RAF Hendon Battle of Britain hall closing
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Erm .. Wander00,
You'll notice that Haraka was referring to her "LinkedIn" profile.
One has to look pretty hard to find any underlying 'truths' on there.
It's much the same with TCT and her CV.
She initially flourished because people were taken in by her charm and were thus disinclined to read between the lines and ask awkward questions.
You see those people all the time in the museum game.
Rat-cunning and the ability to manipulate are what sees them through - until, when things start going really bad, the board convenes and...
.
You'll notice that Haraka was referring to her "LinkedIn" profile.
One has to look pretty hard to find any underlying 'truths' on there.
It's much the same with TCT and her CV.
She initially flourished because people were taken in by her charm and were thus disinclined to read between the lines and ask awkward questions.
You see those people all the time in the museum game.
Rat-cunning and the ability to manipulate are what sees them through - until, when things start going really bad, the board convenes and...
.
Last edited by Stanwell; 6th Jun 2016 at 21:23.
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This is hugely disappointing news. Back in the early eighties, I led a team from RAF St. Mawgan to the BoB hall to work on the Sunderland. My 42 Sqn Warrant Officer had visited the museum to see the Sunderland which he had worked on at Pembroke Dock as a young JT and was horrified at its condition. To cut a long story short, I led a working party team over many weekends to work on the Sunderland and we took everything that could be removed back to St. Maegan for restoration – seats, floor panels, radios and more. We completely corrosion-proofed the hull, got the turrets working and the drop down leading edge sections either side of the engines. We crawled out into the wings to carry out more corrosion assessment and repair, and even found the APU out there (can’t remember which wing) – a JAP V-twin engine. This is the reason the general public can now visit inside it. While we were there, we did a lot of work on the other aircraft, particularly the German ones that had been hastily bolted together.
So it is particularly upsetting to read this news, and there are so many parallel situations going on these days, that I am quite certain this is just another PC brick in the wall.
You would think that the museum would at least wait until the last of the Few who saved us all from Armageddon had passed before revising history, particularly as those heroes are watching the second Battle of Britain right now, aka the European referendum.
Lest we forget.
So it is particularly upsetting to read this news, and there are so many parallel situations going on these days, that I am quite certain this is just another PC brick in the wall.
You would think that the museum would at least wait until the last of the Few who saved us all from Armageddon had passed before revising history, particularly as those heroes are watching the second Battle of Britain right now, aka the European referendum.
Lest we forget.
I find it frustrating here to see people who are not curators, who have no experience of being museum curators, telling a curator how to do her job simply because she's not RAF. Its akin to a civilian with no flying experience, but an interest in aviation in general going to an RAF base and telling the Staish how to manage his flying programme.
We assume service leavers are capable of walking into almost any job via the resettlement process regardless of how little prior experience they have in that field, yet I think it is the height of institutional arrogance to assume that no one who is not RAF or former RAF could possibly understand how to curate a museum to do with the RAF.
For the record, I've been to Hendon once - I thought it was a fairly tired museum which desperately needed updating. I'd rather the museum focused more on the post cold War operations side in order to make people realise what we ask of potential recruits now, and give them a sense of what they could be doing in the future, rather than focus too heavily on a single event that happened 76 years ago which is of far less direct relevance operationally (not culturally) to todays Service.
We assume service leavers are capable of walking into almost any job via the resettlement process regardless of how little prior experience they have in that field, yet I think it is the height of institutional arrogance to assume that no one who is not RAF or former RAF could possibly understand how to curate a museum to do with the RAF.
For the record, I've been to Hendon once - I thought it was a fairly tired museum which desperately needed updating. I'd rather the museum focused more on the post cold War operations side in order to make people realise what we ask of potential recruits now, and give them a sense of what they could be doing in the future, rather than focus too heavily on a single event that happened 76 years ago which is of far less direct relevance operationally (not culturally) to todays Service.
Planning the era 1918-1945 as a single 'chapter' seems rather daft to me.
1918-1939 should remain as 'Inter War'
1939-1945 should remain as 'WW II'
It'll be interesting to see what they consider to be the 'Cold War' period though. 1945-68 or 1945-91 (dissolution of the Soviet Union)?
Post Cold War could conceivably represent 1991-2011, but anything later than the alleged end of GW2 needs to wait a few years.
1918-1939 should remain as 'Inter War'
1939-1945 should remain as 'WW II'
It'll be interesting to see what they consider to be the 'Cold War' period though. 1945-68 or 1945-91 (dissolution of the Soviet Union)?
Post Cold War could conceivably represent 1991-2011, but anything later than the alleged end of GW2 needs to wait a few years.
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Jimlad1, you miss the point, there would be no RAF/UK/civilised world as we know it had the battle of Britain gone the other way, and you would be working for the OKW rather than MOD as you do! Without victory {or a stand- of as many gifted with 20/20 hindsight maintain} America would have made an accommodation with the Nazis, {"America First" was extremely powerful until Pearl Harbour changed things}As for us in Canada, at home we were totally ill equipped to conduct any form of warfare, {even the few modern aircraft we possessed , a few Hurricanes'} were sent to the UK to help stem the tide .As for the abilities needed to run an aviation museum, as a founder member and aircraft donator to a vey successful one in Canada, it is vital that the person in charge has a detailed and extensive knowledge of both history and aviation, and surround themselves with others with complimentary abilities. To destroy the center piece of Hendon simply because it needs a clean up is total nonsense!
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... a single event that happened 76 years ago which is of far less direct relevance operationally (not culturally) to todays Service.
Any Museum is, de facto, about the past. Whether it's the BoB hall at Hendon, or the Dinosaurs at the Natural History Museum, neither has 'modern day relevance'.
We could always open the "The Battle of Britain was not really relevant because the Germans weren't really serious about invading" argument or the "Battle of Britain won or lost, the Royal Navy would have stopped it" etc. ...
1918-1939 should remain as 'Inter War'
I would hold that the RAF was founded in WW1 and that the origins of how and why the world's first Independent Air Force was created should be included in a chapter closing with the end of that war.
The collapse in size of the Service and its hand-to-mouth existence whilst propping up a series of overseas campaigns ( sounds familiar?) should take us through a second era up to c. 1935, when the Service entered a third phase with rapid expansion, running up to and the conduct of its part in WW2. Although Beags and my entering the RAF in 1968 doubtless did much to roll back the Iron Curtain during the "Cold War" fourth phase, I suppose the Wall coming down allows us now to consider the Service's ongoing role supporting various neocolonial adventures to be still developing as a fifth phase. Regarding that, I am reminded of Chairman Mao's response to a question regarding his assessment of the French Revolution:
" Too early to say."
Copied from the Annual Report - where does breaking up the BoB Hall fit in with this?
Charitable Objects The object of the charity is to educate and inform the public and members of the Royal Air Force about:
n The history and traditions of the Royal Air Force and
n The role of the Royal Air Force in relation to the armed forces of the realm, other air forces and aviation generally in particular, but not exclusively, by collecting, conserving, preserving, managing, exhibiting and storing documents, items, artefacts and other materials in the collection.
The ambition of the Museum is to ensure that the RAF’s story endures and enriches future generations.
The vision of the museum is to be a world-leading museum that engages, inspires and connects everyone with the RAF story through exploration of its people and its collections.
Our purpose
The RAF has shaped our nation and our society. It has influenced how we live our lives today through its impact on world events, society and technology.
The purpose of the Museum is to tell the story of the RAF through its people and collections.
n For our nation, we help people to understand the impact of the RAF on the world.
n For visitors, we make our collections and the RAF story relevant and stimulating.
n
For current and former RAF personnel and their families, we preserve, honour and share
the stories of their service.
Charitable Objects The object of the charity is to educate and inform the public and members of the Royal Air Force about:
n The history and traditions of the Royal Air Force and
n The role of the Royal Air Force in relation to the armed forces of the realm, other air forces and aviation generally in particular, but not exclusively, by collecting, conserving, preserving, managing, exhibiting and storing documents, items, artefacts and other materials in the collection.
The ambition of the Museum is to ensure that the RAF’s story endures and enriches future generations.
The vision of the museum is to be a world-leading museum that engages, inspires and connects everyone with the RAF story through exploration of its people and its collections.
Our purpose
The RAF has shaped our nation and our society. It has influenced how we live our lives today through its impact on world events, society and technology.
The purpose of the Museum is to tell the story of the RAF through its people and collections.
n For our nation, we help people to understand the impact of the RAF on the world.
n For visitors, we make our collections and the RAF story relevant and stimulating.
n
For current and former RAF personnel and their families, we preserve, honour and share
the stories of their service.
It doesn't of course.
But remember that the subliminal agenda is also to generate a hierarchy of embedded career "professionals" , (no H.R. as yet?) mutually tail covering and cross supporting, without any relevant hard experience or pertinent real world qualification. These will then ( without any individual attribution or responsibility) of course endorse a simplistic "PC " acceptable ( one minute attention span) message for the U.K.'s multicultural masses ( no offence intended guys!) who want to visit a funfair on their day off..
But remember that the subliminal agenda is also to generate a hierarchy of embedded career "professionals" , (no H.R. as yet?) mutually tail covering and cross supporting, without any relevant hard experience or pertinent real world qualification. These will then ( without any individual attribution or responsibility) of course endorse a simplistic "PC " acceptable ( one minute attention span) message for the U.K.'s multicultural masses ( no offence intended guys!) who want to visit a funfair on their day off..
Last edited by Haraka; 7th Jun 2016 at 19:34.
Jimlad:-
I think that the BoB has a great deal of relevance operationally to today's Service. The reason that today's Service is able to deploy to the myriad of sandy places, and carry out the duties required of it there, is that it has de facto Air Superiority in those skies. The Battle of Britain is a salutary reminder that when a hostile power moves into those skies, you then have to fight for that Air Superiority in order to retain it.
One day the Royal Air Force will once again have to fight for Air Superiority, whether it be in the UK or abroad. The hard fight of 1940 was won, make no mistake. We had Air Superiority by day in our skies beforehand and we retained it afterwards. That was the challenge given Fighter Command and it was met and overcome. I can think of nothing more relevant to any modern Air Force, and if any curator of the RAF Museum, no matter how illustrious or experienced, doesn't understand that and celebrate that key event in the museum, then their suitability for that job should be in question in my view.
Air Forces are about war, not Air Displays, rescuing stranded sheep, or even ship wrecked mariners. All that is good and noble, but the point of an Air Force is the same as that of an Army or a Navy; to close with the enemy and destroy him. If that is too in your face for modern sensibilities then they need shaking up!
a single event that happened 76 years ago which is of far less direct relevance operationally (not culturally) to todays Service.
One day the Royal Air Force will once again have to fight for Air Superiority, whether it be in the UK or abroad. The hard fight of 1940 was won, make no mistake. We had Air Superiority by day in our skies beforehand and we retained it afterwards. That was the challenge given Fighter Command and it was met and overcome. I can think of nothing more relevant to any modern Air Force, and if any curator of the RAF Museum, no matter how illustrious or experienced, doesn't understand that and celebrate that key event in the museum, then their suitability for that job should be in question in my view.
Air Forces are about war, not Air Displays, rescuing stranded sheep, or even ship wrecked mariners. All that is good and noble, but the point of an Air Force is the same as that of an Army or a Navy; to close with the enemy and destroy him. If that is too in your face for modern sensibilities then they need shaking up!
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Very, very well said
Battle of Britain. A defining battle for the RAF, the UK and WWII. The RAF Museum must have had a dippy turn if they see fit to disperse this grouping of aircraft! I could see a much better setting, with the day fighters in a bright "summer '40" airfield cameo, blue skies, grass and.. the fighting superimposed and contrasting. The present dim hall could feature as a "carry-forward" to the Blitz and night bombing with the bombers and night-fighters. Now, one could hardly argue much with the rare aircraft that they actually have to do this with. OH! I wonder if this is a precursor to some sort of money-making asset disposal? 
OAP
OAP
