Museums (by Chris Smith)
A good friend of mine enjoys a good museum, aviation or otherwise, and a couple of years back we visited NEAM and the Yorkshire Air Museum. He expressed interest in visiting some more, so we organised some time off work and I started mulling over which ones to visit. My preference was the Fleet Air Arm museum at RNAS Yeovilton, with the intention of also visiting the nearby AgustaWestland factory at Yeovil Aerodrome too, however we only had a day and a half to play with so unfortunately had to rule that one out. My second option was the City of Norwich Aviation Museum at Norwich Airport, I've already been there but when I heard some A-10 Thunderbolts were going into Lakenheath on the same day we were planning the trip for I figured they were too good to miss - sadly, we were restricted by time again and so we settled on a couple of museums a bit closer to home.
We finally picked the Newark Air Museum in Nottinghamshire, before heading into Nottingham itself for a bit of grub and a few drinks. The next day, we headed home via AeroVenture Museum at Doncaster.
12/03/15
Called into Gamston as usual to find it the busiest I've ever seen it, even if it was mostly residents. Quite a few even went begging. Ironic that it's this busy given the biggest based operator, Diamond Aircraft UK, has recently moved out to Bournemouth.
Retford Gamston Airport
1325 - 1335
| REG | A/C TYPE | OPERATOR | NOTES |
| G-AVYT | Piper PA-28R-180 Cherokee Arrow | Private | |
| G-AXSI * | Reims Cessna F172H Skyhawk | Private | |
| G-BCKV | Reims Cessna FRA150L Aerobat | Private | |
| G-BDTV * | Mooney M20F Executive 21 | Private | |
| G-BFPH * | Reims Cessna F172K Skyhawk | Linc-Air Flying Group | |
| G-BHCP * | Reims Cessna F152 | Eastern Air Executive Ltd | |
| G-BMVL | Piper PA-38-112 Tomahawk | Gamston Flight Training | |
| G-BNPY | Cessna 152 | Private | |
| G-BRPV | Cessna 152 | Eastern Air Executive Ltd | |
| G-BWEU | Reims Cessna F152 | Eastern Air Executive Ltd | |
| G-FLAV * | Piper PA-28-161 Cherokee Warrior II | Private | |
| G-FOFO | Robinson R44 Raven II | Kuki Helicopter Sales | |
| G-KDMA * | Cessna 560 Citation Ultra Encore | Gamston Aviation | |
| G-OTJS * | Robinson R44 Raven II | Kuki Helicopter Sales | |
| G-RONG * | Piper PA-28R-200 Cherokee Arrow | Just Plane Trading Ltd | |
| G-XDEA | Diamond DA42 Twin Star | Diamond Executive Aviation | |
| N88NA | Piper PA-32R-301T Turbo Saratoga SP | Private |
I'm only just getting into older aircraft and museums, partly because of our Lancaster visit last year. Newark is a fairly large, well kept museum that is definitely worth a visit, it's well sign posted from the A1 so if ever you're passing and have time to kill, it's well worth a stop.
Newark Air Museum
Outdoor Exhibits
| REG | A/C TYPE | PREVIOUS OPERATOR | NOTES |
| 83/8-MS | Dassault Mystere IV-A | French Air Force | |
| 71 Red | Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-27D | Soviet Air Force | |
| 458 Red | Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-23ML | Polish Air Force | |
| 51-9036 | Lockheed T-33A Shooting Star | US Air Force | |
| 54-2223 | North American F-100D Super Sabre | US Air Force | |
| G-AHRI | De Havilland DH104 Dove 1B | Brooklands Aviation Ltd | |
| G-AJJW | Avro Tudor II Mk5 | Unknown | Forward fuselage only |
| G-ANXB | De Havilland DH114 Heron 1B | Pan Universal Aircraft Services (CCI) Ltd | British European Airways / Scottish Airways c/s |
| G-APNJ | Cessna 310D | Shackleton Aviation Ltd | |
| G-BFTZ | Morane Saulnier MS.880B Rallye Club | R and B Legge Ltd | |
| TG517 | Handley Page Hastings T5 | Royal Air Force | |
| VZ634 | Gloster Meteor T7 | Royal Air Force | |
| WH791 | English Electric Canberra PR7 | Royal Air Force | Marked WH792 |
| WH863 | English Electric Canberra T17 | Royal Air Force | Cockpit only |
| WH904 | English Electric Canberra T19 | Royal Air Force | |
| WR977/B | Avro Shackleton MR3 | Royal Air Force | |
| WS739 | Armstrong Whitworth Meteor NF14 | Royal Air Force | |
| XJ560/H-243 | De Havilland DH110 Sea Vixen FAW2 | Fleet Air Arm | |
| XL618 | Hawker Hunter T7 | Royal Air Force | |
| XM594 | Avro Vulcan B2 | Royal Air Force | |
| XN819 | Armstrong Whitworth Argosy C1 | Royal Air Force | Cockpit only |
| XN964/V-118 | Blackburn Buccaneer S1 | Fleet Air Arm | |
| XP226 | Fairey Gannet AEW3 | Fleet Air Arm | |
| XS417/DZ | English Electric Lightning T5 | Royal Air Force | |
| XV490/R | McDonnell Douglas F-4M Phantom FGR2 | Royal Air Force | Cockpit only |
| XX829/GZ | Sepecat Jaguar T2A | Royal Air Force |
Hall A
| REG | A/C TYPE | PREVIOUS OPERATOR | NOTES |
| AR-107 | Saab Draken RF35 | Royal Danish Air Force | |
| ED865/AJ-S | Avro Lancaster B.III | Royal Air Force | Insignificant parts only |
| EJ113/GI-Q | Short Sterling B.III | Royal Air Force | Insignificant parts only |
| G-ALSW | Bristol Sycamore Mk3 | Royal Air Force | Marked WT933 |
| G-APIY | Percival P40 Prentice I | Private | Marked VR249/FA-EL |
| G-APRT | Taylor Monoplane | Private | |
| G-AVVO | Avro C19 Anson 2 | T.A.T. Ltd | Marked VL348 |
| G-AXEI | Ward P.45 Gnome | Private | |
| G-BJAD | Fred 2 | Private | |
| G-BKPY/321 | Saab 91B/2 Safir | Royal Norwegian Air Force | |
| G-CCLT | Powerchute Kestrel | Private | |
| G-MAZY | De Havilland DH82 Tiger Moth | Fleet Air Arm | Marked DE156 |
| G-MBUE | MBA Tiger Cub 440 | Private | |
| G-MJCF | Maxair Sports Hummer | Private | |
| G-MJDW | Eipper Quicksilver MX | Private | |
| L7519 | Avro Manchester B.1 | Royal Air Force | Insignificant parts only |
| LL505 | Handley Page Halifax B.V | Royal Canadian Air Force | Insignificant parts only |
| R5726 | Avro Lancaster B.? | Royal Air Force | Insignificant parts only |
| VH-UTH | General Aircraft GAL Monospar ST.12 | Private | |
| W4838/KM-B | Avro Lancaster B.I | Royal Air Force | Insignificant parts only |
| W4964/WS-J | Avro Lancaster B.I | Royal Air Force | Insignificant parts only |
| WM913/J-456 | Hawker Sea Hawk FB5 | Fleet Air Arm | |
| WV606/F | Percival P56 Provost T1 | Royal Air Force | |
| WW217/O-351 | De Havilland DH112 Sea Venom FAW21 | Fleet Air Arm | |
| WX905 | De Havilland DH112 Venom NF3 | Royal Air Force | |
| XD593 | De Havilland DH115 Vampire T11 | Royal Air Force | |
| XK381 | Auster AOP.9 | Army Air Corps | |
| XL764/J | Skeeter AOP12 | Army Air Corps | |
| XM685/513/PO | Westland Whirlwind HAR7 | Fleet Air Arm | |
| XT200 | Westland-Bell WB.47G-3 Sioux AH1 | Army Air Corps | |
| XW276 | Aerospatiale SA.341 Gazelle | Army Air Corps | |
| XX753 | Sepecat Jaguar GR1 | Royal Air Force | Cockpit only |
Hall B
| REG | A/C TYPE | PREVIOUS OPERATOR | NOTES |
| 37918/57/21 | Saab Viggen AJSH-37 | Swedish Air Force | |
| G-MNRT | Midland Ultralights Sirocco 377GB | Private | |
| VZ608 | Gloster Meteor FR9 | Royal Air Force | |
| WB624 | De Havilland Canada DHC-1 Chipmunk T10 | Royal Air Force | |
| WF369/F | Vickers Varsity T1 | Royal Air Force | |
| WK277/N | Supermarine Swift F4 | Royal Air Force | |
| WS692/C | Armstrong Whitworth Meteor NF12 | Royal Air Force | |
| WT651/C | Hawker Hunter F1 | Royal Air Force | |
| WV787 | English Electric Canberra B2/8 | Royal Air Force | |
| XB261 | Blackburn Beverley C1 | Royal Air Force | Cockpit only |
| XH671 | Handley Page Victor K2 | Royal Air Force | Insignificant parts only |
| XH675 | Handley Page Victor K2 | Royal Air Force | Insignificant parts only |
| XH992/P | Gloster Javelin FAW8 | Royal Air Force | |
| XL158 | Handley Page Victor K2 | Royal Air Force | Insignificant parts only |
| XL160 | Handley Page Victor K2 | Royal Air Force | Insignificant parts only |
| XL161 | Handley Page Victor K2 | Royal Air Force | Insignificant parts only |
| XL189 | Handley Page Victor K2 | Royal Air Force | Insignificant parts only |
| XL192 | Handley Page Victor K2 | Royal Air Force | Insignificant parts only |
| XL388 | Avro Vulcan B2 | Royal Air Force | Insignificant parts only |
| XL392 | Avro Vulcan B2 | Royal Air Force | Insignificant parts only |
| XL512 | Handley Page Victor K2 | Royal Air Force | Insignificant parts only |
| XM383/90 | Hunting Percival Jet Provost T3A | Royal Air Force | |
| XM569 | Avro Vulcan B2 | Royal Air Force | Insignificant parts only |
| XM717 | Handley Page Victor K2 | Royal Air Force | Insignificant parts only |
| XN573/E | Hunting Percival Jet Provost T3 | Royal Air Force | Cockpit only |
| XR534/65 | Folland Gnat T1 | Royal Air Force | |
| XS726/T/9273M | Hawker Siddeley HS.125 Dominie T1 | Royal Air Force | |
| XV728/A | Westland Wessex HC2 | Royal Air Force | |
| XX492/A | Handley Page HP.137 Jetstream T1 | Royal Air Force | |
| XX634/T | Scottish Aviation Bulldog T1 | Royal Air Force | |
| ZA176/R-126 | British Aerospace Sea Harrier F/A2 | Fleet Air Arm |
Whenever we find ourselves in a new town or city, it's becoming tradition that my friend and I will sample the local Chinese Buffet. In the case of Nottingham, we found the excellent "Red Hot World Buffet", when you first go in, you can see they've got it decorated like an airport terminal, but once you get downstairs in to the restaurant itself, you realise just how far they've gone - there's a PA-28 dangling from the ceiling as well as booths that are made from airliner fuselages, plus more airliner fuselage on the walls!! I did contemplate e-mailing them to try and trace the airliner(s) in question, but deemed it a pointless exercise.
Red Hot World Buffet, Nottingham
| REG | A/C TYPE | PREVIOUS OPERATOR | NOTES |
| G-BVBF * | Piper PA-28-151 Cherokee Warrior | Private | |
13/03/15
I was hoping to call in to Nottingham City Airport just to the South East of the city before heading to AeroVenture, but unfortunately time got the better of us again so it was direct to Doncaster, where it turned out we had even less time than we thought, so it was a little bit rushed. I'd heard mixed reviews about AeroVenture, but when we got there we discovered it was until recently in disrepair and has been turned around. It's a little over half the size of Newark and the exhibits are now well kept. Due to the proximity between the two museums there is a fair bit of co-operation between them and you can find exhibits belonging to each museum on loan to the other. AeroVenture is only sign posted from within the Industrial Estate it lies in, it's a nightmare to find from the main road. They have a sizeable Falklands conflict section which I would have liked to have looked at in more depth but couldn't due to being on a clock, so I'll have to go back. I also told them I considered our local museum at Usworth to be poorly looked after, they said it has been recently turned around as well just like theirs so I'll have to go there again next to see for myself!
AeroVenture - South Yorkshire Air Museum
Outdoor Exhibits
| REG | A/C TYPE | PREVIOUS OPERATOR | NOTES |
| 0767 | Aermacchi MB-339AA | Argentine Navy | |
| E-424 | Hawker Hunter F51 | Royal Danish Air Force | |
| G-APMY | Piper PA-23-160 Apache | Mooney Aviation Ltd | |
| G-AVTT | Ercoupe 415D | Firmins Horticulture Ltd | |
| G-BDIN | Scottish Aviation Bulldog 125 | Royal Jordanian Air Force | |
| WF122/CU-575 | Percival P.57 Sea Prince T1 | Fleet Air Arm | |
| WH779 | English Electric Canberra PR7 | Royal Air Force | Cockpit only |
| WJ565 | English Electric Canberra T17 | Royal Air Force | Cockpit only |
| WJ975 | English Electric Canberra T19 | Royal Air Force | Cockpit only |
| XE317 | Bristol Sycamore HR14 | Royal Air Force | Boom only |
| XH584 | English Electric Canberra T4 | Royal Air Force | Cockpit only |
| XL388 | Avro Vulcan B2 | Royal Air Force | Cockpit only |
| XM350/89 | Hunting Percival Jet Provost T3A | Royal Air Force | |
| XN979 | Blackburn Buccaneer S2 | Royal Air Force | Cockpit only |
| XN386 | Westland Whirlwind HAR9 | Fleet Air Arm | |
| XP706 | English Electric Lightning F6 | Royal Air Force | |
| XS887/FI-403 | Westland Wessex HAS1 | Fleet Air Arm | |
| XV139 | Westland Scout AH1 | Army Air Corps | |
| XV677/69 | Westland Sea King HAS6 | Fleet Air Arm | |
| XV752/B | Hawker Siddeley Harrier GR3 | Royal Air Force | |
| XW666 | Hawker Siddeley Nimrod R1 | Royal Air Force | Cockpit and parts only |
| XX477 | Handley Page HP.137 Jetstream T1 | Fleet Air Arm | Fuselage only |
| XX736 | Sepecat Jaguar GR1 | Royal Air Force | Cockpit only |
Hall A
| REG | A/C TYPE | PREVIOUS OPERATOR | NOTES |
| AE-406 | Bell UH-1H-BF Iroquois | Argentinian Army | Boom only |
| BK214 | Vickers Wellington | Royal Air Force | Parts only |
| EI-JWM | Robinson R22 Beta | Glenbeigh Strand Co | |
| G-ACBH | Blackburn B2 series I | Blackburn Aircraft Ltd | Also marked G-ADFO |
| G-AVAA | Reims Cessna F150G | Private | |
| G-AVVR | Avro C19 Anson | Royal Air Force | Cockpit only - marked VP519 |
| G-BCOH | Avro Lancaster B.10AR | Bitteswell Ltd | Parts only - marked KB976 |
| G-DELB | Robinson R22 Beta | Hields Aviation | |
| G-MMDK | Flexiform Striker/Tri-Flyer | Private | |
| G-MVNT | Aerotech MW5(K) Sorcerer | Private | |
| G-MYJX | Whittaker MW8 | Private | |
| G-OPFW | Hawker Siddeley HS.748-2A | Emerald Airways | Cockpit only - Parcel Force c/s |
| N-302 | Hawker Hunter T7 | Royal Danish Air Force | Cockpit only |
| N4565L | Douglas DC-3-201A | Airspeed International Inc | Fuselage only |
| WA662 | Gloster Meteor T7 | Royal Air Force | Forward fuselage only |
| WB733 | De Havilland Canada DHC-1 Chipmunk T10 | Royal Air Force | |
| WJ731 | English Electric Canberra B2 | Royal Air Force | Parts only |
| WJ903 | Vickers Varsity T1 | Royal Air Force | Forward fuselage only |
| WL131 | Gloster Meteor F8 | Royal Air Force | Cockpit only |
| WT741/791 | Hawker Hunter GA11 | Fleet Air Arm | Forward fuselage only |
| XA870/911 | Westland Whirlwind HAR1 | Fleet Air Arm | |
| XE935/30 | De Havilland DH115 Vampire T11 | Royal Air Force | |
| XG297/Y | Hawker Hunter FGA9 | Royal Air Force | Cockpit only |
| XJ398 | Westland Whirlwind HAR10 | Fleet Air Arm | |
| XL160 | Handley Page Victor K2 | Royal Air Force | Parts only |
| XM561 | Skeeter AOP12 | Army Air Corps | Marked XM651 |
| XP190 | Westland Scout AH1 | Army Air Corps | |
| XP345 | Westland Whirlwind HAR10 | Royal Air Force | |
| XP902 | Westland Scout AH1 | Army Air Corps | Cockpit only |
| XS216 | Hunting Percival Jet Provost T4 | Royal Air Force | Cockpit only |
| XS481 | Westland Wessex HU5 | Fleet Air Arm | |
| XT242/12 | Westland-Bell WB.47G-3 Sioux AH1 | Army Air Corps | |
| XX411/X | Westland Gazelle AH1 | Army Air Corps | |
| XX669/13 | Scottish Aviation Bulldog T1 | Royal Air Force | |
| ZD938 | Panavia Tornado F2 | Royal Air Force | Forward fuselage only |
| ZE294/DD | Panavia Tornado F3 | Royal Air Force | Vertical stabiliser only |
Building 19
| REG | A/C TYPE | PREVIOUS OPERATOR | NOTES |
| G-ATXH | Handley Page HP.137 Jetstream 200 | Handley Page Aircraft Ltd | |
| G-BCLW | Grumman-American AA-1B Trainer | Private | |
| G-BOCB | Hawker Siddeley HS.125-1B | McAlpine Aviation | Cockpit only |
| WD935 | English Electric Canberra B2 | Royal Air Force | Cockpit only |
| WJ476 | Vickers Valetta T3 | Royal Air Force | Cockpit only |
| XJ782 | Avro Vulcan B2 | Royal Air Force | Parts only |
| XL149 | Blackburn Beverley C1 | Royal Air Force | Cockpit only |
| XM411 | Hunting Percival Jet Provost T3 | Royal Air Force | Cockpit only |
| XN511/12 | Hunting Percival Jet Provost T3 | Royal Air Force | Cockpit only |
For photos please visit my website airTeesside. Thanks for reading!