As plans are being finalised for her spectacular Diamond Jubilee season, the charity may be forced to cancel vital repairs and put staff on notice

The charity that operates the last airworthy Avro Vulcan, one of the most popular examples of British post-war heritage, will be forced to put all staff on notice if at least £100,000 cannot be raised by the end of February.  The final weeks would be spent putting the iconic aircraft into a state of protective hibernation from which it may be prohibitively expensive to recover.

In a statement to supporters, the Board of the Vulcan to the Sky Trust said:
 “Assuming that the Trust continues the Winter Service work on Vulcan XH558 to the schedule that returns her to flight in time for the first of the year’s planned flights, it is now clear that without additional income, we will run out of funds at the end of February.”

The news comes as plans are being finalised for the Vulcan’s spectacular Diamond Jubilee year, in which she will fly throughout the United Kingdom to celebrate the accession to the throne of Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth II on February 6^th 1952. The summer season also includes the 30^th anniversary of the Falklands Conflict, in which Vulcan 607 piloted by Martin Withers, now chief pilot of XH558, captained the first famous Black Buck mission that disabled the runway at Port Stanley. 2012 is also the Diamond Jubilee of both the Vulcan aircraft type and its sister V-Force aircraft, the Handley Page Victor.

The last airworthy Vulcan is one of Britain’s most popular heritage attractions. More than three million people are expected to watch her dramatic displays during 2012, many of whom attend airshows and other events specifically to see the delta-winged bomber. She costs around £2million a year to maintain and operate to the UK’s world-leading aviation safety standards, but receives no funding from the Government or from the RAF.

“This makes us entirely dependent on a combination of commercial income and the generous donations of companies, families and individuals who love to see her fly,” explains Vulcan to the Sky Trust chief executive Dr. Robert Pleming. “With many savings being made internally and the growing capability of our in-house engineering team, combined with steeply rising revenue from trading activities, our dependence on public donations reduces every year – this year we need only one third of our 2009 fund-raising target – but without this money, she may never fly again for the people of Great Britain.”

Dr. Pleming is a firm believer that Britain’s technical heritage should be alive, living, breathing and inspirational. “She is a powerful reminder of one of the most dramatic periods of recent British history. Visiting a static museum cannot compare to the spectacular sight and sound of her dramatic delta profile appearing low over the trees,” he said passionately. “We must not let our young people forget the knife-edge tension of the Cold War and the resolution of the people who stood guard over our Island during this often-forgotten conflict, or the incredible achievements of British engineers who  continue to inspire the next generation.”

As well as raising £100,000 before the next meeting of the Board at the end of February, the Trust must raise a further £200,000 by the end of March. “This will allow the service to remain on-schedule and give us sufficient funding to reach the display season, when our commercial income will increase dramatically,” explains Dr. Pleming. “We have a vast range of fantastic plans to fly this remarkable aircraft – appropriately named The Spirit of Great Britain – at so many outstanding events that will never happen again. We have to do everything we can to reach the 2012 celebrations.”

Official Jubilee Flypast
“We would like XH558 to take part in the official Diamond Jubilee celebrations and are currently in discussions to make this possible,” revealed Dr. Pleming. “Success in these negotiations would also allow us to fly for the dedication of the new Bomber Command Memorial in London’s Green Park, should we be invited.” XH558 is one of only two Bomber Command aircraft still flying, the other being the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight’s Lancaster, operated by the RAF.

Throughout the Jubilee season, XH558 The Spirit of Great Britain will carry a Book of Good Wishes, recording the names and message of individuals, families and companies that would like to celebrate Her Majesty’s Diamond Jubilee. At the end of the year, the handcrafted leather volume will be presented at Buckingham Palace and a duplicate copy will be placed on permanent display at the Vulcan’s visitor centre in Doncaster. To find out how to take part, visit www.vulcansalute.org.

How to help the Vulcan fly

It is now four display seasons since XH558 returned to the air as the last flying representative of Britain’s famous V-Force. Many of the systems that were renewed during the restoration have reached the end of their service life, so have to be stripped, inspected and refurbished. Complex items like the ejection seats must be sent back to their suppliers for specialist attention and some extremely costly items like the brake parachutes must be replaced. “The aircraft is in outstanding condition, but the necessary maintenance schedule makes the 2012 Winter Service one of the most expensive we will be undertaking,” says Robert Pleming.

Supporters can sponsor maintenance of  the brake parachutes, the oxygen system, the fire suppression system and the pneumatic system; the braking system and the ejection seat service have already been funded by generous public donations. Supporters can also sponsor the fascinating process of non-destructive testing, which uses x-rays and other techniques to look deep inside the aircraft’s structure, and an engine-swap (replacing two of her engines with two that are in storage)  that will help to keep her flying for longer by managing engine hours. Everyone sponsoring one of these systems will receive a signed certificate and will have their names flown on a special commemorative plaque on the bomb-bay doors  for the rest of the aircraft’s public life. Visit www.vulcantothesky.org and click on ‘XH558’s Winter Service’ to find out more about this and about other ways to help the last flying Vulcan return to the skies, or call 0845 5046 558 during office hours.

Postal donations can be made to: Vulcan to the Sky Trust (Reg. Charity 1101948), 1 & 2 Venture Court,
Dodwells Road, Hinckley, Leicestershire, LE10 3BT.

Follow the Winter Service
Progress of the service will be covered in the Trust’s newsletter - sign-up from www.vulcantothesky.org – which will also explain the service strategy and the progress of urgent fundraising. Pictures and videos of the service will be posted on the Trust’s Facebook page www.facebook.com/pages/Vulcan-xh558 and videos will be posted on the new YouTube channel www.youtube.com/user/VulcanXH558Video .

To find out how to help keep her flying, visit www.vulcantothesky.org where there is also a history of the aircraft and a wide range of Vulcan merchandise including beautifully-illustrated books, a fascinating interactive flight DVD and a limited number of the highly-regarded account of the Falklands mission, Vulcan 607, signed by Black Buck 1, Squadron Leader Martin Withers DFC.

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Press enquiries and interviews
Interviews can be arranged with Dr Pleming and with Black Buck 1, Squadron Leader Martin Withers DFC, the most famous V-Force pilot and the current Chief Pilot of Vulcan XH558. Martin has fascinating memories and opinions around the Cold War and the Falklands crisis and can eloquently describe what it is like to fly a Vulcan during conflict.

Richard Gotch at Market Engineering
+44 (0) 1295 277050 / +44 (0)7831 569732                                                                                                              richard.gotch@m-eng.com

Richard Clarke at Vulcan To The Sky Trust (regional and aviation press)
+44 (0) 7541 133683
richc63@ymail.com

Pictures

A wide selection of high-resolution images can be downloaded from www.autopresspoint.com
or contact leanne.barton@m-eng.com to have them emailed.

Why is the Vulcan Important?
The Avro Vulcan is an iconic example of British aerospace engineering at its world-beating best. The design brief was issued by the MoD in 1946 and the aircraft flew for the first time on August 30^th 1952, just eleven years after the first flight of its predecessor, the Avro Lancaster. Its impressive list of technical achievements includes being the first successful large delta wing aircraft (leading directly to Concorde), innovations such as electrically-powered flying controls, one of the first applications of anti-lock brakes, and a speed and agility that was so close to a jet fighter’s that it was given a fighter-style control column in place of the traditional bomber pilot’s yoke.

Success as a Cold War peacekeeper meant that the Vulcan might have flown its entire service life without ever entering combat if it hadn’t been for the Falklands Conflict in 1982. During a marathon 8,000 mile flight supported by eleven Victor tankers, Squadron Leader Martin Withers and his crew released the bombs over Port Stanley Airport that prevented Argentina operating its Mirage III fighters from the island and initiated the campaign that recaptured the Falklands. Two years later, the last Vulcans were withdrawn from service. Squadron Leader Withers earned a Distinguished Flying Cross for his part in this action.

Today, only one Vulcan is left flying: XH558, owned by the Vulcan To The Sky Trust, a Registered Charity. Returned to the air in 2007 following one of the world’s most challenging restoration programmes, she has become an airshow phenomenon. “People forget that airshows attract seven million people annually. As a spectator activity, that’s second only to football,” says Dr Pleming. “An appearance by the Vulcan builds even on this remarkable level, typically increasing attendance by 20-40 percent. Airshow organisers talk about ‘the Vulcan Effect’ and have described the aircraft as a national treasure.”

Squadron Leader Martin Withers DFC is a passionate supporter of the educational role of the aircraft. “Part of our mission is to ensure that young people learn about the knife-edge fear of the Cold War,” he explains. “If I had been ordered to press the button that releases the nuclear payload over our enemy, there would almost certainly have been no Britainleft to fly home to. The Vulcan is the most powerful symbol of a remarkable period in British history that we must never forget”

Withers is also passionate about the aircraft’s growing role in technical education. “This is one of the most iconic pieces of aerospace technology ever, and it is thoroughly British. The Vulcan fires young people with a passion to develop and build world-beating technologies. And we can help give them those skills through training modules that call upon the extraordinary knowledge, rigour and precision needed to restore and maintain the UK’s only flying ‘complex’ heritage aircraft.”

The Trust hopes to fly the aircraft for at least two more display seasons, including the year of the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee in 2012, which is also the 60th anniversary of the first flight of the Vulcan and the 30th anniversary of its heroic role in theFalklandsconflict. “The airframe has limited time before it will no longer be possible to renew its Permit to Fly,” explains Dr Pleming. “After that, we hope to develop a museum and educational centre around the plane, funded by conference, leisure and other commercial activities.”

Experience the Vulcan at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NNDZvpScfIw

Help to keep her flying at: http://www.vulcantothesky.org/donate.html

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