The Yorkshire Air Museum & Allied Air Forces Memorial is an air museum in England on the site of the former RAF Elvington airfield. The museum was founded, and first opened to the public, in the early 1980s.
The Yorkshire Air Museum & Allied Air Forces Memorial is the largest independent air museum in Britain and is the most original Second World War RAF Bomber Command station open to the public. It is also the only Allied Air Forces Memorial in Europe. The museum has a good international reputation and profile with established branches in Canada and France and is supported by over 4,000 registered "friends" across the world. It is a Corporate Member of Friends of the Few (Battle of Britain Memorial) and the Royal Aeronautical Society.
The President of the Museum/Memorial is Air Chief Marshal Sir Stephen Dalton and Vice Presidents include; the Chief of the Air Staff, Sir Andrew Pulford; Chief of the French Air Force, General Andre Lanata; Supreme Allied Commander NATO, General Denis Mercier; Archbishop of York, Dr John Sentamu; and TV Presenter, Jan Leeming.
The Museum's principal activity is in education and the history of flight, through which it is involved with aerospace manufacturers and organisations via its long term "Reach for the Sky" project which delivered the first KS2 History of Aviation educational resource book to all 26,000 primary schools in UK, supported by RAeS and the Ministry of Transport.
The Museum has around 50 aircraft spanning the development of aviation from 1853 up to the latest GR4 Tornado. Several aircraft including Victor, Nimrod, Buccaneer, Sea Devon, SE5a, Eastchurch Kitten; DC3 Dakota; are kept live and operated on special "Thunder Days" during the year. Over 20 historic vehicles and a Registered Archive containing over 500,000 historic artefacts and documents are also preserved at the Museum, which is also the Official Archive for the National Aircrew Association and National Air Gunners Association. It is nationally registered and accredited through DCMS/Arts Council England and is a registered charity.
A permanent exhibition on RAF Bomber Command was opened at the museum by life member, Sir David Jason. In 2010 a new exhibition called "Pioneers of Aviation", and funded by the Heritage Lottery Fund, was opened featuring the lives and achievements of Sir George Cayley, Sir Barnes Wallis, Robert Blackburn, Nevil Shute and Amy Johnson.
Principal on-site businesses include: Restaurant, Publishing, Retail Shop, Fire Service, Events, Aircraft Operation Engineering Workshops, Archives and Corporate Business Suite. The museum produces its own films and publications and is also a popular location for TV and film companies.
It is operated by 149 staff, of which 130 are unpaid volunteers. A small operations team works closely together in a variety of specialist subjects from PR/marketing to Corporate Affairs and Museum Management.
The museum is expanding rapidly and has received over 100,000 visitors in a year. It has received many awards, such as: Top Specialist Attraction in UK - 2011 & 2015; Top Attraction in Yorkshire, Press Top Tourism Business; York Top Marketing Award and Winalot Top Dog Friendly Museum in UK.
The museum is open every day except Christmas Day, Boxing Day and New Years Day.
Maps, Directions, and Place Reviews
The site
The 20-acre (81,000 m2) parkland site (which has held the Yorkshire in Bloom, Silver Gilt Award 3 times) includes buildings and hangars, some of which are "listed", and the site incorporates a 7-acre (28,000 m2) managed environment area and a DEFRA and EA supported self sustainability project called "Nature of Flight". The museum is situated next to a 10,000ft x 400 acre international standard runway.
Whilst the Royal Air Force carried on using the runway for aircraft landing and take off training until 1992, the buildings and hangars had long been abandoned. In 1983, a group started clearing the undergrowth and the site was ready to be unveiled as the Yorkshire Air Museum in 1986.
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Events
The Museum undertakes several annual events each year within the general attraction / entertainment area as well as educational / academic events for specific audiences, plus several corporate events in association with companies such as Bentley, Porsche, banking, government agencies etc. The unique annual Allied Air Forces Memorial Day takes place in September.
Museum features
- Building 1. Airborne Forces Display & No. 609 (West Riding) Squadron Room.
- Building 2. Uniform Display.
- Building 3. Air Gunners' Exhibition.
- Building 4. Archives & Reference Library.
- Building 5. Museum Shop.
- Building 7. Memorial Garden.
- Building 8. Museum HQ, Main Entrance.
- Building 9. Against the Odds - History of Bomber Command, RAF Regiment Exhibition, 77 Squadron Exhibition and Digital Astra Cinema
- Building 10. Elvington Corporate Room.
- Building 11. Museum NAAFI Restaurant.
- Building 12. Control Tower.
- Building 13. French Officers' Mess.
- Building 14. Airmens Billet and Station MT Display.
- Building 15. Royal Observer Corp.
- Building 16. Signal Square.
- Building 17. Hangar T2 Main Aircraft exhibition.
- Building 18. Archive & Collections Building
- Building 19. Handley Page Aircraft Workshop.
- Building 20. Pioneer of Aviation Exhibition
Military vehicles
- 1937 Ford Model E
- 1940 "Tilly" Standard 12 hp Mkl RAF Utility Vehicle
- 1941 Chevrolet 4x4 CMP
- 1942 Austin K2 NAAFI Wagon
- 1947 Commer one and a half deck airport coach
- 1949 Citroen 11BL
- 1948 David Brown VIG.2 Aircraft Tractor
- 1949 David Brown VIG.3 Aircraft Tractor
- 1951 David Brown GP Airfield Tractor
- 1953 Alvis Saracen 12ton APC
- 1953 Austin Champ Cargo 4x4 General Purpose Vehicle
- 1956 Green Goddess Self Propelled Pump
- 1958 Commer Q4 Bikini Fire Pump Unit
- 1958 Lansing Aircraft Carrier Type Tug
- 1959 Daimler Ferret ASC MK.2/3/7
- 1970 Douglas P3 nuclear aircraft 25 tonne tug
- 1971 Pathfinder Fire Engine 35ton (ex. Manchester Airport)
- 1972 TACR2 Range rover - 6 wheeled fast response fire unit
- 1974 GMC 6 wheeled fast response airfield fire truck
- 1976 Dennis Mercury 17.5 tonne aircraft tug
Aircraft collection
The following is a list of aircraft on display at the Yorkshire Air Museum.
1853 Replica George Cayley Glider
1903 Replica Wright Flyer
1911 Replica Blackburn Mercury Monoplane BAPC-130
1913 Replica Avro 504 H1968 BAPC-42
1914 Replica Royal Aircraft Factory BE.2 6232
1917 Replica Port Victoria P.V.8 Grain Kitten
1917 Replica Royal Aircraft Factory SE.5 F943
1933 Mignet HM.14 Pou-du-Ciel BAPC-76
1935 Avro Anson VV901
1937 Replica Messerschmitt Bf-109G6
1938 Replica Supermarine Spitfire
1940 Handley Page Halifax LV907
1941 De Havilland Mosquito HJ711
1942 Waco Hadrian 237123 BAPC-157
1944 Gloster Meteor WK864, WS788
- 1948 De Havilland Devon C.2 VP967
- 1950 Westland Dragonfly HR.5 WH991
- 1951 English Electric Canberra T.4 WH846
- 1952 Canadair CT-133 Silver Star
- 1952 De Havilland Venom NF.3 WX788
- 1953 Fairey Gannet AEW.3 XL502
- 1954 English Electric Lightning F.6 XS903
- 1954 BAC Jet Provost T.4 XP640
- 1956 Gloster Javelin FAW.9 XH767
- 1956 Hawker Hunter T.7 N268, XL572
- 1956 Saro Skeeter G-AWSV
- (Taxiable) 1958 Handley Page Victor K.2 XL231
- 1961 Dassault Mirage III 538
- (Taxiable) 1962 Blackburn Buccaneer S.2 XN974
- 1964 Blackburn Buccaneer S.2B XX901
- 1964 Dassualt Mirage IVA The only one outside of France and was gifted to the museum by the French government in 2016.
- 1969 British Aerospace Harrier GR.3 XV748
- 1969 British Aerospace Nimrod MR.2 XV250
- 1980 Panavia Tornado GR.1 ZA354
- 2003 Panavia Tornado GR.4 XZ631
1961 Beagle Terrier TJ704
Source of the article : Wikipedia
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