Belfast and Guppy news
 

An ex-HeavyLift pilot flew down to Bournemouth on Friday (30/11) and happened to be parked near the Guppy. It was being worked on by Mike McKeever and the owner (who also owns G-HLFT in Cairns). They still have plans to get both flying again. :ok:

Won't happen RR Tyne does not have a Type certificate and neither Airframe Manufacturer support the airframes anymore. Buy AN12...... cheaper

Hope
 

Does the J47 still have a type certificate? Or the Gnome Mono? Doesn't seem to stop them flying...

Heavy Transport Category on any ICAO Cat 1 Country 121 certificate requires Manufacturer support. Maybe in deep Dark Africa not required but you have to get out of the UK first ??? Also TCAS 7.1 for EASA airspace comes to mind......

If it isn't for commercial use it's totally pointless, isn't it?
Comparing a boring old 4 engine turboprop to the Vulcan is hardly like for-like is it, not in a million years.
The number of people who'd actually get excited over a Belfast or Guppy at an airshow(or anywhere else) must be tiny - they are hardly iconic thyes that capture the public's imagination I'm afraid. If you get off on 4 engine turboprops go shmooze up to a C130 - what's the difference? I suspect 75% of airshow visitors would balrely even notice them!

I have to say that anyday I'd rather watch 'a boring old 4 engine turboprop', like a CL-44 or a Belfast, than a Vulcan. But then, I'm not one of the crowd that goes 'oh, ah' everytime they see a Spitfire or a Mustang!

What happened to the crowd funding? idea earlier this year?
Last time I was at Hurn looking at the CL44 through the fence a chap who worked at the airport said there was a dispute over ownership, but the aircraft was still worked on as and when.
Somebody must be spending money.Would love to see it fly again, but surely it is not going to happen.

Photo taken on 30th Nov.

Locals will be quite glad to see it move...and if it tries to fly hopefully off 08 as quite a few of us live at the West End !

https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/pprune....5ec5475e82.jpg

Is that a picture of the Mike is it not cold in December ?? What did he do with the #3 Propellor and at least it did not set the grass on fire again, bit green this time of year.

It is FAA registered N447FT to a guy in Arizona who would be the owner or holding it for a non US Citizen owner so would not be much of a dispute if FAA register was searched. Technically he is the owner unless a US Court says otherwise.

Global warming, dear sir, global warming!

Only two frosts so far this winter. Most days the temp. is 10 to 12 degrees C at the moment. My grass needs cutting.

Military only there is NO Civilian Type certificate or Commercial support from RR for Commercial ops.

I thought this had been impounded and reposessed by the airport authorties due to non-payment of parking charges?? How many more years is this going on with nothing happening?

Hey go easy its the hobby of the weekend warriors..........Lighting up the grass and the massive fire they started thus closing the airport last summer would not have helped their cause.

They should have left it in the USA, had a look in the aircraft at DTVA when it was there, even back then it just lacked a few chickens roosting in the panels!

He he "...should of.." - spoken like a true Bristolian. Where you to? :)

10 so far this winter in Bristol at 5.30a.m?

Yes, I am that anal to record them when I get up.

No, it's where be you to?
;)

It occurred to me that in 2018 with the price of aluminium what it is both these aircraft effectively have nil or negative scrap value. I.e If the airport wanted to get rid of them desperately they would have to find a contractor somewhere and pay them a lot of money to come cut them up and take them away. Being the vintage they are they no doubt have a bit of asbestos and other nasties in them too which would make for an expensive OH&S nightmare for whoever has to dispose of them! . The airports would achieve nothing by impounding and repossessing each aircraft!....

It cant be much more complicated than a constellation or any other piston 4 engine aircraft ??.....why rag on their dreams? Africa is a big place and they dont give a **** about type certificates ICAO standards and manufacturer support!!!! i'll take a punt and give em $50 on the crowd funding site. Didn't one of the owners use to have a WACO in his shed ? I wish he had finished that off ...oh well

Way things are looking you'd need to be whacko to own one....:eek:

An ex-TMAC friend tells me that Malcolm Porter is sadly no longer with us.

That crowd funding site is a scam

Yes, Malcolm passed away on Monday 17th after a long illness.

Learned contributors,

I'm currently doing some training with someone from Bournemouth and asked about the guppy. It seems the generally held opinion among at least some of the operational staff there is that the corrosion has put the aircraft beyond airworthy. Apparently this is relatively well known so they aren't sure what the people who show up at the aircraft are actually doing with it.

Well it's been at Hurn (BOH) for over 15 years stored in the open, and this is not the best place to keep an aircraft. It's not a dry desert climate but a temperate damp one and only 4 miles from the sea.
Yes corrosion can be dealt with but it could take a huge amount of money, and if the main structural elements, (wing spars, etc,) are affected then I doubt anyone could fix it.
If it should ever fly, I hope it doesn't make an early right turn off 26, as that would be over my house.

Surely the dix's response would equally apply to the Belslow, too?
Mightn't be 15 years tho' can't be far off plus close to the coast.

Except an AN-12 won't haul the size load that the Belfast will. That's really the only reason for even considering trying to operate the Belfast, is to serve that niche of cargo which won't fit in an AN-12 or Herc.

Good to see a sense of humour here, AS.

I flew into Johor Bahru about 5yrs ago and there was an Indonesian reg'd Transall on the freight apron where we parked. Subsequent enquiries suggested it belonged to the same bloke who owned the Belfast and Guppy. He must love Tynes!

CRAZY Stuff.....