Update 13 - September 2024
Our Pathfinder evening talks programme begins again on Thursday 19th September. We are delighted to be welcoming scientist Amanda Wickwar to give her presentation on ‘A brief history of the UK’s nuclear deterrent’. Many have been led to believe that it was America who developed the atomic bomb. However, the UK were not only the first to prove an atomic bomb would work, we were also the first country in the world to commit to taking steps to build one. A reminder that our talks run on the 3rd Thursday of each month from September through to May each year, begin at 7pm and the £10 entrance fee includes free tea and coffee. We regret that due to Pathfinder staffing costs no food is available.
"Blue Danube" - the first operational British nuclear weapon
Regular tech team volunteer Paul Nicholls officially joined the group of Trustees in July. He brings a vast range of experience in aircraft restoration and running his own business. Paul started at Blackbushe with Doug Arnold’s Warbirds of Great Britain in 1978 as an apprentice airframe fitter and worked on numerous aircraft (Spitfire, Mosquito, Sea Fury, Mustang, Thunderbolt, Lysander) under the guidance of Chief Engineer, Dick Melton. Paul then moved out to Dubai in 1983 and worked on helicopters for Aero Gulf on a short contract before moving into construction in Abu Dhabi. On returning home in 1989 he joined Dick Melton with the Charles Church Collection restoring Spitfires, a Hurricane and managing volunteers restoring a Supermarine Walrus. When the collection was sold off in 1993 he moved back into construction and set up his own company. BHT is very pleased to welcome Paul to the Trustee team.
We were thrilled to receive £6880 of funding from this year’s British Airways “Better World” staff charity voucher scheme. We were the 6th most supported charity out of a total of 211 very worthwhile causes. All this money will go directly towards the ongoing restoration of Vagabond, of which great progress is being made. The team have started fitting OSB flooring in the base of the aircraft while the hangar has been reorganised to allow the inner wings to be brought under cover and to give some improvements to the workshop space. Patch repairs continue on the fuselage, there is ongoing work paint stripping the inner wings and soft trim has been installed on the fuselage rails.
Work progresses on the port stub wing. Photo Credit: Dave Holness
The nose cone was away for a few weeks at Aerocare in Chester for painting free of charge with AkzoNobel kindly donating the paint. A big thank you to both companies for their support and to David Ashworth and Paul Nicholls who kindly drove up to North Wales to deliver and collect the nose cone, we are very grateful for your efforts. A display stand is currently being made to enable us to display the nose cone at events.
"Vagabond's" nose as it will look when permanantly affixed. Photo Credit: James Burton
Alexis Holding has been busy working on a project to use virtual reality headsets to enable people to be absorbed in a ‘Vagabond’ experience both at Blackbushe and outside events. This is central to our strategy of using technology to enable everyone to benefit from our restoration. When Vagabond is ‘ready for boarding’ it will allow visitors with reduced mobility to explore the interior of the aircraft while remaining outside. We are once again incredibly grateful to BA “Better World” who have agreed another very generous donation of £6,000 to fund the initial development. There is lots of work still to be done but this is a great start to an exciting new project.
Despite inclement weather, the Air Day at Blackbushe on 15th June was a big success for BHT. We made the most of this opportunity to showcase not just Vagabond but also the aero-engines recently acquired on loan from Rolls Royce and also a visiting 1949 Bedford Bus. Many volunteers helped out on the day but it would not have run so smoothly had it not been for the hours and hours of hard work Pete Vickery put in beforehand to ensure its success. Well done to everyone involved.
The BHT Team for the Air Day in June. Photo Credit: Blackbushe Airport
Our shop at Blackbushe has had a very busy couple of months during the summer, opening as usual on the 1 st and 3rd Sunday of the month and also ad-hoc for airfield events. Kevin Bond ran a pop up stand outside the Pathfinder on Wednesdays during the school summer holidays taking advantage of mostly fine weather to showcase BHT whilst also raising funds with merchandise and the popular ‘Spin the Wheel’ game. On the subject of merchandise, we have new stickers and pens in stock, with a fridge magnet currently in the design phase.
David Ashworth organised a very successful BHT day trip to the new National Collections Centre at the Science Museum Archive located on the disused airfield at Wroughton, Swindon, on 10th September. We were invited to be the first group to take the new 90 minute ‘aviation tour’ looking at some rare artefacts connected with World War 2, the Jet Age and Concorde. We hope this will be the first of many similar days out to be organised bringing people together for a donation to BHT. Watch this space.
Just oart of the collection at the NCC. Photo Credit: David Ashworth
In June, we were honoured to have a visit by Patricia Castleton and her son Jim. Patricia worked for both Airwork and then Eagle at Blackbushe before moving to Heathrow. She presented us with a limited edition print of an Eagle Airways Bristol Britannia which has been put into safe storage until we set up our new heritage centre in a couple of years time. It is always a great pleasure to meet people who have a personal connection to Blackbushe and particularly from the airport’s days as ‘London’s second airport’.
We have had lots of new volunteers getting involved recently both on the technical engineering side and the publicity and events team. Jacqui Grantham is busy organising an evening of entertainment at the Login Lounge in Camberley. This BHT fundraising event will be open to everyone and will feature a local rock band. The date is still to be confirmed but it is likely to be in March 2025
Best Regards, Peter, Dave, Pat, Paul, Chris, Becky and Mark
Trustees
