I was just saving a document to a folder that I usually do not go into and I saw this. I originally put it out on a squad BBS that no longer exists. I had meant to post it here as well at the time but just did not. So, a few years late, here it is:
(ops, word count limit means that it will be in two parts.)
As promised, here's my vacation trip report to England. Every two years or so, our family goes to Europe for about two weeks. Normally I get to suggest an agenda for a day or two. On this trip I wanted to go to the Tangmere military aviation museum by Chichester and the RAF museum at Hendon.
I'll try stick to aviation topics here and leave most of my social commentary impressions for elsewhere.
First off let me say that we flew over on Virgin Atlantic in an Airbus A330-300. Great flight. In my wife's opinion, someone who travels to Europe far more often than I, it is a toss-up between British Air and Virgin. As far as a passenger experience goes neither of them can be beat. For her it usually comes down to destinations and schedules when trying to decide between the two. Forget US based carriers, they really are third rate.
In planning for the trip I used the following wikipedia site to get a list of aerospace museums.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_aerospace_museumsA great site with the most complete list of aerospace museums that I know of.
We were staying mostly in Brighton, which is 60 miles south of London, and as a result I was looking for places that we could easily get to on a day trip.
Tangemere is very close to Chichester, about 30 miles west of Brighton (or, for those of you who want to mentally triangulate its location, about 70 miles south west of London).
http://www.tangmere-museum.org.uk/Tangmere was founded in 1916 when a lost Royal Flying Corps (RFC) pilot "landed" in a farmer's field and subsequently recommended the location to the War Department as an air field. (The RAF was founded in 1918). I do not think that Tangmere was much more than just another aerodrome during WWI and it was mostly used for training (by Americans) and was in effect closed down until WWII.
During WWII RAF Tangmere became an important base for the RAF and later for the US Army Air Corps. A few highlights about RAF Tangmere:
- Tangmere was a secret base for SOE during WWII.
- Billy Fiske, an American Olympian for No. 601 Squadron RAF, sometimes called the "Millionaires' Squadron" died on 17 August 1940 of surgical shock two days after he was shot in his Hurricane during a fight with Ju 87s. He was the first American airman pilot to die in WWII.
- Wing commander Douglas Bader, (the legless pilot) was based at RAF Tangmere in 1941. Squadrons 145, 610 and 616 were under his command.
You can read a little more about Tangmere at:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RAF_TangmereI hadn't spent a ton of time reading about Tangmere before we left. I had mostly skimmed a few web sites about it and knew that there were three WWII, and a much larger collection of cold war planes, on display there. I was initially somewhat disappointed (and a little shocked) to find out when we went there that all of the WWII planes were reproductions. After I got over the disappointment, I started reading about the displays and I gained a different perspective.
Tangmere has a 99% accurate reproduction of the Spitfire prototype K5054. (The original was destroyed in the 1930s). The plane was built by some original design team members from Supermarine Aviation Works and members of the Spitfire Society.
http://www.tangmere-museum.org.uk/museu ... e-spitfire
Worth the trip by itself!
There was also a reproduction Hurricane Mk1 which is taxiable but not flyable. Their Spitfire Mk VB had been removed for repair.
Beyond that, and the cold war planes (Gloster Meteor F.4 Special and Hawker Hunter Mk3 among the notables), the museum is just amazing for its collection of WWII artifacts and aviation memorabilia. There is a series of great collections on SOE equipment, radios, guns, survival equipment, uniforms, medals, aircraft engines, simulators, an air raid shelter and much more. You really get a tremendous sense of what the artifacts of WWII were. (BTW, I was surprised to find an extensive collection of small model WWII planes - kind of interesting since I used to build some of the same planes, from I assume are the same kits, as a child).
One pleasant surprise at Tangmere was a place called Poets Corner. Here they had on display, and in binders, a collection of poems by aviators. One of my favorite aviator poems by John Gillespie Magee, Jr. was printed out and displayed. This poem was used as the sign off for AFRTS overseas in the 70s.
Magee was an American who "pushed" his way into the RAF. He died flying his Spitfire V in a collision with another plane three days after the US entered the war.
Oh! I have slipped the surly bonds of Earth
And danced the skies on laughter-silvered wings;
Sunward I've climbed, and joined the tumbling mirth
Of sun-split clouds, — and done a hundred things
You have not dreamed of — wheeled and soared and swung
High in the sunlit silence. Hov'ring there,
I've chased the shouting wind along, and flung
My eager craft through footless halls of air. . . .
Up, up the long, delirious burning blue
I've topped the wind-swept heights with easy grace
Where never lark, or ever eagle flew
—And, while with silent, lifting mind I've trod
The high untrespassed sanctity of space,
Put out my hand, and touched the face of God
I hope to be able to return to Tangmere sometime soon. It was well worth it.
(end part One)
