Interesting debate, this.
The original assertion that XH558 will be reduced to produce if TVOC fail to secure an HLF grant is indeed worrying. But the most worrying thing for me is that this eventuallity could not have been unforeseen, which means TVOC made a gross error of judgement in commencing the project before funding had been secured. And if, conversely, TVOC had NOT seen this coming, then that points to an incredible level of naivety.
Hmm. Gross error of judgement vs naivety. Not exactly the qualities you to see displayed by an organisation which aspires to return a Vulcan to the sky.
I'd dearly love to see a Vulcan fly again, and would love my son to be able to see it for the first time ever. That's why I, like many others, put my hand in my pocket. Do I want that money back? Of course not. I'm realistic enough to know that it's been spent. Whether it was spent wisely is another matter entirely.
Sadly, I feel the very best we can hope for is that XH558 somehow is returned to taxiable status. But I'd say that's unlikely. A taxiable, revenue earning aeroplane has been reduced to a pile of parts in a hangar, with no firm assurances, plans or finances to restore the status quo. At best, it's highly irresponsible. At worst, it's akin to organised vandalism.