mod.uk/raf100/news/raf100-baton-relay/