It is the cockpit of HP Victor B Mk.1 XA917. The aircraft is seen below, brand new in 1956, one of the first 5 Victors in the Handley Page shops at Radlett. The tail in the foreground is of XA918, used to help develop the tanker variant. It was scrapped in 1970 2/5
On June 1, 1957, Handley Page chief test pilot Johnny Allam took XA917 on a test flight from Gaydon, Warwickshire. 3/5
Allam let the nose drop slightly at 40,000 ft and, while ‘inadvertently’ failing to watch the Mach meter, managed to clock up 675mph, Mach 1.02. A double sonic boom was heard over a wide area. This Victor was the largest aircraft to break the sound barrier at that time. 4/5
Sadly its career was cut short by a landing accident in 1961. It went off the runway & the gear collapsed. It was an instructional airframe until scrapped in '63. In late ‘93 the cockpit was all that was left and sold to a collector; now saved in this lovely Scottish garden. 5/5
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This is the southern tip of the U.S. state of Florida. Circled is the Everglades, almost 8000 square miles of uninhabited swamp and grassland; home to alligators, snakes and a huge variety of flora and fauna. And what was once going to be the largest airport in the world. 1/8
This remote 2-mile long airstrip was built in 1968, a time in the USA when we all believed there was going to be (as the Disney song of the time claimed) “A Great Big Beautiful Tomorrow”. It was to be the “Everglades Jetport”. It would be the main hub for the US SST. 2/8
Boeing was developing its 2707, the US Supersonic Transport, and with projected demand for faster-than-sound travel, South Florida seemed ideal for a hub, because the dreaded “sonic boom” that made these planes unwelcome inland could happen harmlessly over the open ocean. 3/8
…so in 2021 they removed it and commissioned a thorough restoration. It's Hawker Hunter WT555, the 1st production F.1 and a very important airframe. First flown on 16th May 1953 from Hawker's plant at Dunsfold, it was retained by them for handling and performance trials. 2/6
It then retired to ground instruction duties at RAF Locking, then to the RAF Museum at Cosford with a camo livery it never had in operation. Incredibly, the museum decided to dispose of it. The owner of Vanguard wasted no time snapping it up as an eyecatcher. 3/6
Douglas Skyraider 09103 was one of several prototypes Douglas built in 1945-46. Originally called “Dauntless II” It was first designated XBT2D-1 in the USN’s clumsy pre-1946 designation system. It then became an XAD-1 Skyraider. 2/5
Mr. Soplata was a visionary who saw value in acquiring important aircraft the military didn’t want. He was a working man, not rich, and was tenacious in buying and moving these relics to his Ohio farm throughout the latter half of the 20th century. 3/5
Built in 1960, Fokker F-27 AP-ALN flew for Pakistan International Airline from 1961-July 5, 1994 when, flying from Islamabad to Chitral with 4 four crew members and 38 passengers,…2/4
#1 engine had trouble on final & poor alignment with the runway forced a go-around. #2 engine was at full power and gear and flaps retracted, but it still lost height. As it turned to to avoid the river it landed in a field, sliding for 300m before colliding with a tree. 3/4
Sud-Ouest Espadon (Swordfish) first flew in 1948 & was intended to be fighter/interceptor but, as with so many 1st generation jets, it proved to be underpowered and failed to meet specs. The 4 prototypes then became test beds for various engine configurations. 2/
This one, SO.6025, fitted with a rocket engine below the fuselage, was the 1st European A/C to break the sound barrier in level flight, 15 Dec. ‘53. Along with jet fuel it had rocket fuel & nitric acid between the jet intake & rocket so it could be safely dumped if necessary. 3/4