17-18 July 2010

Admission Charges Apply

Gates open 8.30am 

Tickets are now on sale for the annual Large Model Aircraft Rally taking place at the Royal Air Force Museum Cosford on 17-18 July 2010, with ticket prices held for the fifth year running. This famous air show in miniature is an absolute must see for any aviation enthusiast, attracting in excess of 10,000 visitors with hundreds of scale models of iconic aircraft taking to the skies during the two-day event.

The main theme of this year’s show will be celebrating the 70th Anniversary of the Battle of Britain with a full 2 hours of the show dedicated to flying aircraft from the era, including a mass flypast of fighters – possibly the biggest formation ever seen at a model air show.

An exclusive for this year’s show and new to Cosford will be the first public appearance of a 1/4 full size English Electric Lightning and the new formation of Vulcan and Victor flying together. The show also features airliners history slots, where modellers will be flying airliners through from the Handley Page HP 42, Ford Trimotor, DC3 Dakota, Comet airliner and two Airbuses from the modern day.

Chairman of the Large Model Association, Dave Johnson says:

“Nowhere else in the country will be displaying such a wide variety of aircraft this year and most of these cannot be seen flying in full size form anymore, so a real pull for aircraft enthusiasts everywhere. ”

Events and activities on the airfield include trade stands selling both modelling and non-modelling related items plus for the families, there will be a fun fair to keep the youngsters entertained throughout the day. In addition to all this, why not try one of the aircraft simulators? Sit inside and feel what its like to fly in many of the full size RAF aircraft of today.

Plus, the Museum will be open to visitors on both days where you can see the full sized aircraft including the world’s oldest Spitfire and the award winning National Cold War Exhibition home to the much loved Victor, Valiant and Vulcan.

Admission prices to the Large Model Aircraft Rally including entrance to the Museum are just £9 for adults, £5 for children and £7 for senior citizens with a family ticket of 2 adults and up to 2 children retailing at £20. On site camping is only £40.00 for the weekend. Gates open at 8.30am and don’t forget, if you take any photos, to enter them into the Museum’s Battle of Britain 70th Anniversary Photography competition.

 For further information, please call the Royal Air Force Museum Cosford on 01902 376200 or visit the Museum website at www.rafmuseum.org

12th November saw the launch of the Sikorsky MH-53 Pave Low exhibition at the National Cold War Exhibition at Royal Air Force Museum Cosford.The combat Search & Rescue Helicopter is the first aircraft of its type to go on display in the UK and was kindly donated by the United States Air Force. The supporting exhibition which greatly enhances the display was made possible by sponsorship from Sikorsky.

The opening was conducted by Air Chief Marshal Sir Steven Dalton RAF Chief of Air Staff. Sir Stephen also took a tour of the Cosford site including a visit to the Michael Beetham Conservation Centre (MBCC).

David Powell, Sikorsky Vice President, Sales, The Americas & Global Oil:

“The National Cold War Exhibition in the RAF Museum at Cosford will provide a marvellous historical perspective of this time period, and the inclusion of the venerable Sikorsky MH-53 PAVE LOW helicopter will add to the historical perspective. We are excited about the opportunity to provide sponsorship for this exhibition and to continue to rekindle the strong legacy of Sikorsky Aircraft in the United Kingdom”

http://www.rafmuseum.org/

PERCIVAL PRENTICE T.1 VS618 /G-AOLKOne of 349 production standard Percival P.40 Prentice Tiger Moth replacement two-seat basic trainer aircraft built for RAF service as the RAF’s first side-by-side trainer. Built under sub-contract at the Blackburn Aircraft factory at Brough, serials block VS609 – VS758. Contract No 623. Constructor’s number PAC/225. A total of 483 Prentices were built including some for Argentina and India.

13 May 49 Awaiting Collection.

18 May 49 To No 22 Flying Training School (FTS), RAF Syerston, Notts. Used to train Royal Navy personnel as pilots.

9 Mar 54 To No 9 Maintenance Unit, RAF Cosford, Salop for storage.

25 Apr 56 Transferred to civil register as G-AOLK.

11 May 56 Sold to Freddie Laker’s Aviation Traders Ltd at Southend, Essex. Aviation Traders purchased from the Ministry of Supply an eventual 252 of the RAF’s Prentices for civil conversion, making them nominally the 8th or 9th largest air force in the world at the time, with the aircraft ferried from RAF Maintenance Units at Cosford, High Ercall and Shawbury, all in Shropshire, to Southend as ‘Operation Prentice’ with RAF markings painted out and civil registrations crudely painted over them. Between April and July 1956, 33 pilots ferried 92 Prentices to Southend and another 58 to Stansted.

Only 28 of these Prentices reached civil certification, with barely 20 actually being sold, being fuel-guzzlingly expensive to operate and outsold by imported American types, the rest being dumped and scrapped at Southend and Stansted in the early 1960s. Those Laker did sell were generally painted silver-grey, upholstered in grey vinyl with red trimmings, with a bench seat for three behind the pair of pilot’s seats, initially selling at £2000 (later £1500) including a four-channel radio.

1958/1960 Registered to Aviation Traders (Engineering) and held in long-term storage awaiting conversion for the private/executive/charter role.

7 May 64 Offered for sale in Flight International magazine with six seats and long -range fuel tanks for ‘£1,760 or offer’.

1967/8 Registered to Mr A.H. Smith.

1974-2008 Registered to Hilton Aviation Ltd, Southend, Essex; flown in a variety of purely civil colour schemes over the years. Still airworthy 2009.

Jul 2009 Flown from temporary storage at North Weald, Essex, to Shuttleworth Collection’s airfield at Old Warden, Beds.

Flown at White Waltham airfield 4 October 2009.

9 Oct 2009 Following purchase by RAF Museum, flown by Ben Cox from Coventry to RAFM Cosford for restoration and display.

One of some 17 Prentice survivors worldwide.

http://www.rafmuseum.org/

The Michael Beetham Conservation Centre at Royal Air Force Museum Cosford is delighted to announce the following appointments:New Positions:

MBCC Deputy Manager – Mr Darren Priday

MBCC Training Manager – Mr Michael Shepherd

Darren Priday has been promoted from within the MBCC to fulfil this role in the face of increased efforts to address growing conservation tasks and the need for year-round engineering management cover. He commences his responsibilities on the 1st September.

WO Michael Shepherd retires from the Royal Air Force to join the Museum on the 17th August to assist with the further development of the MBCC Apprentice Scheme. He will be tasked with heading up the mentoring programme targeted at young people and attracting aviation enthusiasts from across the globe to participate in planned MBCC Conservation Skills Workshops.

The following appointments are part of the MBCC Apprentice scheme which is now in its 4th successful year:

Apprentice Intake 2009

Mr Martin Purcell-Shaw

Mr Nathan Pugh

Martin and Nathan are both from Telford and they hope to become a significant part of the area’s engineering heritage through the medium of the MBCC Apprentice program. The scheme has already produced an ‘Apprentice of the Year’ (Rebecca Pitts – who met the Queen as part of that award) and this year, it was the turn of Daniel Perks, who recently received the ‘2009 TCAT Student Achiever Award’.

The MBCC is committed to preserving Aviation Heritage through its conservation of aircraft and associated exhibits, whilst recognising the need to ensure that unique skills are retained, nurtured and developed amongst the younger generation in respect of fostering ongoing aircraft conservation efforts for the foreseeable future.

http://www.rafmuseum.org/