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  Solway Aviation Museum Location within England  Solway Aviation Museum Solway Aviation Museum (Cumbria)  Solway Aviation Museum Solway Aviation Museum (the former City of Carlisle district) | |
| Established | 1961 |
|---|---|
| Location | Carlisle Lake District Airport Irthington Cumbria |
| Coordinates | 54°56′36″N2°48′20″W / 54.9432°N 2.8056°W |
| Type | Aviation museum |
| Website | www |
The Solway Aviation Museum is an aviation museum located at Carlisle Lake District Airport in Cumbria. [1]
The Museum is run by The Solway Aviation Society and staffed by volunteers. The Society is a registered charity supported by entrance charges to the Museum, and public donations. In addition to normal opening the Museum hosts educational visits for school classes studying the Second World War and for Scouts achieving their Air Activities Badge. Following the closure of the RAF Millom Museum, many of the artefacts were moved to Solway Aviation Museum for safe keeping and eventual exhibition when space permits.
The Buildings contain exhibits and artefacts relating to aviation in Cumbria, including the Second World War and also houses individual displays featuring the development of the Blue Streak missile, Martin-Baker ejection seats, and the development and activities of the Airport itself since the Second World War.
In April 2024, the museum raised enough money to move the only surviving Blackburn Beverly to the museum from Fort Paull. [2] Seven months later, the museum received a Tornado GR1 which had been a gate guard at RAF Spadeadam. [3]
The current collection includes the following: [4]
| Aircraft | Serial | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Avro Vulcan B.2 | XJ823 | Royal Air Force, it was flown into Carlisle Airport in January 1983, after the Falklands War [5] |
| BAC Jet Provost T.4 | XS209 | Royal Air Force, was used as a training airframe |
| DH Vampire T.11 | WZ515 | Royal Air Force |
| Gloster Meteor NF.14 | WS832 | Built by Armstrong Whitworth, last used at the Royal Aerospace Establishment Llandbedr, Wales |
| English Electric Canberra T.4 | WE188 | Royal Air Force |
| BAC Lightning F.53 | ZF583 | Former Royal Saudi Air Force painted in Royal Air Force markings. |
| Hawker Hunter F.51 | XG190 | Former Royal Danish Air Force aircraft painted to represent an aircraft of the Empire Test Pilot's School |
| McDonnell Douglas Phantom FGR.2 | XV406 | Royal Air Force, formerly a gate guard at 14 MU RAF Carlisle |
| Percival Sea Prince T.1 | WP314 | Royal Navy |
| SEPECAT Jaguar | XX146 [6] | |
| Sikorsky Whirlwind HAR.21 | WV198 | Royal Navy |
The de Havilland Propellers Blue Streak was a British Intermediate-range ballistic missile (IRBM), and later the first stage of the Europa satellite launch vehicle. Blue Streak was cancelled without entering full production.
Carlisle is a cathedral city in the ceremonial county of Cumbria in England. It is the administrative centre of Cumberland Council which covers an area similar to the historic county of Cumberland.
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Carlisle Lake District Airport is a small airport located 5 NM east north-east of Carlisle, England on a plain near the River Irthing.
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