Vulcan 903
9th May 2005, 14:13
The Engineering Programme for Avro Vulcan XH558 begins.
Vulcan to the Sky Trust (VTS) and Marshall Aerospace have signed a contract which marks the start of the engineering project to return Avro Vulcan XH558 to flight.
It has taken four years for the VTS Campaign to raise sufficient funds for the Trustees to give the go ahead but this has now happened and work in the hangar at Bruntingthorpe, South Leicestershire will commence immediately. Further monies are still required as the engineering progresses to provide the 'Partnership Funding' required by the Heritage Lottery Fund and it is anticipated that the sight of the progress in the hangar will bring forth the much needed donations.
This will be the biggest heritage aircraft restoration project ever, and brings together Aerospace in the UK under the leadership of Marshall Aerospace as Prime ]Contractor and Engineering Authority. Technical support for the project is being provided by BAE SYSTEMS plc, the aircraft's Design Authority, Goodrich, Meggitt plc, Messier-Dowty ,Rolls-Royce plc, Smiths Aerospace and many other giants of the industry.
"Marshall Aerospace is delighted to have finally signed a contract for supplying Engineering Authority services in support of the Vulcan to the Sky programme, and that funding is now in place to allow the recovery programme to commence. There is now much work to be done with training, maintenance and modifications necessary to secure CAA approval to allow the Vulcan to return to the sky.
Apart from the heritage aspects of the programme and the extraordinary sight of this beautiful aircraft in flight, the long term educational benefits for students and the general public are considerable." Says Mick Milne, Marketing and Business Development Director of the Company.
"This is a truly significant day for all concerned" said Dr Robert Pleming ,Project Director of The Vulcan Operating Company, the division of The Vulcan to the Sky Trust that will manage the return to flight project at Bruntingthorpe. "This is a first, not only because the Heritage Lottery Fund made an 'exceptional' decision to award a grant of £2.73M, but also because a return-to -flight project on this scale has never been attempted before. Also the fact that it is for the benefit of the nation, makes it doubly exciting. We hope that everyone will share in the projects progress and ultimately enjoy the awesome sight that this magnificent aircraft provides in flight.
The engineering project will take a little more than a year, and will culminate in a significant aviation milestone: the Vulcan's first test flight.
The sight and sound of the mighty 111ft wingspan and the deafening roar of the four Rolls-Royce Olympus engines that enable graceful flight at 61,000ft and unequalled manoeuvrability at 500ft will be part of the story being told in the Education project that is being developed alongside the aircraft's restoration project, which will focus on taking the once secret facts of the Cold War, to the widest possible audience."
Far from looking back with this great aircraft that was built to carry the nuclear deterrent of the 50s and 60s, 'Vulcan to the Sky' looks forward to proving how significant the design and engineering of the time was, and how relevant it still is today; to inspiring and delighting new generations to seek to achieve such lasting and worthwhile goals and to understand what contributed to the way history of that time unfolded, the men and women who made it, and the influence it has on our world today.
Vulcan to the Sky Trust (VTS) and Marshall Aerospace have signed a contract which marks the start of the engineering project to return Avro Vulcan XH558 to flight.
It has taken four years for the VTS Campaign to raise sufficient funds for the Trustees to give the go ahead but this has now happened and work in the hangar at Bruntingthorpe, South Leicestershire will commence immediately. Further monies are still required as the engineering progresses to provide the 'Partnership Funding' required by the Heritage Lottery Fund and it is anticipated that the sight of the progress in the hangar will bring forth the much needed donations.
This will be the biggest heritage aircraft restoration project ever, and brings together Aerospace in the UK under the leadership of Marshall Aerospace as Prime ]Contractor and Engineering Authority. Technical support for the project is being provided by BAE SYSTEMS plc, the aircraft's Design Authority, Goodrich, Meggitt plc, Messier-Dowty ,Rolls-Royce plc, Smiths Aerospace and many other giants of the industry.
"Marshall Aerospace is delighted to have finally signed a contract for supplying Engineering Authority services in support of the Vulcan to the Sky programme, and that funding is now in place to allow the recovery programme to commence. There is now much work to be done with training, maintenance and modifications necessary to secure CAA approval to allow the Vulcan to return to the sky.
Apart from the heritage aspects of the programme and the extraordinary sight of this beautiful aircraft in flight, the long term educational benefits for students and the general public are considerable." Says Mick Milne, Marketing and Business Development Director of the Company.
"This is a truly significant day for all concerned" said Dr Robert Pleming ,Project Director of The Vulcan Operating Company, the division of The Vulcan to the Sky Trust that will manage the return to flight project at Bruntingthorpe. "This is a first, not only because the Heritage Lottery Fund made an 'exceptional' decision to award a grant of £2.73M, but also because a return-to -flight project on this scale has never been attempted before. Also the fact that it is for the benefit of the nation, makes it doubly exciting. We hope that everyone will share in the projects progress and ultimately enjoy the awesome sight that this magnificent aircraft provides in flight.
The engineering project will take a little more than a year, and will culminate in a significant aviation milestone: the Vulcan's first test flight.
The sight and sound of the mighty 111ft wingspan and the deafening roar of the four Rolls-Royce Olympus engines that enable graceful flight at 61,000ft and unequalled manoeuvrability at 500ft will be part of the story being told in the Education project that is being developed alongside the aircraft's restoration project, which will focus on taking the once secret facts of the Cold War, to the widest possible audience."
Far from looking back with this great aircraft that was built to carry the nuclear deterrent of the 50s and 60s, 'Vulcan to the Sky' looks forward to proving how significant the design and engineering of the time was, and how relevant it still is today; to inspiring and delighting new generations to seek to achieve such lasting and worthwhile goals and to understand what contributed to the way history of that time unfolded, the men and women who made it, and the influence it has on our world today.