XH558...

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Discussion

SMB

1,513 posts

265 months

Monday 5th October 2015
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RoverP6B said:
201 rather. My source is reliable, the info comes from a high-up R-R insider who, if identified, could stand to lose his/her job. The engines are ready and waiting to fly. The airframe has at least another four years' life left in it. This whole "not enough skills" thing is a smokescreen.
I'm puzzled then why the VTTS, who you have previously accused of being on a gravy train, would want to call a halt? The two stories you have relayed don't add up.

my comment on why rolls royce don't just give the engines away also stands as they are of no use to anything else. Also it's not just RR but also BAE and Marshalls that have to support.

FourWheelDrift

88,381 posts

283 months

Monday 5th October 2015
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slartibartfast said:
RoverP6B said:
Not necessarily forever. Rolls-Royce have eight unused Olympus 202s and a further twelve zero-lifed overhauled 202s, plus eight 301s, in storage... but VTTS aren't prepared to pay for them. The wing mods mean there's another five years left in the airframe. The old girl isn't done yet, she just needs better management.
where do you get that info from?
He makes it up, like the rest of this posts.

5 years in the airframe then 4 years left on the same page. Come on if you are going to troll try and be consistent.

RoverP6B

4,338 posts

127 months

Monday 5th October 2015
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I'm puzzling over the pieces of this jigsaw puzzle myself. There are definitely some big egos involved at Finningley - and probably also at Derby and Cambridge if the truth be known. Anyway, R-R did some engine work for '558 free having just won the big A380 contract, but they have reportedly had enough of being expected to work on 558's engines for free.

SMB

1,513 posts

265 months

Monday 5th October 2015
quotequote all
RoverP6B said:
I'm puzzling over the pieces of this jigsaw puzzle myself. There are definitely some big egos involved at Finningley - and probably also at Derby and Cambridge if the truth be known. Anyway, R-R did some engine work for '558 free having just won the big A380 contract, but they have reportedly had enough of being expected to work on 558's engines for free.
So xh558 is a publicly funded charity, not sure how VTTS not wanting to pay commercial rates constitutes the mismanagement you referenced above. Best thing is to go back to your RR contact and have him explain to his senior colleages how they could get extra publicity out of this by saving the project for at least another year if the skills thing is a red herring.

aeropilot

34,299 posts

226 months

Monday 5th October 2015
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SMB said:
my comment on why rolls royce don't just give the engines away also stands as they are of no use to anything else.
Exactly.

The only reason RR would have any 201's (or 301's) would have been as a result of the MOD contract to support the Vulcan when still flying with the RAF, so in theory they would have been MOD property as part of the contract and in the mass stock of Vulcan bagged and tagged components that were all acquired by the Waltons with all the paperwork when '558 was bought from the MOD in 1993.

The only exception to that maybe is any engines they retained in support of the Olympus 593 testing using B.1 XA903, but being a B.1 that had 101 or possibly 102's fitted anyway, not 201's.


Edited by aeropilot on Monday 5th October 14:56

Oldred_V8S

3,714 posts

237 months

Monday 5th October 2015
quotequote all
RoverP6B said:
201 rather. My source is reliable, the info comes from a high-up R-R insider who, if identified, could stand to lose his/her job. The engines are ready and waiting to fly. The airframe has at least another four years' life left in it. This whole "not enough skills" thing is a smokescreen.
Nonsense!

I was at the Avro Heroes evening last week and saw spare engines in the hanger, still wrapped after having been reworked to as new by RR. The technical staff were very frank and they had the same reason for the end of life. They shared with us how many spare engines they had ready to go. As I said earlier staff from RR have been pulled out of retirement to support 558 and this has now come to an end.

Mojocvh

Original Poster:

16,837 posts

261 months

Monday 5th October 2015
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"As I said earlier staff from RR have been pulled out of retirement"

kicking and screaming I'd imagine.


Pulled out of retirement Oh do come on...

aeropilot

34,299 posts

226 months

Monday 5th October 2015
quotequote all
Mojocvh said:
"As I said earlier staff from RR have been pulled out of retirement"

kicking and screaming I'd imagine.


Pulled out of retirement Oh do come on...
I was under the impression that it was the other way around, in that the few people that RR have left with Olympus knowledge to support '558 are about to retire....? (given that RR as a company last worked on any 200/300 engines when the RAF/MOD ended the support contract for the Vulcan when they retired them back in 1984-ish?)

Trustmeimadoctor

12,525 posts

154 months

Monday 5th October 2015
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anyone know if its just flown over york? something very very loud and slow has just gone over york twice in last 10 minutes? far too much cloud cover to see

chrisga

2,087 posts

186 months

Monday 5th October 2015
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AJLintern said:
I did wonder how good a view the paying guests were actually getting, as from where I (and many others) were standing around the back lanes near Lighthorne, we got a fantastic view as it flew around!
Likewise we were up behind kineton, in line with the end of the runway which was a pretty good place to see it. Light was from the right place for photos, but because of the display whenever it was closest to us we saw the underside of the aircraft. All my pics of the top of the plane are in the far distance and it was a bit hazy.

IMG_2986 by Chris Gandy, on Flickr

IMG_2997 by Chris Gandy, on Flickr

Haven't had time to look through all the pics I took yet but when it was headed directly toward us it was really menacing. I'll never forget the howl of the engines. Awesome afternoon.

Mojocvh

Original Poster:

16,837 posts

261 months

Monday 5th October 2015
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friederich said:
farewell.....

clap the colour saturation and tones look kodachrome-esk clap

FourWheelDrift

88,381 posts

283 months

Monday 5th October 2015
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Add a few thin wires and it could hanging from the ceiling of my old bedroom when I was a child.

Trustmeimadoctor

12,525 posts

154 months

Monday 5th October 2015
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my vulcan airfix (might not have been airfix) was my favorite kit it looked like crap as i couldn't paint when i was 7 BUT i loved it

Rich1973

1,191 posts

176 months

Monday 5th October 2015
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Saw it flyover Melton Mowbray pretty low yesterday afternoon.

Oldred_V8S

3,714 posts

237 months

Monday 5th October 2015
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Mojocvh said:
"As I said earlier staff from RR have been pulled out of retirement"

kicking and screaming I'd imagine.


Pulled out of retirement Oh do come on...
Well not forced but were asked if they wanted to help and have done. Why would the ground crew lie?

Gretchen

18,998 posts

215 months

Monday 5th October 2015
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FourWheelDrift said:
Add a few thin wires and it could hanging from the ceiling of my old bedroom when I was a child.
My Father is almost 80, rooms full of models he's created, hanging from ceilings, shelves, under beds, garages, cupboards. He worked in aviation and now runs a model club. Massive part of my childhood.

I bought my boyfriend's three year old daughter an inflatable Vulcan at Gransden airshow the other week. She went to bed cuddling it.



Mutley

3,178 posts

258 months

Monday 5th October 2015
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With seven BBMF fighters and 2 Boultbee T9s, XH558 passes at the LLA day yesterday

Ydnaroo

288 posts

201 months

Monday 5th October 2015
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woodypup59 said:
Some nice on board footage fro RIAT here :=

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7kuE9A8bOzQ

P2 says "I can't beleive you did that" at 10;30 !

Edited by woodypup59 on Monday 5th October 10:25
8:07 Shadow on the ground through the bomb doors. Superb!

Dr Jekyll

23,820 posts

260 months

Monday 5th October 2015
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Nigel_O said:
However, at least I could see it - the poor souls that presumably paid a premium to go up on the roof of the museum saw virtually nothing of the entire display
The people who got into the roof of the museum were mainly those who had paid to attend a Vulcan related lecture held before the display. Those of us who attended were told that although we were welcome to watch the display from the roof we would get a much better view from the museum grounds due to the display line being moved as a post Shoreham reaction.

From what I could see there was nothing to stop anyone who had paid to get into the museum going onto the roof.

7heavensoon

87 posts

161 months

Monday 5th October 2015
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I watched from the Avon Dassett hills, about 3 miles from Gaydon, along with a big crowd. Lovely clear blue sky but a bit hazy looking across the M40 to Gaydon. Still, here's a shot of her over GDEC at JLR Gaydon:


The noise even from my vantage point was great (if a little delayed) and had a good view of the display. Thought that would be that, but at the end of the display, she flew straight over us, so got some great shots:





and my favourite, as she flew away for the last time...


There was a chap flying a drone around which would have got some great crowd shots - would love to see the footage.