Meteor experts required
 

A friend of mine (with a fantastic knowledge of aviation history!) has asked for help in getting information on a picture he has of an all-silver Meteor FR9, (VZ608), taken at an air show static display, and sporting a dorsal scoop air intake behind the canopy.

I WILL try to get said friend to register here and then we can benefit from his inputs, but in the mean time I have posted his query here. I am not sure of the copyright of the picture he has sent me of the Meteor so I will not link to that.

VZ608 was a Rolls-Royce testbed, delivered to the engine manufacturer in 1951. It was based at Hucknall and used for a variety of trials with Derwent 8 engines, including afterburner and thrust reverse installations. In 1955 it had an R-R RB.108 vertical lift engine installed in the main fuel tank bay aft of the cockpit, exhausting at an angle of 30 degrees to the datum in the belly area where the ventral fuel tank would have been. Fuel for Derwents and RB.108 was supplied from permanently installed underwing tanks, limiting safe endurance to just 30 minutes — the RB.108 was usually started in the air. Miles Aircraft subsequently modified the installation to test the engine in the true vertical thrust position, and installed a replica of the Short SC.1's dorsal intake. It first flew in this configuration from RAF Tangmere on 18 May 1956, and returned to Hucknall five days later to continue the vertical lift research programme.

Re Meteor VZ608
 

Not too many of those with a ventral scoop, and the fading grey cells remembered seeing one once....so a search on google under the serial number took me to the Newark Museum, where the RB108 testbed Meteor now lives. If memory serves me right, it was associated with development of the Short SC1, but I am sure the crew at Newark would be happy to supply more information, and perhaps let you have a sit inside as well.

Great museum at Newark, always pop in when passing, as there is always something new. Hope this helps.

Great guys - thank you. What a fantastic 'information centre' Pprune is!

Here is a pic of VZ608 in its SC1 programme days. Note the caption to the pic gives the wrong reggie, but it can be seen on the a/c.

http://www.pbase.com/image/13842503