Norfolk and Suffolk Aviation Museum

Last updated

Norfolk and Suffolk Aviation Museum
Jet at Flixton air museum - geograph.org.uk - 1431085.jpg
Sea Harrier on display
Suffolk UK location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Red pog.svg  Norfolk and Suffolk Aviation Museum shown within Suffolk
OS grid reference   TM309874
Established1972
Location Flixton, Suffolk, England
Coordinates 52°26′08″N1°23′50″E / 52.4356°N 1.3971°E / 52.4356; 1.3971
Type Aviation museum
Collection sizeApproximately 30,000 items, including 60 aircraft
VisitorsApproximately 40,000 per year
Website www.aviationmuseum.net

The Norfolk and Suffolk Aviation Museum is a museum collection of aircraft and aviation-related artefacts, located near the former RAF Bungay airfield in Flixton in the north of the English county of Suffolk.

Contents

Details

One of the engines from ThrustSSC Jets off the ThrustSSC supersonic car - geograph.org.uk - 1431049.jpg
One of the engines from ThrustSSC

First established in 1972 as the Norfolk and Suffolk Aviation Society, [1] the museum houses a varied array of over 60 complete or partial aircraft, including rarities such as the only complete de Havilland Sea Vixen FAW.1 in private ownership, a flyable replica of the Colditz Cock escape glider, a Vickers Valetta VX580 C.2 and an FMA IA 58 Pucará that was captured by British forces during the Falklands War. [2]

In addition to the aircraft displayed, the museum also houses thematic collections devoted to subjects including the Royal Observer Corps, RAF Bomber Command, RAF Air-Sea Rescue and RAF Coastal Command. [3]

As well as preserving its existing collections, the museum and its members are actively involved in the exploration and study of aircraft crash sites – termed wreckology – in East Anglia. The museum charges no entrance fee and is entirely funded by public donations, corporate sponsorship, and local and European government grants. It employs only one full-time member of staff, with day-to-day maintenance and running of the museum falling largely on the shoulders of a team of volunteers.

Eminent autogyro exponent Wing Commander Ken Wallis had a long association with the museum, dating from shortly after its opening. For many years his Wallis WA-116 Agile autogyro, Little Nellie, made famous by its appearance in the 1967 James Bond film You Only Live Twice , was on display at Flixton. Wallis served as the museum's president until his death in September 2013.

Collection

Collection: [4]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Westland Whirlwind (helicopter)</span> 1953 helicopter series by Westland

The Westland Whirlwind helicopter was a British licence-built version of the U.S. Sikorsky S-55/H-19 Chickasaw. It primarily served with the Royal Navy's Fleet Air Arm in anti-submarine and search and rescue roles. It was also exported to other countries, and the Whirlwind was succeeded by the turbine powered Westland Wessex which was developed from the H-19/Whirlwind. The helicopter was made in many variants using a variety of radial (piston) and turbine engines.

de Havilland Sea Vixen Carrier-based fighter aircraft family

The de Havilland DH.110 Sea Vixen is a British twin-engine, twin boom-tailed, two-seat, carrier-based fleet air-defence fighter flown by the Royal Navy's Fleet Air Arm from the 1950s to the early 1970s. The Sea Vixen was designed by the de Havilland Aircraft Company during the late 1940s at its Hatfield aircraft factory in Hertfordshire, developed from the company's earlier first generation jet fighters. It was later called the Hawker Siddeley Sea Vixen after de Havilland was absorbed by the Hawker Siddeley Corporation in 1960.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">National Museum of Flight</span> Museum in East Fortune, Scotland

The National Museum of Flight is Scotland's national aviation museum, at East Fortune Airfield, just south of the village of East Fortune, Scotland. It is one of the museums within National Museums Scotland. The museum is housed in the original wartime buildings of RAF East Fortune which is a well preserved World War II airfield. As a result of this the entire site is a scheduled monument with no permanent structures added by the museum. The hangars, control tower and stores were designated as Category B listed buildings by Historic Scotland, but this designation was removed in 2013 as they were already covered by the stricter scheduling.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Newark Air Museum</span> Aviation museum in Newark-on-Trent, Nottinghamshire

Newark Air Museum is an air museum located on a former Royal Air Force station at Winthorpe, near Newark-on-Trent in Nottinghamshire, England. The museum contains a variety of aircraft.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fleet Air Arm Museum</span> Museum devoted to the history of British naval aviation.

The Fleet Air Arm Museum is devoted to the history of British naval aviation. It has an extensive collection of military and civilian aircraft, aero engines, models of aircraft and Royal Navy ships, and paintings and drawings related to naval aviation. It is located on RNAS Yeovilton airfield, and the museum has viewing areas where visitors can watch military aircraft take off and land. At the entrance to the museum are anchors from HMS Ark Royal and HMS Eagle, fleet carriers which served the Royal Navy until the 1970s. It is located 7 miles (11 km) north of Yeovil, and 40 miles (64 km) south of Bristol.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">RAF Nicosia</span> Airport in Lefkosia, Cyprus

Royal Air Force Nicosia or more simply RAF Nicosia is a former Royal Air Force station on the island of Cyprus, built in the 1930s. The station served as Headquarters Royal Air Force Cyprus from 8 June to 29 July 1941.

The North East Land, Sea and Air Museums (NELSAM), formerly the North East Aircraft Museum, is a volunteer-run aviation museum situated on the site of the former RAF Usworth/Sunderland Airport, between Washington and Sunderland, in Tyne and Wear, England. The museum has the largest aviation collection between Yorkshire and Scotland and houses over 30 aircraft and a wide collection of aero engines. The museum also has a small collection of other items such as weaponry, vehicles and other historical exhibits.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vickers Valetta</span> British military transport aircraft, 1947

The Vickers Valetta is a twin-engine military transport aircraft developed and produced by the British manufacturing company Vickers-Armstrongs Ltd. Developed from the Vickers VC.1 Viking compact civil airliner, it was an all-metal mid-wing monoplane with a tailwheel undercarriage.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tangmere Military Aviation Museum</span> Aviation museum in Tangmere, West Sussex

The Tangmere Military Aviation Museum is a museum located on the former site of RAF Tangmere, West Sussex. The museum was opened in June 1982. Many aerospace exhibits covering the First World War to the Cold War are on display including fixed-wing aircraft, helicopters and aircraft engines.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gatwick Aviation Museum</span> Aviation museum in Charlwood, Surrey, United Kingdom

The Gatwick Aviation Museum is located in the village of Charlwood, in Surrey, United Kingdom on the boundary of Gatwick Airport.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bournemouth Aviation Museum</span> Aviation museum in Hurn, Dorset

The Bournemouth Aviation Museum is an aviation museum located next to Bournemouth International Airport, near the village of Hurn in Christchurch. It houses a number of aircraft, aero engines, cockpits and a limited number of ground vehicles.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Museo Nacional de Aeronáutica de Argentina</span> Aviation museum in Buenos Aires, Argentina

The National Aeronautics Museum "Brigadier Edmundo Civati Bernasconi" is an Argentine museum located in the city of Morón, Buenos Aires. Established in 1960, the museum is dedicated to the history of aviation, in particular the Argentine Air Force.

The RAF College of Air Warfare is a former Royal Air Force flying training unit operational between 1962 and 1974. The unit traces its history back to 1942 as the Empire Central Flying School.

Ferry Squadron is a former Royal Air Force squadron which operated between 1956 and 1958 at RAF Benson, the squadron was formed by the replacements, disbandments and mergers dating back to 1943.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Caernarfon Airworld Aviation Museum</span> Aviation museum in Caernarfon, Gwynedd

Caernarfon Airworld Aviation Museum is an air museum located on the former Royal Air Force station at Llandwrog, near Caernarfon in North Wales.

The South Wales Aviation Museum (SWAM) is an aviation museum in Bro Tathan North, St Athan, Vale of Glamorgan, Wales on part of the former MOD St Athan. It was set up to preserve the aviation history of South Wales, UK.

References

  1. "Eastern England: Norfolk & Suffolk Aviation Museum". Aviation Museum Guide UK. February 2010. Archived from the original on 4 September 2011. Retrieved 6 March 2011.
  2. Eade, Dave. "Norfolk & Suffolk Aviation Museum". Air-Scene UK. Retrieved 6 March 2011.
  3. "About Us". Norfolk and Suffolk Aviation Museum. Archived from the original on 2 March 2011. Retrieved 6 March 2011.
  4. "Our Aircraft". Norfolk and Suffolk Aviation Museum. Retrieved 4 August 2024.

Commons-logo.svg Media related to Norfolk and Suffolk Aviation Museum at Wikimedia Commons