Nuuumannn's UK Tour of 2018 (1 Viewer)

Neat. I've had a soft spot for the Vimy ever since it was a center-piece in a novel I read by British/Canadian author Donald Jack

Thanks for the info and sorry for the mix up Grant. My brain hurts.

In the evening of the 30th the Ian Allan RAF100 Tour officially met at the Oatlands Hotel in Weybridge. The 18-day tour was designed to offer a broad look at the history of the RAF through popular aviation sights, specifically museums and airshows throughout England. Many of the places we went to I've been before, but some I hadn't and although there were a number of aviation themed tours running in the UK this year, I chose the Ian Allan one because it had the best selection of sites I hadn't been to and places I had that I wanted to revisit. I filled in the gaps before and after the tour ended. The people joining the tour were Australians, Kiwis and Canadians, as well as two Poms living in Luxembourg. There were 21 of us; a good size and a great bunch of people. Our first official stop was the Shuttleworth Military Pageant.

This Bristol Scout reproduction was built as a tribute to the grandfather of the builders. It incorporates parts of an original example that was used in the Aegean during and after the Dardanelles campaign by the RNAS.

0107 Shuttleworth Military Pageant Scout

Hawker Demon.

0107 Shuttleworth Military Pageant Demon

Westland Lysander.

0107 Shuttleworth Military Pageant Lysander

Gloster Gladiator.

0107 Shuttleworth Military Pageant Gladiator

Hawker Hurricane.

0107 Shuttleworth Military Pageant Hurricane

BBMF Avro Lancaster.

0107 Shuttleworth Military Pageant Lancaster

Royal Aircraft Factory B.E.2e reproduction.

0107 Shuttleworth Military Pageant BE.2e

Bristol Scout.

0107 Shuttleworth Military Pageant Scout flying

Hawker Sea Hurricane.

0107 Shuttleworth Military Pageant Sea Hurricane

Sopwith Triplane.

0107 Shuttleworth Military Pageant Triplane

Sopwith Dove.

0107 Shuttleworth Military Pageant Dove

The Oatlands Park Hotel, Weybridge by night.

0107 Oatlands Park Hotel

Next, Southampton, Middle Wallop and Olde Englande at Salisbury.

No worries Andy, I thought you were being funny!

Fantastic. You have the best job in the world grant. jealous as hell.

Very nice

Brilliant !

Great shots!

A brisk early morning drive to Southampton took us to Solent Sky, where the aeroplanes are crammed in and difficult to photograph. Fascinating collection though, but desperately in need of a new facility. It hasn't changed in years.

Supermarine S.6A N248 that flew in the 1929 Schneider Trophy race at Calshot, disqualified for flying within the markers, but set a world closed-circuit records in doing so.

0207 Solent Sky S.6A

Folland Gnat single-seater.

0207 Solent Sky Gnat

The star attraction of Solent Sky is the Short Sandringham flying boat. Here's a piccie of me being photographed photographing the Sandringham.

0207 Solent Sky Sandringham

This beastie is by far the most interesting entrant, the Saunders Roe SR/A.1 jet powered flying boat fighter. See what I mean about photography?

0207 Solent Sky SRA.1

Next, the Museum of Army Flying at Middle Wallop - yep, that's a name. Beaver's looking a bit shabby, must be that English summer heat again.

0207 Museum of Army Flying Beaver

That is indeed what it looks like, a jeep with a rotor! A reproduction of the Hafner Rotabuggy.

0207 Museum of Army Flying Rotor Jeep

And if that wasn't enough to make your toes curl, try the Hafner Rotachute! The Army has a weird view of what getting airborne actually means.

0207 Museum of Army Flying Rotachute

Remains of an original Airspeed Horsa assault glider.

0207 Museum of Army Flying Horsa

A menacing little Westland Scout helicopter that saw service during the Falklands War armed with SS.11 ASMs.

0207 Museum of Army Flying Scout

Next, on to the olde cathedral city of Salisbury and its rather large edifice. In days of yore, a 'city' was determined by the presense of a cathedral; without, it's not a city, no matter how large. Salisbury Cathedral was built in the 13th Century and took 36 years to build.

0207 Salisbury Cathedral

Photo opportunities abound. In this room is one of four surviving original copies of the Magna Carta.

0207 Salisbury Cathedral ceiling

A sculpture in the cathedral hall.

0207 Salisbury Cathedral sculpture

Its reflection in the holy hand washing well.

0207 Salisbury Cathedral reflection

Our abode in Salisbury, the White Hart Hotel and its wonky floors.

0307 White Hart Salisbury

Next. across country to my second visit to Somerset.

Great - enjoying the 'tour' and looking forward to more.

Me too !

On the move again to Somerset and how the Navy do it. The Fleet Air Arm Museum at Yeovilton needs no introduction and we were all excited to find out we were being given a personal guided tour round the Cobham Hall store house.

The oddball Supermarine 510 was a (miss) step between the Attacker and the Swift, and it's a tail dragger jet! Those are the wings of a Japanese Ohka under the 510.

FAA Museum Supermarine 510

The only surviving Fairey Albacore.

FAA Museum Albacore

This is what remains of a Fairey Barracuda; the inscription on the panel at front right reads; "Bill, can't find a home for this on the Barra, but you will"

0307 FAA Museum Barracuda remains

In the flesh, the prototype Westland Wyvern is an aeroplane with presense. When, at the end of the tour we all got together and spoke of what we saw that was most memorable, everyone said the Wyvern in the Cobham Hall.

0307 FAA Museum Wyvern

Could have spent all day in there, but the rest of the museum beckoned. Falklands War veteran Sea Harrier FRS.1 (the only one left?) in its original configuration. The others were converted to F/A.2s.

0307 FAA Museum Sea Harrier FRS.1

You might well ask why the museum of naval aviation has a Concorde? Before they were retired, local councillors in Bristol wanted a Concorde in recognition of them being built in their constituency at Filton. The first British prototype was gifted to the Science Museum, but since there was nowhere to put it that met the criteria at the time, it was decided to place it in the FAA Museum where it could be kept undercover and in the right conditions for long term preservation, yet be close enough to Filton to satisfy the councillors in Bristol. Since Concorde's retirement, Filton now has its own Concorde, but I suspect the Science Museum is quite happy to not have to examine the logistical nightmare that wold be organising a new home for G-BSST.

0307 FAA Museum Concorde

With the retirement of the Sea Harriers, the RAF stepped in with the basing of GR.9s aboard the Harrier carriers, something the RAF had been doing since the Falklands War in 1982 at any rate. This one is a Second Gulf War vet; note the mission marks on its nose.

0307 FAA Museum Harrier GR.9

The striking BAC.221, built to investigate the concorde's wing at high speed, but why did they have to butcher the Fairey Delta 2 that broke the world speed record? There was another one. Great War enthusiast Leo Opdyke's fine Bristol Scout reproduction flying above.

0307 FAA Museum BAC.221

Next, more FAA Museum and something FAST.

These are gret shots . Keep it coming sir.

More FAA Museum. A change from all the pointy stuff in the portly form of a Supermarine Walrus.

0307 FAA Museum Walrus

Regardless of what you think of the Fairey Fulmar, it does possess a kind of rugged elegance. The only survivor; it's big for a fighter, though.

0307 FAA Museum Fulmar

Neat Grumman Martlett.

0307 FAA Museum Martlet

Again, what were they thinking? A tail dragger jet?! Supermarine Attacker.

0307 FAA Museum Attacker

Next, a cross country drive to Hampshire and the Farnborough Air Sciences Trust (FAST). Housed in the former Balloon Command of the RFC HQ building, FAST has a fascinating collection of odds and sods to do with the science of aviation and Britain's largest collection of wind tunnel models. I see the RFC preferred the Ford Focus as a typical runabout.

0307 FAST RFC Balloon Command HQ

American Samuel Franklin Cody (nee Cowdery - he changed his name) is recognised as one of the first to build and fly his own flying machine in Britain; this is a careful reproduction of it, the Army's first aeroplane, British Army Aeroplane No.1A, first flying in 1908.

0307 FAST Cody reproduction

Inside the Balloon Command HQ was Lord Trenchard's office, now a meeting room upstairs from the museum, but we were granted access, because we're special.

0307 FAST Trenchard's office

One of the aforementioned wind tunnel models. The M wing design was supposed to offer advantages at high speed and nullify the effects of aeroelasticity on a high speed wing. Note the waisted 'coke bottle' shape amidships, the characteristic 'area rule' philosophy applied.

0307 FAST M wing wind tunnel model

This rather peculiar thing is Chevaline, a self contained space vehicle designed to carry two nuclear warheads to their target area before releasing them to re-enter earth's atmosphere. Chevaline was designed to extend the life and versatility of the original Polaris A3 Submarine Launched Ballistic Missile, which Britain operated from its Resolution Class ballistic missile submarines. Note the manoeuvring thrusters at its base at right bottom. Each warhead was to be independently targeted and to counter anti-ballistic missile countermeasures, Chevaline was equipped with deployable decoys. Developed primarily in Britain, Chevaline remains one of the most sophisticated aeronautical research programmes undertaken in the UK, but it is largely unknown, because of its nature as a nuclear weapon system. I had done research into Chevaline when I lived in the UK, but this was the first time I had seen a complete unit in the flesh. I was quite excited to see it.

0307 FAST Chevaline

Next, the Big City and Big Museums.

More good stuff Grant - keep it coming !

Very informative thread with great pics. Thanks Grant. Looking forward to the next installment.

Lovely shots!

On to The Big City and on the 4th July we had a free day to explore, but I had a date! Firstly I went to the Science Museum at South Kensington to visit some old friends.

Rolls-Royce Thrust Measuring Rig, universally known as the Flying Bedstead.

0407 Science Museum Flying Bedstead

A more sphisticated variation of the same theme, the Short SC.1, but why take a wing off and mount it like this?! Surely suspending it in a hover from the ceiling would have been more appropriate?

0407 Science Museum Short SC.1

Apollo 10 Command Module Charlie Brown. On 22 May 1969, Apollo 10 and her crew Eugene Cernan, Tom Stafford and John Young descended to around 8 nautical miles from the Moon's surface in preparation for Apollo 11's landing. In keeping with the theme, the Lunar Module was named Snoopy.

0407 Science Museum Apollo 10 capsule

The aviation Hall of the Science Museum is full of extraordinarily historic airframes, and it hasn't changed a bit since the late 60s!

0407 Science Museum Aviation Gallery

The world's only surviving complete Fokker E III Eindekker.

0407 Science Museum Eindekker

Indulging Geo's soft spot for Vimys, this is John Alcock and Arthur Whitten Brown's Vimy that they flew from Newfoundland to Ireland, thus being the first to fly non-stop across the Atlantic Ocean in June 1919. Thet's the tail of famed aviatrix Amy Johnson's DH.60 Moth Jason at top left.

0407 Science Museum Vimy

The Schneider Trophy winning Supermarine S.6B, with the trophy itself in the case behind, but glare from the windows has all but erased it in this picture.

0407 Science Museum S.6B

Great Britain's first jet powered aircraft, the Gloster E.28/39 prototype W4041/G.

0407 Science Museum E28.39

Nextdoor to the Science Museum is the Natural History Museum, whose beautiful main hall never fail's to capture the imagination.

0407 Natural History Museum Hall

As with every attraction, the summer heat brought hordes of tourists into the museums. The whale is a regular, though.

0407 Natural History Museum Whale

Another frequenter is the mammoth on guard at the entrance.

0407 Natural History Museum Mammoth

Next up, my date!