Tag: 2018

RAF Museum Cosford 2018 Events Diary

RAF Museum Cosford Cockpits and Cabs event

Forthcoming events taking place at the Royal Air Force Museum Cosford during 2018:

Date Event
9 February 100 Cockpits and Cabs
17 – 23 February Airfix Make and Take
21 February Talk: Airfix and 100 years of the RAF
24 March Pillows and Pilots Sleepover
1 April – 10 July Spitfire 100K Challenge
1 – 2 April 100 Years Festival
3 – 15 April Feathers and Flight Family Trail
5 April Eagles at Easter Display
12 April Eagles at Easter Display
28 April Pillows and Pilots Sleepover
12 May Pillows and Pilots Sleepover
19 May 100 Cockpits and Cabs
26 May – 3 June First World War Half Term
10 June RAF Cosford Air Show
30 June Armed Forces Day
7 – 8 July Large Model Aircraft Rally
21 – 22 July Cosford Food Festival
1 – 31 August Summer of Spies Trail
1 August Summer of Spies Workshops
8 August Summer of Spies Workshops
11 -12 August Vintage and Handmade Festival
15 August Summer of Spies Workshops
22 August Summer of Spies Workshops
29 August Summer of Spies Workshops
2 September Spitfire 10K and Spitfire Family Run
15 September 100 Cockpits and Cabs
21 – 22 September Outdoor Cinema
27 October – 2 November Airfix Make and Take
11 November Remembrance Service
12 – 18 November MBCC Open Week
7 December 100 Cockpits and Cabs

Further details on each event will be issued nearer the time. Admission charges apply for some events and activities. Events may be subject to change and additional events may be added during the year, please visit the Museum website www.rafmuseum.org/cosford for more details.

RAF Museum Cosford Public Events Manager, Abi Betteridge said:

“We will be celebrating the centenary of the Royal Air Force throughout 2018 with a number of events tailored towards commemorating this milestone. Across both our London and Cosford sites we will be opening up the doors to 100 Cockpits and Cabs so visitors can get up close and inside more of our collection than ever before, with the first of four dates at Cosford in February.

Over the Easter Bank Holiday weekend on 1-2 April, we will be marking the official formation of the Royal Air Force with a 100 Years Festival, packed with re-enactors, displays and activities for families. There will also be a new permanent display celebrating the RAF through the decades with artefacts from within our collection interpreting the RAF story.

One of our most popular events, the Spitfire 10K will be returning in September, where up to 1,200 runners this year can race across the airfield. In addition, we’ve set a new centenary challenge to run 100K in 100 days in a virtual race and we’re busy working on a suitably spectacular medal for those who rise to the task. All proceeds from these races will go towards the RAF100 Appeal, a joint venture between the Royal Air Force and four major RAF charities.

These new events are in addition to activities running throughout each of the school holidays as well as our major summer event, the Cosford Food Festival. Plus the Outdoor Cinema Screening will be returning for two nights in September and of course, the chance to see behind the scenes in our Conservation Centre during the Open Week in November.”

For further information on the 2018 events, please visit the Museum’s website www.rafmuseum.org/cosford or call 01902 376200. The Museum is open daily from 10am and entry is FREE of charge.

Special access to iconic aircraft at the Fleet Air Arm Museum

Sea King at Fleet Air Arm Museum

An evening of unprecedented access, exploring in and around some of the Fleet Air Arm Museum’s most significant aircraft, takes place on Thursday 18 January at 6.00pm. This is an exclusive opportunity that is not usually available to the general public.

Visitors can see where history was made when they look inside the cockpit of Captain Eric ‘Winkle’ Brown’s famous Vampire LZ551/G. This was the first jet aircraft to land on an aircraft carrier in 1945.

Sit inside the cockpits of Concorde 002, Westland Wessex 5 and HAS3 Lynx Helicopter. Go inside the cabin area of ‘King of the Junglies’ Sea King ZA 298 and view into the cockpits of Harrier GR9 and Hawker P1127, to enable a comparison of prototype and last type seen in service.

Also enjoy access to the main museum galleries (excluding flight deck) and absorb the unique atmosphere of the museum at night. The experienced team of curators and volunteers will be on hand to answer questions and tell more of the secrets of the museum and our collection of aircraft.

The Fleet Air Arm Museum’s General Manager Marc Farrance said: “These evenings are incredibly popular and very special indeed. The chance to sit in the very cockpits where history has often been made is thrilling and our visitors love it.”

Tickets for this privileged access evening are available from www.fleetairarm.com, £40.00 per person. Spaces are limited spaces and advance booking is essential.

Sensible clothing and footwear must be worn. Access to aircraft is dependent upon your fitness levels and overall mobility. All visits are subject to a briefing by a member of the museum team. Aircraft line-up subject to change.

French Mirage IV Strategic Nuclear Bomber Gifted by France to Britain

Dassault Mirage

On Monday 27th March, the Director of the Allied Air Forces Memorial & Yorkshire Air Museum, Ian Reed ONM FRAeS, was at Châteaudun Airbase on the outskirts of Paris, to sign the contact and see off the departure of the convoy of 4 transporters on an epic 850km journey bringing the iconic Mirage IV BR (No. 45) strategic nuclear bomber gifted by the French Government to its new home at Elvington in Yorkshire.

This unique Anglo/French Project occurs just as British Prime Minister Theresa May begins the formal BREXIT process, an irony not lost on our colleagues both sides of the Channel (La Manche).

Sally Greenaway, Head of Visit York, said: “This unique gift recognises the historic links and friendship between France and Britain and we’re thrilled the Mirage IV will be making its home at the Yorkshire Air Museum. As the only example in the world of this aircraft type on display outside of France, this adds yet another unique offer for our 6.9 million visitors to York and is sure to create lots of interest not just in the UK but also overseas”.

Tens of thousands followed the journey on social media, whilst others lined the route through England as the transporter carried it’s load up the M25, M3, M25, M1, A1(M), A64 and finally the B1228 to Elvington.

This is the culmination of 12 years of negotiation and is already being followed by tens of thousands of supporters across the world by social media, TV and Press. There is a dedicated website for up to date media information with pictures, background history and supporters: http://mirage.yorkshireairmuseum.org