A Very Sad Day Is Rapidly Approaching

[Ninanina]

It is very sad for me, and maybe for some of you, that the last flying Vulcan is rapidly approaching her final flights :(

I was unable to go see her farewell southern tour anywhere today but apparently she will be making 1 or 2 final flights towards the end of October and I will do my very best to get to them even if I have to travel some distance. I will be in floods of tears when I say goodbye to her forever

I remember the Vulcan, and her blood curdling howl, from my childhood having been to countless airshows when my father worked at de Havilland/Hawker Siddeley in Hatfield and dozens of airshows since, and have followed Vulcan XH558 through her life after the RAF and have supported her financially the best I could. I have my name on a plaque in the bomb bay of XH558

A very sad day indeed..... and a :kiss: goodbye from me..... :(

[struth]

Shame about all the V bombers. This country has made a fantastic contribution to aviation and for some odd reason we now have almost no lying versions of them Spits, Hurricanes, Lancaster's, Lightnings(my Favorite alltime plane)....the list is huge. I think we should have made a greater effort to keep flying more of these, irrelevent of the cost, which in real terms to the country is very little

[Stratmangler]

which in real terms to the country is very little

Which Country are we talking about?
There is no United Kingdom.
The SNP and their devisive Independence referendum put paid to that ...

[Ninanina]

Shame about all the V bombers. This country has made a fantastic contribution to aviation and for some odd reason we now have almost no lying versions of them Spits, Hurricanes, Lancaster's, Lightnings(my Favorite alltime plane)....the list is huge. I think we should have made a greater effort to keep flying more of these, irrelevent of the cost, which in real terms to the country is very little

I totally agree Grant and in my opinion one of the worst travesties is not having a Concorde still flying... are we mad :doh:

[struth]

Which Country are we talking about?
There is no United Kingdom .....

I dont recall ever saying that. but if you wish to be facetious its up to you;)

[mikmas]

She flew over our house in Lincolnshire a week or so ago with the characteristic jet roar that rattled the windows - didn't see the flyover but found out later that this is what it was.

I was quite gutted to have missed it but made up for it last weekend when my wife and I were sitting on a bench by a local lake during a walk and lo and behold the Vulcan flew past right in front of us ... truly an awesome sight :)
My dad was in the army and I was born and brought up on Catterick Camp when RAF Catterick was still a very active aerodrome .....

[Stratmangler]

I dont recall ever saying that. but if you wish to be facetious its up to you;)

You may not have said such things, but others have.

I'm a Forces Brat, and the current political situation has opened my eyes.
Your statement implies a United Kingdom, yet recent experience tells me that such a thing does not exist, so seeing as Scotland cannot be taken as part of "the country", who is going to fund these old war horses?
British Aerospace and Rolls Royce are no longer going to be providing parts to keep these old birds aloft, which is why they're being grounded.
Don't drag "the Country" into it, because that definition has become somewhat tenuous.

[Audio Al]

My dad was ex RAF and he contributed to the " Vulcan to the sky " This was a dedicated group that helped pay for the return to flight

Why is it being grounded now :scratch:

[dave2010]

I was once at Rottingdean just outside Brighton taking a walk along the cliffs, and a Vulcan flew right up to the cliff edge and turned right in front of me. I could see the pilot quite clearly. I suppose it might have been above the cliff, but not by much - it seemed to be almost at my own level. It then flew back out to sea in a south easterly direction. That was the one and only time I saw one flying at such close quarters. That was in the latter half of the 1960s.

Others have mentioned the engine sound, which I'm sure was a characteristic - but I really don't recall this incident as being a particularly noisy one - nothing like standing downwind of some other aircraft when taking off.

[walpurgis]

Yes. The Vulcan was pretty noisy taking off, probably almost on a par with the old VC10 which was probably the loudest British plane I've heard. Even noisier than Concord! It was entertaining seeing Vulcans lift off the runway and just zoom up almost vertically.

As an aside, I saw a great display by a Polish MIG 29 at the Culdrose Air Day this summer. That was a noisy plane. There was a Hunter there, which I suspect may be the one that crashed tragically at Shoreham a week or so later.

[Beobloke]

Why is it being grounded now :scratch:

Full story here, Al - http://www.vulcantothesky.org/history/post-flight/end-of-flight-2.html

Basically, the three companies whose support is needed to keep it flying have decided to withdraw this at the end of this year.

[Oddball]

My friend has a Leonides engine he ground runs. We recently went to Cosford on the Battle Of Britain celebration weekend , to ground run the engine together with a restored Hercules from a Hastings transport plane ,but the same engine as in Halifaxes , some Lancs , and other planes .
Awesome !!
Whilst there , a friend of the owner of the Hercules ,who has worked at Rolls Royce all his life , and still does ,was saying the engines needed taking apart for inspection and the sheer cost was prohibitive ??
Not certain if its true but have no reason to doubt it .

It is a great shame that all these iconic 50's 60's planes aren't kept flying ,but the cost is horrendous and the awful tragedy of the beautiful Hunter at Shoreham and the subsequent loss of lives that wren't enthusiasts ,as such ,did not help matters .
The best we can hope for is Bruntingthorpe type fast taxi runs , and hope the Vulcan does not try and take off like the Victor ,a couple of yrs ago :)

[Audio Al]

Full story here, Al - http://www.vulcantothesky.org/history/post-flight/end-of-flight-2.html

Basically, the three companies whose support is needed to keep it flying have decided to withdraw this at the end of this year.

Why did the 3 get everyone excited ? then pull the plug :scratch:

It will still run down the runway :scratch: ITS A aircraft , Will it now just be a craft ( Air removed as not flying ) Looks like dad wasted his money :(

[Mark Grant]

It is very sad for me, and maybe for some of you, that the last flying Vulcan is rapidly approaching her final flights :(

Sad isn't it,
I remember taking my Dad to see Concord at Manchester air museum for a day out , and it's sad to see something parked up and lifeless.

Vulcan will be same, in a museum and lifeless with the fuel drained out of it and batteries disconnected, dead :(

Vulcan was near us on Saturday at the Brough BAE factory and the Humber bridge,
I missed it as we already had plans for the day and could not change them :(

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-south-yorkshire-34495369

https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=vulcan+bae+brough&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ved=0CCQQsARqFQoTCNfAp8TWvcgCFYRpPgodfUIGTQ&biw=1537&bih=1049

Maybe at the end of the month I will try to find a place to see it for the last time :)

An old video on Vimeo from Doncaster airport where Vulcan has been based.
The noise is good at full throttle :)

https://vimeo.com/23077360


If anyone finds when and where the last flight will be please post it here in plenty of time to plan a journey :)

[Oddball]

My favourite You Tube clip - Vulcan at Yeovilton

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Djd1pPQZ_LE

[Ninanina]

Sad isn't it,


If anyone finds when and where the last flight will be please post it here in plenty of time to plan a journey :)

I am on their mailing list so as soon as I hear when and where the final flight will be I will let everyone know...

[Ninanina]

Well there is definitely going to be one final flight of 15 minutes, as that's all the airframe time the Vulcan has left

Vulcan To The Sky have not yet given a date for the final flight but have announced that the final flight date will be given with "very short notice"

As soon as I hear further I will let you know...

[Mark Grant]

It is right now !
http://live.airlive.net/

[Mark Grant]

the internet stream stopped a few times...

[Audio Advent]

Why so they fly it if it's not used for anything? Obviously you need to keep it working but how often?

Surely things like Lancasters have long past their airframe flying times and spitfires etc etc - won't there just be a rich benefactor or group who keep things going for their own fun?

3D printed parts will be strong enough soon enough.

[Audio Advent]

Watch a live space walk instead: http://space.airlive.net/

[Ninanina]

It is right now !
http://live.airlive.net/

Watched the whole thing with tears rolling down my cheeks..... for me a very very sad day indeed... words cannot explain my sadness... :goodbye: my lovely Vulcan....

[Mark Grant]

A video that was uploaded to YouTube today.

Best watched full screen in 1080P

https://youtu.be/TBaNp4WOZ-0

[Neil McCauley]

It is very sad for me, and maybe for some of you, that the last flying Vulcan is rapidly approaching her final flights :(

I was unable to go see her farewell southern tour anywhere today but apparently she will be making 1 or 2 final flights towards the end of October and I will do my very best to get to them even if I have to travel some distance. I will be in floods of tears when I say goodbye to her forever

I remember the Vulcan, and her blood curdling howl, from my childhood having been to countless airshows when my father worked at de Havilland/Hawker Siddeley in Hatfield and dozens of airshows since, and have followed Vulcan XH558 through her life after the RAF and have supported her financially the best I could. I have my name on a plaque in the bomb bay of XH558

A very sad day indeed..... and a :kiss: goodbye from me..... :(

Indeed so. Saw, heard and sonically felt the mighty Vulcan at Mildenhall a few years back Still magnificent despite – at the same weekend – the take-off, brief flight and landing of both the SR-71 and the B2B.

[CageyH]

In September 2010, I saw Vulcan XH558 up close and personal. I was given a tour of the aircraft, in return for a tour round the one we took to Filton.
It was fantastic to see, hear and feel the Vulcan. An experience I will never forget.

15631

Both aircraft are pictured in this picture. It took considerably longer to give a tour round the one I was in.