Letter to the Daily Telegraph today - Sir, keep the Vulcan flying
11 February 2009, 11:32 AM
#1
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Letter to the Daily Telegraph today - Sir, keep the Vulcan flying
It is not only the bankers who need to apologise for the state of the economy - Telegraph
Now that's a good effort and just what the delta lady needed BUT
FOUR people who wrote that are Multi-Millionaires and One a Multi-Billionaire........wtf don't they all give a couple of hundred of grand each to the campaign??? It's a drop in a very big ocean for them. Dickinson owns and maintains a Boeing 707 ffs. If they meant it they would dip their own hands in their pockets, no? Branson has a history of doing this...like when he said the same about Concorde and that he would buy them for a quid each and run them....when in fact he never EVER made BA or AF an offer of any sort.
SIR – The public has donated more than £5 million over three years for the restoration of the last delta-winged Avro Vulcan bomber. She is the only flying Vulcan in the world and the reaction last summer to her triumphant return to display flying was ecstatic.
The stirringly beautiful Vulcan in flight is an inspiration to the young and a reminder of the need to increase the country’s skills in design, engineering and manufacturing. The Vulcan is also a penetrating reminder of the lessons and sacrifices of the Cold War.
The efforts to keep Vulcan flying now face potentially insuperable funding challenges. We call upon the MoD to give a home to Vulcan in an expanded RAF Memorial Flight. The public paid for Vulcan’s return; now the Government needs to help keep her flying.
Sir Richard Branson
Sir George ***
Chairman, The Design Council
Marshal of the RAF Lord Craig of Radley
Former Chief of Defence Staff
Bruce Dickinson
Iron Maiden lead singer and pilot
Frederick Forsyth
Robin Gibb
Songwriter and performer
Peter Hennessy
Professor of History, University of London
Air Chief Marshal Sir Michael Knight
Vulcan pilot
Nick Mason
Pink Floyd drummer and pilot
Captain David Rowland
President, The Royal Aeronautical Society
The stirringly beautiful Vulcan in flight is an inspiration to the young and a reminder of the need to increase the country’s skills in design, engineering and manufacturing. The Vulcan is also a penetrating reminder of the lessons and sacrifices of the Cold War.
The efforts to keep Vulcan flying now face potentially insuperable funding challenges. We call upon the MoD to give a home to Vulcan in an expanded RAF Memorial Flight. The public paid for Vulcan’s return; now the Government needs to help keep her flying.
Sir Richard Branson
Sir George ***
Chairman, The Design Council
Marshal of the RAF Lord Craig of Radley
Former Chief of Defence Staff
Bruce Dickinson
Iron Maiden lead singer and pilot
Frederick Forsyth
Robin Gibb
Songwriter and performer
Peter Hennessy
Professor of History, University of London
Air Chief Marshal Sir Michael Knight
Vulcan pilot
Nick Mason
Pink Floyd drummer and pilot
Captain David Rowland
President, The Royal Aeronautical Society
FOUR people who wrote that are Multi-Millionaires and One a Multi-Billionaire........wtf don't they all give a couple of hundred of grand each to the campaign??? It's a drop in a very big ocean for them. Dickinson owns and maintains a Boeing 707 ffs. If they meant it they would dip their own hands in their pockets, no? Branson has a history of doing this...like when he said the same about Concorde and that he would buy them for a quid each and run them....when in fact he never EVER made BA or AF an offer of any sort.
11 February 2009, 11:36 AM
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It is not only the bankers who need to apologise for the state of the economy - Telegraph
Now that's a good effort and just what the delta lady needed BUT
FOUR people who wrote that are Multi-Millionaires and One a Multi-Billionaire........wtf don't they all give a couple of hundred of grand each to the campaign??? It's a drop in a very big ocean for them. Dickinson owns and maintains a Boeing 707 ffs. If they meant it they would dip their own hands in their pockets, no? Branson has a history of doing this...like when he said the same about Concorde and that he would buy them for a quid each and run them....when in fact he never EVER made BA or AF an offer of any sort.
Now that's a good effort and just what the delta lady needed BUT
FOUR people who wrote that are Multi-Millionaires and One a Multi-Billionaire........wtf don't they all give a couple of hundred of grand each to the campaign??? It's a drop in a very big ocean for them. Dickinson owns and maintains a Boeing 707 ffs. If they meant it they would dip their own hands in their pockets, no? Branson has a history of doing this...like when he said the same about Concorde and that he would buy them for a quid each and run them....when in fact he never EVER made BA or AF an offer of any sort.
The wealthy get many requests for funding for many projects - they can't fund them all, or they'd be broke in no time.
11 February 2009, 11:39 AM
#3
Good point;
It smells like Bob Geldof constantly telling us all to give him all our f***in' money.
Personally, I think the national lottery should be funding it. I mean, they have wasted plenty of money on artsy farty white elephants in the past, maybe time to put it to something that is truly worth more than the sum of its parts (unlike the Olympics - which is probably sucking up all the lottery funds atm).
It smells like Bob Geldof constantly telling us all to give him all our f***in' money.
Personally, I think the national lottery should be funding it. I mean, they have wasted plenty of money on artsy farty white elephants in the past, maybe time to put it to something that is truly worth more than the sum of its parts (unlike the Olympics - which is probably sucking up all the lottery funds atm).
11 February 2009, 11:44 AM
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The lottery has already given £3.5Million, they won't get any more from them without a major new funding strategy and plan - which they won't have because the people running the Vulcan have not got a clue how to do so.
I pledged a rather large amount to them a month or so ago and have not even heard back from them!
The whole project has been beset by bad management, bad strategy, bad fund raising and bad timing also.
Even so, the fact that they have got this far despite all that shows just how much the public want this aircraft to fly.
It would cost itro £1 Million p/a to run the Vulcan in the BBMF i believe...
I pledged a rather large amount to them a month or so ago and have not even heard back from them!
The whole project has been beset by bad management, bad strategy, bad fund raising and bad timing also.
Even so, the fact that they have got this far despite all that shows just how much the public want this aircraft to fly.
It would cost itro £1 Million p/a to run the Vulcan in the BBMF i believe...
11 February 2009, 11:45 AM
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I think you might find that they will have already donated a fair bit of cash. I also think that the lefty PC ******* believe that supporting the Vulcan would be construed as "glorifying war" We shall just have to hope that they can make an impression and let the Vulcan join the Lancaster and the Spitfire and Hurricane.
ACM Michael Knight was a very highly respected senior officer during the time of the Cold War. He came flying with me once just to keep his hand in. I got him to do the take off and as we were climbing out he turned to me and said"That was better than sex Les!" Quite a character.
Les
ACM Michael Knight was a very highly respected senior officer during the time of the Cold War. He came flying with me once just to keep his hand in. I got him to do the take off and as we were climbing out he turned to me and said"That was better than sex Les!" Quite a character.
Les
11 February 2009, 11:48 AM
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I know that Branson has up until now refused to give them anything. The Chairman of Wolves saved them with £500,000 last year and he's a poorper compared to Dickinson, Branson, Gibb, Mason. Just the interest on their fortunes for One MONTH would keep 558 flying for YEAR...
11 February 2009, 11:49 AM
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Wouldn't it be wonderful to see the Vulcan at home in part of an extended BBMF? I saw it fly last year for the first time and it was truly an awesome sight 
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11 February 2009, 11:56 AM
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They have
Branson £2.7 Billion
Gibb £120 Million
Mason £55 Million - he owns dozens of cars that are worth about the same as well.
Dickinson - £50 Million
They need to put their money where their mouths are!
Current Petition to PM
Petition to: ensure the Vulcan XH558 project receives sufficient funding to enable it to continue "Honouring the past and inspiring the future". | Number10.gov.uk
Branson £2.7 Billion
Gibb £120 Million
Mason £55 Million - he owns dozens of cars that are worth about the same as well.
Dickinson - £50 Million
They need to put their money where their mouths are!
Current Petition to PM
Petition to: ensure the Vulcan XH558 project receives sufficient funding to enable it to continue "Honouring the past and inspiring the future". | Number10.gov.uk
11 February 2009, 12:19 PM
#9
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There's no way this government will commit funding to keeping an obsolete museum piece flying 
They won't even put proper funding forward to keep current equipment working properly
They won't even put proper funding forward to keep current equipment working properly
11 February 2009, 12:40 PM
#10
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k3...n/ce78db77.jpg
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k3...n/c88c92f1.jpg
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k3...n/f877c18d.jpg
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k3...n/defeaf1a.jpg
Last edited by ALi-B; 11 February 2009 at 12:48 PM. Reason: Wrong pics :rolleyes:
11 February 2009, 12:59 PM
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Wallets out then folks
If just 1000 people give them £100 a month then they will meet all their funding needs!
There must be 1000 people in the UK who are Vulcan fans and could afford that, surely?
Millions of people spend more than that per month on their bloody phone bills
I think a lot of people are not giving because they think it will be a fruitless cause. They need to get the message out there that it really isn't that hard to achieve...
If just 1000 people give them £100 a month then they will meet all their funding needs!
There must be 1000 people in the UK who are Vulcan fans and could afford that, surely?
Millions of people spend more than that per month on their bloody phone bills
I think a lot of people are not giving because they think it will be a fruitless cause. They need to get the message out there that it really isn't that hard to achieve...
11 February 2009, 03:27 PM
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It's a fantastic achievement to get it back in the air (it flew over our house too last year), but I can't see it staying up there on public donations alone. Pretty much all of those enthusiastic individuals who have wanted to help out financially, will have done so by now and I cannot see that number getting much larger in today's economic climate. Many will be somewhat disillusioned by the never-ending calls for donations to keep the project's head just above water and have unforeseen money worries of their own right now.
I am sure everyone involved thought that as long as it was back in the sky, then some corporate benefactor(s) would come along and bank-roll the next 10 years.
I think that the Lottery Fund people are probably rather embarassed by the whole affair: there was a lot of opposition to the grant at the time as the Vulcan to the Sky project was borderline to say the least in respect of the criteria needed for a grant. I am sure they expected more than a handful of brief displays during the wet summer of 2008 for their money.
As for the MoD/RAF, I believe that they have already helped out enormously in terms of helping with flight testing etc., and already have many other non-combat expenses of their own to justify (BBMF, Red Arrows etc) but it may well be the only option left to keep the big Delta in the sky.
We wish them all well.
I am sure everyone involved thought that as long as it was back in the sky, then some corporate benefactor(s) would come along and bank-roll the next 10 years.
I think that the Lottery Fund people are probably rather embarassed by the whole affair: there was a lot of opposition to the grant at the time as the Vulcan to the Sky project was borderline to say the least in respect of the criteria needed for a grant. I am sure they expected more than a handful of brief displays during the wet summer of 2008 for their money.
As for the MoD/RAF, I believe that they have already helped out enormously in terms of helping with flight testing etc., and already have many other non-combat expenses of their own to justify (BBMF, Red Arrows etc) but it may well be the only option left to keep the big Delta in the sky.
We wish them all well.
12 February 2009, 11:51 AM
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what exactly is the point in keeping it running? From someone like me who knows very little about the Vulcan etc it justs seems like a complete waste of money to ask for funding from something like the gov. or even the lottery when it could go to much more needed projects.
12 February 2009, 01:42 PM
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what exactly is the point in keeping it running? From someone like me who knows very little about the Vulcan etc it justs seems like a complete waste of money to ask for funding from something like the gov. or even the lottery when it could go to much more needed projects.
12 February 2009, 04:52 PM
#19
Mock if you like, but it in its day, it was a pinnical of design, we should at least keep one running (in s**ty metallic brown, of course ).
Of course its primary purpose should be in the display of the British automotive FAIL museum at Gaydon
Points to note: First BL car to have hydragas (of which continued until being used right into the 2000's with the MG-F). Also, like the Maxi, it had a traverse engine, FWD, 5 foward gears whilst Fords and Vauxhalls of the era still had 4 forward gears and RWD driving a live axle suspended on leaf springs. Don't forget the square steering wheel! And its fair to say, it looked like no other car on the road at the time! (I'm not say it looks good, just pointing it out
). Oh and the daft oversight not to make it a hatchback like the Maxi was.....
). Of course its primary purpose should be in the display of the British automotive FAIL museum at Gaydon
Points to note: First BL car to have hydragas (of which continued until being used right into the 2000's with the MG-F). Also, like the Maxi, it had a traverse engine, FWD, 5 foward gears whilst Fords and Vauxhalls of the era still had 4 forward gears and RWD driving a live axle suspended on leaf springs. Don't forget the square steering wheel! And its fair to say, it looked like no other car on the road at the time! (I'm not say it looks good, just pointing it out
). Oh and the daft oversight not to make it a hatchback like the Maxi was.....
Last edited by ALi-B; 12 February 2009 at 05:01 PM. Reason: just adding a little motivation
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