Chateau de Savigny

[Hireandhire]

Hi all:
Strayed here from my normal GA forum to say.....
(Cannot find this from a thread search so apologies if done before.)
......Visited www.chateau-savigny.com near Beaune last week. Family hols, it has to be done.
http://chateau-savigny.com/htfr/0006.htm
80+ old 1950s jet fighters inc three meteors, hunter, migs, vampires, venom, loads of mirages ThunderJet, F104 etc etc. and a solitary Harvard.
All out in the open and gently rotting away. I don't know how to feel about that.
Full marks for saving from the scrapper, but nil point for stabilising their condition for the long term?
I don't know what else to suggest but please visit if you can and thus help towards their upkeep!
There are also lots of old motorbikes and an Abarth collection for the multi-type enthusiasts
regards
HnH

[sled dog]

You forgot the ex 23 Sqdn ( ? ) F1A Lightning.........
I was there ( for the second time recently ) and would strongly recommend a visit if in the Beaune area. The Chateau is about 8 kms N.W of Beaune. I could weep at the condition of most of the a/c, but a small volunteer group can only do so much. The local grape is very good, too.

[Mike6567]

I visited earlier this week while on a wine tour.
Still all gently corroding away. Rather a shame
Does anyone have a link to details of when and how the collection (of old fighter jets) was formed?

[skytrain10]

For those who have not had the opportunity to visit this collection, here is a link to some photo's I took during a visit in 2010 (oddly enough on a wine tour at the time!)
https://picasaweb.google.com/kenfdyer/ChateauDeSavigny
It's a shame about the state of some of the exhibits, but nevertheless it is an amazing collection.

[Mike6567]

Good photos. I notice the mention of the Lightning by sled above and also your photo, however during my visit I was unable to locate it.

Strange as I was keen to point one out to my beloved to compare it with others of its generation. It may have been moved/ taken?

[skytrain10]

Hi Mike. I think they do move aircraft around from time to time. They also have some workshops on the estate somewhere (unfortunately I didn't have time to find them) so perhaps it had been moved there - or as you say - moved on to pastures new. I saw a report for last Summer which showed the Lightning as current then. Providing it's not been scrapped I'm sure it will be reported somewhere - watch out for XM178.

[Lightning Mate]

That Lightning, skytrain, ain't painted in 23 Sqn. colours as someone has suggested, and from the right side I can't tell if it's an F1 or F1A.

However, it looks like the 23 emblem has been removed from the fin.

[skytrain10]

I'm no expert on the squadron marks but I can confirm it's a F1A.

[Lightning Mate]

Check out the fin.....

[Lightning Mate]

If only it looked like it used to...........

[Mike6567]

I obviously missed Lightning XM178 though it is not listed on this site:

Chateau de Savigny les Beaune, Savigny-les-Beaunes, France

So at some stage in the past poor old XM178 was loaded on a trailer and transported from Leuchars to Savigny les Baune. Where did all the others come from? To do this about 80 times must have required some enthusiasm.

Later. My mistake it is listed as BAC Lightning (I was looking for English Electric..)

[barit1]

47.06 4.82 and zoom in.

[sled dog]

Last summer the Lightning was parked between the Meteor T7 and a Vautour, second row of a/c. Still rotting away, like many others.......

[Mike6567]

XM178

XM178 earlier this week. Still there with paint fading a bit.