Latest news of the "other" V bomber!!
12th June 2009. THE BROOKLANDS VIMY RETURNS TO CLIFDEN TO COMMEMORATE THE 90TH ANNIVERSARY OF ALCOCK AND BROWN’S 1919 TRANSATLANTIC FLIGHT.
Brooklands Museum’s historic airworthy Vickers Vimy replica NX71MY arrived back in Ireland yesterday as part of the 90th anniversary celebrations of Alcock and Brown’s historic landfall there in June 1919 after making the world’s first non-stop transatlantic flight.
In 2005, this same aeroplane, piloted by Mark Rebholz, and the late Steve Fossett, took off from Newfoundland completing the epic journey in 18 hours, 22 minutes, retracing Alcock and Brown’s heroic flight before landing on the golf course at Ballyconneely, Galway.
After a 5-hour flight yesterday from Duxford Airfield in Cambridgeshire, the Brooklands Vimy crossed the Irish Sea in bright sunshine and near perfect weather conditions before landing at Galway Airport at 18.00 hours.
Brooklands Museum’s chief pilot, John Dodd, arrived with a huge smile on his face, and told the waiting crowd “that was fantastic, the Vimy performed like a dream and it was so enjoyable that we were tempted to keep on flying”.
Engineer and co-pilot, Clive Edwards, said “the aircraft performed faultlessly and of the many historic aircraft that I have worked on, the Vimy goes down as the best experience of all”.
Brooklands Museum General Manager, Julian Temple, said “after the Vimy successfully completed the transatlantic re-enactment in 2005 she was donated to Brooklands Museum and we are delighted to be in Clifden this weekend to pay tribute to Alcock and Brown and what we consider to be the most important flight in aviation history”.
At a press conference today at Galway Airport to launch tomorrow’s Connemara Air Show, the Vimy was photographed flying over Galway and was then joined by two “Team Guinot” Stearman biplanes complete with wing- walkers for a unique formation flypast.
At the Connemara Air Show on Saturday, June 13th, at Clifden, the Vimy will be the star attraction of the afternoon’s air display.
For more information visit
Brooklands Museum and
www.connemaraairshow.ie. or contact Julian Temple on 07871 085049.