Duxford...

[ozzy72]

The purpose of my visit, Historic Flyings IAC-161 (having engine tests this particular Wednesday), they kindly let me photograph her for information pertaining to project Binky, and even let me sit in the front cockpit (I don't think I could have squeezed in the back!) She is a Tr.9 in Irish Air Corps colours, gorgeous

A P-51B is reborn

A Spit minus her Merlin...

The office of Concorde

Lightning nearly completely restored, I had a brief involvement with this one as an Air Cadet a loooong time ago, nice to see her back together

TSR.2, there are no words

Some twit bolted the Stearman to the ceiling

The utterly evil looking SR-71

Some of these shots are a little grainy, sorry I really haven't fully mastered my digital camera yet

[ATI_7500]

A twin seated Spit....yuk!  :o

They aren't restoring that TSR...are they? Please tell me they are...

[Mr. Bones]

nice photos Mark! I really want to see that Blackbird. it could been exposed a little better, but it's a real blackbird so no need to complain.

about that grainy aspect of your photos. well, those are taken inside in bad light conditions. I guess you switched your camera to some kind of automatic mode. there, the camera automatically picks a higher ISO speed. result: grainy photo, otherwise known as noise. especially with compact digicams with a smaller CCD, the noise becomes visible very fast, even at rather slow ISO speeds.

[ozzy72]

The TSR is nearly complete!!!

[ATI_7500]

The TSR is nearly complete!!!

Airworty??  :o

[Craig.]

I would be surprised if they planned to fly it again. You never know though, it could join the ranks of the high speed taxi run aircraft.
Great shots Mark i really have to get to Duxford.

[ozzy72]

I don't know what the score is with the TSR.2, but the chaps said the Lightning might fly again.
Hagar reckons they won't be allowed whilst she has afterburners... some silly regulation or other

[Hagar]

Nice shots Mark.

As I understand the current regulations, privately owned military jets fitted with afterburners are not allowed to fly - period....! There's a gorgeous MiG 21 sitting in a shed at the Midland Air Museum, Coventry Airport because of this regulation. It was airworthy when it arrived as it was flown in there. I believe that Air Atllantique originally hoped to display it on the air show circuit.  What a sight that would have been. The museum gave it a home after they gave up on the idea. I don't know how they will get around this one with the Vulcan XH558.

[Woodlouse2002]

Although it would be on helluva thing to see in the air the TSR2 won't fly. Remember it was only a prototype and when it got cancelled it was cancelled in a way that would never allow it to be restarted.

As for the lightning, that would be brilliant on the airshow circuit. Though that too is unlikely as the government doesn't want them things in our airspace anymore. So you've got to go to South Africa to see one flying.

[Hagar]

Although it would be on helluva thing to see in the air the TSR2 won't fly. Remember it was only a prototype and when it got cancelled it was cancelled in a way that would never allow it to be restarted.

Quite right Woody. It's all very well to get sentimental over these aircraft but you have to be realistic. The TSR.2 might have had potential but it was very far from ready to enter service. It had been plagued with technical problems, made worse by a complete lack of communication between interested parties & interference from the government. Not the best way to design a revolutionary aircraft. This was made worse by the fact that it would have been impossible to meet the original specification. This is nothing unusual with ministry specifications & the reason some of the most successful aircraft have been private ventures.

In the event, only one prototype of the TSR.2 ever flew & this went supersonic once. I can't find the exact number of test flights carried out but this could have been less than 20. The two survivors, one now on display at Cosford & the example at Duxford have never flown. I'm not sure either was even completed but all surviving aircraft were disabled in such a way to ensure the project couldn't be resurrected at a later date. Basically, a lot of vital internal equipment was ripped out & destroyed. This would make an airworthy TSR.2 a pipe-dream.

I found 2 interesting sites with a brief history of the aircraft. Also some nice photos.
http://www.thunder-and-lightnings.co.uk/tsr2/history.html
http://www.spyflight.co.uk/TSR2.htm
The accounts vary slightly but both describe a sad story of incompetence, blundering & political intrigue. The project was doomed from the start. IMHO

PS. Plenty of other aircraft projects were cancelled in the 1950s & 60s. Some looked more promising than others but it's all a "what if" situation. There's no guarantee the TSR.2 would have been one of the successful ones.

[Rifleman]

At least with your TSR.2 you still have a visible copy of your National Aviation Dream.......

You know where our dreams are on this side of the Atlantic..........the XB-70 is in Dayton for the US Dream, but for Canada the dream remains a dream..........alas, nothing to see but a few bits and pieces at Rockcliffe, and a few flying models of the fabulous CF-105 !

[Hagar]

As you say, it's all a dream. Two symbols of the destruction of a once-thriving aircraft industry on both sides of the Atlantic. That's how I look on it.

Ah well, this is all history now. Just lumps of metal after all. Over & done with. No sense in harping on about it.

PS. Personally, I think the Hawker P.1154 would have been the way to go. http://www.harrier.org.uk/history/history_p1154.htm
I prefer it to the TSR.2. & with Sidney Camm's track record I think it stood a far better chance of succeeding. At least we got the Harrier - eventually. Imagine a supersonic version of that in the late 1960s or even the 70s.

[zeberdee]

A Spit minus her Merlin...
-[

OK Mark PUT IT BACK.. NOW!!! you know they know who's got it!!!  ;D

[C]

I don't know what the score is with the TSR.2, but the chaps said the Lightning might fly again.
Hagar reckons they won't be allowed whilst she has afterburners... some silly regulation or other

TSR 2 will be off to the AirSpace hanger, or whatever it is they're calling the extended superhanger.

As for types being airworthy again, the CAA (Civil Aviation Authority/Campaign Against Aviation  ;) )would only let an aircraft fly again with the backing of the OEM, ie BAE SYSTEMS in its current guise. So in short, no.
The Vulcan will hopefully be a step in the right direction, and will hopefully be the first "complex" warbird to fly in private hands. The DH Sea Vixen was a step in the right direction (mainly as I think they go it classed as an "intermediate" type), and maybe in time we'll se a Bucaneer or the like...

Charlie

PS, great to see the T. IX...

[ozzy72]

Alas Chris they checked the weight of my luggage on the return flight