Vulcan XH 558 Threads (merged)
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RSM [won't call you surely...] you have posed the big question. Whether or not Joe Public would be happy with this. Of course, the enthusiast would be happy, but not sure about the rest.
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JM, nail head and hit.
Is it sufficiently important to Joe Public to have the airplane fly or is it just the egos of certain individuals who want to fly it?
Subsiding someone's hobby is an expensive diversion.
Is it sufficiently important to Joe Public to have the airplane fly or is it just the egos of certain individuals who want to fly it?
Subsiding someone's hobby is an expensive diversion.
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I see on the TVOC web site Uncle Bob is issuing the "if everyone just pledges £x" we will be fine number again.
It's sad that the best PR and fundraising they can come up with is a continual "this is the last flight unless".
They have just cried wolf too many times and it is very frustrating seeing them plough such a singular furrow.
Soon we will doubtless have the "why don't we ring Richard Branson" crew again. Some injection of new ideas is so long overdue, perhaps too long.
It's sad that the best PR and fundraising they can come up with is a continual "this is the last flight unless".
They have just cried wolf too many times and it is very frustrating seeing them plough such a singular furrow.
Soon we will doubtless have the "why don't we ring Richard Branson" crew again. Some injection of new ideas is so long overdue, perhaps too long.
There was a seat in the Southend Vulcan auctioned for a fast taxi last year -
How much for a flight in one of 558's cockpit seats?
Yes, I know it would never be allowed due to insurance / elf and sarfty.
FBW
How much for a flight in one of 558's cockpit seats?
Yes, I know it would never be allowed due to insurance / elf and sarfty.
FBW
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Ready to hear some good ideas.........
OK..taking into account, the fund us or the vulcan never flies again, save or scrap, Richard Branson to the rescue corner, Vulcan Credit Card, we blame the CAA, Design Support, owners of the airfield etc etc....
Come up with some new refreshing ideas, that a small team of people could implement in a short time , followed on by more ideas for the medium term.
How would you go about funding such a project, which at the end of the day is about flying an ex atomic delivery machine to the Warsaw Pact to do terrible things to the people living there. But we like the design and the noise it makes.
Regardless if it's a simple £1 scheme or something that can bring in thousands. The re structured team are looking for ideas, even though they might have been suggested before and was ignored.
The re structured team want to hear from you.
Constuctive comments also welcome on moderated open forums or face to face (the TVOC forum is not moderated).
You might have sent ideas suggestions in before, and heard nothing back, but the they are waiting to hear from you.
Don't suggest adding a £1 on an air show ticket, it an't going to happen, they have tried and all those involved in air shows have said NO to that idea.
Contact details on the website or PM me and I will arrange a swap with the contact details.
Come up with some new refreshing ideas, that a small team of people could implement in a short time , followed on by more ideas for the medium term.
How would you go about funding such a project, which at the end of the day is about flying an ex atomic delivery machine to the Warsaw Pact to do terrible things to the people living there. But we like the design and the noise it makes.
Regardless if it's a simple £1 scheme or something that can bring in thousands. The re structured team are looking for ideas, even though they might have been suggested before and was ignored.
The re structured team want to hear from you.
Constuctive comments also welcome on moderated open forums or face to face (the TVOC forum is not moderated).
You might have sent ideas suggestions in before, and heard nothing back, but the they are waiting to hear from you.
Don't suggest adding a £1 on an air show ticket, it an't going to happen, they have tried and all those involved in air shows have said NO to that idea.
Contact details on the website or PM me and I will arrange a swap with the contact details.
Last edited by Vulcan 903; 7th Dec 2008 at 12:14.
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Who is this "new team" and why have they appeared? What's happened to the old people? I noticed somebody on UKAR talking as if he was presiding over TVOC's publicity now - you'd think he'd have better things to do than argue endlessly with plane spotters...
I'm inclined to say that if TVOC really do want to hear from people with serious ideas, they should try going-back and re-tracing ideas and offers that they've received in the past - and ignored. I know of various people who tried to help with practical ideas and who were ignored, myself included.
As has been said before, the best thing TVOC could do is stop letting Dr.Pleming and others talk to the media with his endless "this is our last chance" chat. It's been said so many times that nobody listens. Fundamentally, TVOC needs a spokesman who is articulate, knows all the facts and figures, and who isn't going to talk nonsense when a microphone is shoved in front of him.
The other fundamental problem concerns the number of people that TVOC pays and how much they're being paid. I've received so many tales from people (often in confidence) over past years highlighting just how much money is spent on people, rather than the aircraft. It's time that every penny was acounted for clearly, so that potential donors can see precisely what they've supporting.
As for the idea of adding money to show admission tickets, I'm amused to read that the idea has been refused. Personally, I think the answer to that is clear - if the show organiser is unwilling to stick a Pound or so on the admission ticket to pay for the Vulcan, then don't send the Vulcan. For example, it wouldn't exactly ruin RIAT to stick a couple of quid on their overpriced admission fees to support the Vulcan. So if they've been approached about this and refused, then don't send the Vulcan along. It's their loss.
But as I've said before, I think it's pretty clear that the project isn't going to run for too long, given that insufficient money has been found and little more is likely to miraculously appear under the present circumstances. If TVOC have any sense at all (and are not primarily interested in keeping their well-paid positions) they'll use their time to look at potential homes in the US for the aircraft so that when they do have to finally admit that the aircraft can't fly here any longer, it can at least be flown-out of the UK before the posionous CAA prevent it from ever escaping. It might fare no better in the US but at least there's a faint hope of survival over there, whereas even a temporary grounding in the UK is almost certain to ensure that the aircraft remains grounded forever.
I'm inclined to say that if TVOC really do want to hear from people with serious ideas, they should try going-back and re-tracing ideas and offers that they've received in the past - and ignored. I know of various people who tried to help with practical ideas and who were ignored, myself included.
As has been said before, the best thing TVOC could do is stop letting Dr.Pleming and others talk to the media with his endless "this is our last chance" chat. It's been said so many times that nobody listens. Fundamentally, TVOC needs a spokesman who is articulate, knows all the facts and figures, and who isn't going to talk nonsense when a microphone is shoved in front of him.
The other fundamental problem concerns the number of people that TVOC pays and how much they're being paid. I've received so many tales from people (often in confidence) over past years highlighting just how much money is spent on people, rather than the aircraft. It's time that every penny was acounted for clearly, so that potential donors can see precisely what they've supporting.
As for the idea of adding money to show admission tickets, I'm amused to read that the idea has been refused. Personally, I think the answer to that is clear - if the show organiser is unwilling to stick a Pound or so on the admission ticket to pay for the Vulcan, then don't send the Vulcan. For example, it wouldn't exactly ruin RIAT to stick a couple of quid on their overpriced admission fees to support the Vulcan. So if they've been approached about this and refused, then don't send the Vulcan along. It's their loss.
But as I've said before, I think it's pretty clear that the project isn't going to run for too long, given that insufficient money has been found and little more is likely to miraculously appear under the present circumstances. If TVOC have any sense at all (and are not primarily interested in keeping their well-paid positions) they'll use their time to look at potential homes in the US for the aircraft so that when they do have to finally admit that the aircraft can't fly here any longer, it can at least be flown-out of the UK before the posionous CAA prevent it from ever escaping. It might fare no better in the US but at least there's a faint hope of survival over there, whereas even a temporary grounding in the UK is almost certain to ensure that the aircraft remains grounded forever.
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Some of us may have missed the point here. £1.9 million for next year. OK , let's say that a benefactor comes up with £2.0 million. That, according to the estimate will cover next year. What about the years to come? Will we be having this conversation again next year? We most certainly will.
For such a complex and costly operation, a five year plan say at least is required. You cannot live on a day to day basis with this aircraft. Work out a five year plan. What do you want to do with the aircraft for the next five years? How much will it cost? What level of despatch reliability are you looking for? Is it acheiveable and how much will that cost? Is the operation sustainable logistics wise? Is there enough technical expertise available (ground and aircrew)? Are the OEM willing to continue supporing the aircaft? Is so, for how long?
Until those and many, many more questions are being discussed and positive responses obtained, keep the a/c functional and under cover. Aircraft have two areas that they should be. In a hangar or flying. They should not be kept outside for extended periods and not flying. At present, the only saving grace for XH558 is that it is under cover in a controlled environment whilst it future is being determined. How long will this continue to be the case? Whoever is making the decisions on the future of XH558, I would ask, do not let your heart rule your head and look further ahead than perhaps you are doing at the moment.
The Vulcan is a wonderful aircraft to see flying, but a generation has grown up not ever seeing the a/c before and the appeal is mainly with us that are getting older. Many of us remember the less sanitised Vulcan displays. I saw the Vulcan flying at Farnborough this year and whilst I still had a lump in my throat (ooops, emotion shown there, mustn't do that!) there was something missing. Driving home I was thinking that perhaps I should have remembered the 'last' display at Cranfield when the bomb bay doors opened to say 'Farewell' and kept that very special mememory in my mind rather than continue in hope that I may see the vigorous Vulcan display once more rather than the watered down version. It was rather like seeing a F1 car doing laps of Silverstone, at 45 mph. Some things are best left alone perhaps. Well done to all involved in getting one more season out of the a/c and I do wish all concerned the very best for the future, but please run the operation as a business, and not a charity.
Temps
For such a complex and costly operation, a five year plan say at least is required. You cannot live on a day to day basis with this aircraft. Work out a five year plan. What do you want to do with the aircraft for the next five years? How much will it cost? What level of despatch reliability are you looking for? Is it acheiveable and how much will that cost? Is the operation sustainable logistics wise? Is there enough technical expertise available (ground and aircrew)? Are the OEM willing to continue supporing the aircaft? Is so, for how long?
Until those and many, many more questions are being discussed and positive responses obtained, keep the a/c functional and under cover. Aircraft have two areas that they should be. In a hangar or flying. They should not be kept outside for extended periods and not flying. At present, the only saving grace for XH558 is that it is under cover in a controlled environment whilst it future is being determined. How long will this continue to be the case? Whoever is making the decisions on the future of XH558, I would ask, do not let your heart rule your head and look further ahead than perhaps you are doing at the moment.
The Vulcan is a wonderful aircraft to see flying, but a generation has grown up not ever seeing the a/c before and the appeal is mainly with us that are getting older. Many of us remember the less sanitised Vulcan displays. I saw the Vulcan flying at Farnborough this year and whilst I still had a lump in my throat (ooops, emotion shown there, mustn't do that!) there was something missing. Driving home I was thinking that perhaps I should have remembered the 'last' display at Cranfield when the bomb bay doors opened to say 'Farewell' and kept that very special mememory in my mind rather than continue in hope that I may see the vigorous Vulcan display once more rather than the watered down version. It was rather like seeing a F1 car doing laps of Silverstone, at 45 mph. Some things are best left alone perhaps. Well done to all involved in getting one more season out of the a/c and I do wish all concerned the very best for the future, but please run the operation as a business, and not a charity.
Temps
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That goes back to what I was saying. The aircraft is under cover for now but that situation is unlikely to last forever. David Walton needs the hangar space for revenue-raising storage so you couldn't blame him for wanting the aircraft removed if the project stalls. There's a certain dark inevitability about it all. You can see how it's going to go - TVOC will continue making pleas for dontations and sponsorship and there will never be enough cash to keep the aircraft flying. Hopefully it will re-appear next year but I doubt that it will be around for long. Once the money is gone, it will be on the ground, requiring money just to keep it in a viable condition.
Once it reaches that stage, it's doomed. Walton will eventually want the aircraft out of the hangar (he's unlikely to allow it to stay there, costing him money, if there's no prospect of it flying) and so it'll go outside where it will rapidly deteriorate. The CAA will continue imposing ridiculous and unattainable rules on the aircraft until it rapidly reaches a state where there isn't even enough money to fly the aircraft out of Bruntingthorpe, even if hangar space is found elsewhere. Then what? It will be left there to rot.
Surely, TVOC ought to have the foresight to accept that despite their efforts, there is no pot of money that will miraculously appear, and even if they struggle through into next year's display season, the future is bleak. It's sad but it's clear to everybody. So the only option left is to start looking across the Atantic where FAA regulations are much less nazi-esque, where the weather conditions are much better (and external storage doesn't necessarily mean abandonment), and there is at least a faint glimmer of hope that somebody might be found who can provide funds to fly the aircraft now and again. I accept that it's not much more likely than here in the UK, but it's got to be worth a try. What is the alternative? I suspect it will look something like the above.
This hair-brained idea of retiring the aircraft to Duxford doesn't make sense either. If that happens it will sit outside, gradually deteriorating, making occasional taxy runs to attract punters to the museum. Once even that becomes too expensive, the aircraft will be abandoned. They already have a Vulcan under cover so they're unlikely to find space for another. Given Duxford's track record, they will probably scrap the aircraft when they get bored with it.
It's a sad business and having been a close follower of the project for many years (because of my interest in my various book projects and photography work etc.) there's nothing I'd like more than to see the aircraft back on the show circuit for many years to come. I'm a huge fan of the magnificent Vulcan. But let's be realistic - patently it isn't going to happen. So it must be better to accept reality and look at what could be salvaged, rather than simply plodding-along, ostrich-like, until it's too late to prevent the aircraft being lost forever.
More cynical observers could easily conclude that the muddled, constantly-changing, semi-secret and often confusing attitude of TVOC suggests that some of the people involved are more interested in maintaining their well-paid jobs, rather than having the real interests of the aircraft's future at heart. I think quite a few of us would like our suspicions to be proved wrong but I see very little evidence to persuade us.
Once it reaches that stage, it's doomed. Walton will eventually want the aircraft out of the hangar (he's unlikely to allow it to stay there, costing him money, if there's no prospect of it flying) and so it'll go outside where it will rapidly deteriorate. The CAA will continue imposing ridiculous and unattainable rules on the aircraft until it rapidly reaches a state where there isn't even enough money to fly the aircraft out of Bruntingthorpe, even if hangar space is found elsewhere. Then what? It will be left there to rot.
Surely, TVOC ought to have the foresight to accept that despite their efforts, there is no pot of money that will miraculously appear, and even if they struggle through into next year's display season, the future is bleak. It's sad but it's clear to everybody. So the only option left is to start looking across the Atantic where FAA regulations are much less nazi-esque, where the weather conditions are much better (and external storage doesn't necessarily mean abandonment), and there is at least a faint glimmer of hope that somebody might be found who can provide funds to fly the aircraft now and again. I accept that it's not much more likely than here in the UK, but it's got to be worth a try. What is the alternative? I suspect it will look something like the above.
This hair-brained idea of retiring the aircraft to Duxford doesn't make sense either. If that happens it will sit outside, gradually deteriorating, making occasional taxy runs to attract punters to the museum. Once even that becomes too expensive, the aircraft will be abandoned. They already have a Vulcan under cover so they're unlikely to find space for another. Given Duxford's track record, they will probably scrap the aircraft when they get bored with it.
It's a sad business and having been a close follower of the project for many years (because of my interest in my various book projects and photography work etc.) there's nothing I'd like more than to see the aircraft back on the show circuit for many years to come. I'm a huge fan of the magnificent Vulcan. But let's be realistic - patently it isn't going to happen. So it must be better to accept reality and look at what could be salvaged, rather than simply plodding-along, ostrich-like, until it's too late to prevent the aircraft being lost forever.
More cynical observers could easily conclude that the muddled, constantly-changing, semi-secret and often confusing attitude of TVOC suggests that some of the people involved are more interested in maintaining their well-paid jobs, rather than having the real interests of the aircraft's future at heart. I think quite a few of us would like our suspicions to be proved wrong but I see very little evidence to persuade us.
What is it with you and the CAA? They have been very on-side throughout the whole Vulcan to the Sky project and do not deserve your bitchy comments.
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That's the second time you have posted with those comments. Beagle, without a reply I notice. Tim, I'm with you on pretty well everything, but with Beagle re CAA. Would you care to answer his comments??
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Yep - I agree, the CAA have been behind this project 100%. At the offeset the CAA was approached and requested Q&A's over the return to flight. This was supplied which gave the CAA further confidence in the project team (remembering others in the 1980's who wanted to fly the Vulcan and failed).
The air crew headed by DT wrote the Flight Ops Manual which satified the CAA.
Then of course this year, the CAA gave the flight permit and the DA to the crew in record time.
This goes to show that one area of the VOC did very well and met the expectations of the CAA.
The air crew headed by DT wrote the Flight Ops Manual which satified the CAA.
Then of course this year, the CAA gave the flight permit and the DA to the crew in record time.
This goes to show that one area of the VOC did very well and met the expectations of the CAA.
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My observation that the TVOC was being run by the military, or ex-military,not businessmen, was shot down in flames. My suggestion that the public pay to see the beast was greeted with indifference, save Tim.
Therein lies the problem: it is all very well suggesting how to proceed, as TVOC have run out of ideas, but someone always says" it will never work". Well, frankly, you don't know until you try.
Firstly, establish who wants to see the Vulcan: if it's just a group of die hard enthusiasts then the answer is to hangar it, or museum it. If you can provide market research showing that 2 million people want to see it display, you have a market to tap to pay for it.
One other solution is to ration the the UK / European displays and to fit it with long range nav kit and take it to the US;they tend to be more favourable to old airplanes than we do in Europe.
Finally, as a stop gap, sell the space on the airframe:the DP paint job can be made up from millions upon millions of small images. Offer it up as "Have your picture on the Vulcan" and repaint, or decl the airframe, so that the DP paint job isn't compromised but "Little Jimmy or Knackered Old Sh1t V Force Nav" can have his picture on the jet.
Therein lies the problem: it is all very well suggesting how to proceed, as TVOC have run out of ideas, but someone always says" it will never work". Well, frankly, you don't know until you try.
Firstly, establish who wants to see the Vulcan: if it's just a group of die hard enthusiasts then the answer is to hangar it, or museum it. If you can provide market research showing that 2 million people want to see it display, you have a market to tap to pay for it.
One other solution is to ration the the UK / European displays and to fit it with long range nav kit and take it to the US;they tend to be more favourable to old airplanes than we do in Europe.
Finally, as a stop gap, sell the space on the airframe:the DP paint job can be made up from millions upon millions of small images. Offer it up as "Have your picture on the Vulcan" and repaint, or decl the airframe, so that the DP paint job isn't compromised but "Little Jimmy or Knackered Old Sh1t V Force Nav" can have his picture on the jet.
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Sorry Beagle, I didn't know you'd mentioned the CAA before. Think my views on the CAA are well documented. It's fine to say that they have been very helpful but that's rather like the way in which the Inland Revenue is extremeny helpful in parting you from your hard-earned cash. They can claim to be as helpful as they like but it's no secret that the CAA is probably the root cause of so many restoration projects never achievening success - and also partly to blame for the gradual decline in viable air show venues. Their excessive rules and regulations are probably applauded by modern-thinking "health and safety" obsessives but they go way too far. I don't want to bore anybody with long discussions of all the ridiculous regulations that they impose - most have been raised on Pprune somewhere or other, but I'm sure you know where I'm coming from!
There's good reason to ensure the safety of any aircraft that might be floating around over our gardens but the CAA patently don't know when enough is enough. The Vulcan would have undoubtedly flown much sooner and at reduced expense had it not been undertaken in the UK (or other similar European countries). It's interesting to note that the guys at Coventry are now attempting to get their Shackleton back into the air but when Mr Collett has already given-up in despair after trying to simply bring-back his Shackleton from the US - which was already airworthy, you have to put the blame firmly on the CAA's doorstep (Mike certainly did and he should know) and assume that the CAA will succeed in keeping the second Shackleton firmly grounded too.
PS Slim - the idea of painting sponsorship markings on the aircraft is probably the chief reason why no major sponsorship has been forthcoming. TVOC evidently have no appetite for covering the aircraft in corporate liveries or logos and HLF would doubtless be unimpressed too, as it would contradict the terms of their donation - the aircraft is supposedly being used as a touring exhibit to show youngsters a representative of the Cold War V-Force. Consequently, anything other than camouflage would be rather ill-advised. Good thing too I think - heaven forbid that XH558 ended-up like the poor Sea Vixen did for so long! Mind you, one wonders whether XH558's current paint scheme is appropriate, given that no operational V-Bomber ever wore colours like that... but that's another story!
There's good reason to ensure the safety of any aircraft that might be floating around over our gardens but the CAA patently don't know when enough is enough. The Vulcan would have undoubtedly flown much sooner and at reduced expense had it not been undertaken in the UK (or other similar European countries). It's interesting to note that the guys at Coventry are now attempting to get their Shackleton back into the air but when Mr Collett has already given-up in despair after trying to simply bring-back his Shackleton from the US - which was already airworthy, you have to put the blame firmly on the CAA's doorstep (Mike certainly did and he should know) and assume that the CAA will succeed in keeping the second Shackleton firmly grounded too.
PS Slim - the idea of painting sponsorship markings on the aircraft is probably the chief reason why no major sponsorship has been forthcoming. TVOC evidently have no appetite for covering the aircraft in corporate liveries or logos and HLF would doubtless be unimpressed too, as it would contradict the terms of their donation - the aircraft is supposedly being used as a touring exhibit to show youngsters a representative of the Cold War V-Force. Consequently, anything other than camouflage would be rather ill-advised. Good thing too I think - heaven forbid that XH558 ended-up like the poor Sea Vixen did for so long! Mind you, one wonders whether XH558's current paint scheme is appropriate, given that no operational V-Bomber ever wore colours like that... but that's another story!
Cunning Artificer
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....a touring exhibit to show youngsters a representative of the Cold War V-Force.
Most of today's general public think of the military as a bunch of dangerous warmongering tools of GWB and our serving military men don't wear uniform outside the station anymore, for fear of offending them.
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the idea of painting sponsorship markings on the aircraft is probably the chief reason why no major sponsorship has been forthcoming. TVOC evidently have no appetite for covering the aircraft in corporate liveries or logos and HLF would doubtless be unimpressed too, as it would contradict the terms of their donation - the aircraft is supposedly being used as a touring exhibit to show youngsters a representative of the Cold War V-Force. Consequently, anything other than camouflage would be rather ill-advised. Good thing too I think - heaven forbid that XH558 ended-up like the poor Sea Vixen did for so long!
Is there any real possibilty of corporate sponsorship if the 'paint scheme' issue is dropped? If so, it should be taken!
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There are plenty of non-flying Vulcans around to show what they looked like back in the day.
I'm making my nostalgia driven pledge anyway....
Dear Supporter
You are reading this email because you were happy to let the Vulcan to the Sky Trust or Club have your email address.
In August 2006, Vulcan to the Sky launched a pledge campaign to save Vulcan XH558. The response to that campaign was staggering, with £1.3 million being pledged or donated in just three weeks.
As the direct consequence, Vulcan XH558 returned to flight in 2007 and was the unquestionable star of airshows last summer - entertaining a total audience estimated at 1.5 million people.
Unfortunately, Vulcan XH558 will now be grounded unless further funding of £1million is identified by end of January 2009.
Despite the current economic conditions, we are determined to keep XH558 flying. Confounding everyone's expectations, we succeeded in 2006, and with your help, we can succeed again.
The Vulcan '09 Pledge Campaign is aimed at raising the funds that XH558 needs, so please sign up and play your part in securing the future of the world's only flying Vulcan.
These pledges will allow the project to pay its monthly expenses, clear debt and provide a stable financial footing for the future. Importantly, it will also give us the breathing space to convert last summer's success into secure long-term commercial funding.
Meanwhile, if you are able to make a cash donation, it will help to secure the project's short-term future.
If each of the 9000 people being sent this email were to pledge just £10 per month then our target would be met. This is equivalent to less than one small bar of chocolate a day - or less than one pint of beer a week - a small sacrifice compared to the pleasure of seeing XH558 flying through 2009!!
Your pledge will only be called upon when the £1million target is in sight.
Please now click here to make your pledge.
Even if you are unable to make a pledge at the moment, please help support XH558 by signing the "Number10" Petition by clicking http://petitions.number10.gov.uk/vulcan-XH558/
Please forward this email on to any of your family, friends and colleagues who might be willing to help.
On behalf of all XH558's supporters, our sincere & heartfelt thanks for helping to keep her flying through 2009.
Robert PlemingChief Executive
Vulcan to the Sky Trust
This email has been sent to you by ISSL on behalf of VTST.
You are reading this email because you were happy to let the Vulcan to the Sky Trust or Club have your email address.
In August 2006, Vulcan to the Sky launched a pledge campaign to save Vulcan XH558. The response to that campaign was staggering, with £1.3 million being pledged or donated in just three weeks.
As the direct consequence, Vulcan XH558 returned to flight in 2007 and was the unquestionable star of airshows last summer - entertaining a total audience estimated at 1.5 million people.
Unfortunately, Vulcan XH558 will now be grounded unless further funding of £1million is identified by end of January 2009.
Despite the current economic conditions, we are determined to keep XH558 flying. Confounding everyone's expectations, we succeeded in 2006, and with your help, we can succeed again.
The Vulcan '09 Pledge Campaign is aimed at raising the funds that XH558 needs, so please sign up and play your part in securing the future of the world's only flying Vulcan.
These pledges will allow the project to pay its monthly expenses, clear debt and provide a stable financial footing for the future. Importantly, it will also give us the breathing space to convert last summer's success into secure long-term commercial funding.
Meanwhile, if you are able to make a cash donation, it will help to secure the project's short-term future.
If each of the 9000 people being sent this email were to pledge just £10 per month then our target would be met. This is equivalent to less than one small bar of chocolate a day - or less than one pint of beer a week - a small sacrifice compared to the pleasure of seeing XH558 flying through 2009!!
Your pledge will only be called upon when the £1million target is in sight.
Please now click here to make your pledge.
Even if you are unable to make a pledge at the moment, please help support XH558 by signing the "Number10" Petition by clicking http://petitions.number10.gov.uk/vulcan-XH558/
Please forward this email on to any of your family, friends and colleagues who might be willing to help.
On behalf of all XH558's supporters, our sincere & heartfelt thanks for helping to keep her flying through 2009.
Robert PlemingChief Executive
Vulcan to the Sky Trust
This email has been sent to you by ISSL on behalf of VTST.
Indeed. The display was very tame compared to years gone by, but with good reasons. Hopefully that will change in future once the necessary spar work is carried out.
Probably a mute point now anyway, as in the current financial climate, I don't think she'll see air under her wings again, or certainly not for next season at least.
Join Date: Apr 2008
Location: Kettering
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It was lovely to see the old girl this year. But I doubt we'll see her next year, and the display is so tame she's a shadow of her former self anyway (maybe the new pilots will be better if they get the chance?). I was very disappointed to see TVOC failed to come through on their promises of a supporters day, and failed to put the supporters names (mine among them) on the bomb bay doors - something we paid for several years ago. Some guff about needing vinyl that could stay on at 500 knots was the excuse I got when I asked why. Funny, black gaffer tape did the job 20 years ago and I didn't see many "500 knot open door" passes this year. None actually!
Tim McLelland's comments re CAA show just how much of a yawning chasm his ignorance is on their involvement and support of the project; a chasm that includes his knowledge of TVOC staff salaries. They've publicised their outgoings and a bit of simple maths with those bearing in mind the 20 or so people they employ clearly show nobody's making a mint out of being employed by TVOC. Jealousy is a very British disease so I guess they must have told Tim to shove off when he wanted to hop on the bandwagon?
Tim McLelland's comments re CAA show just how much of a yawning chasm his ignorance is on their involvement and support of the project; a chasm that includes his knowledge of TVOC staff salaries. They've publicised their outgoings and a bit of simple maths with those bearing in mind the 20 or so people they employ clearly show nobody's making a mint out of being employed by TVOC. Jealousy is a very British disease so I guess they must have told Tim to shove off when he wanted to hop on the bandwagon?