VULCAN QUESTION - XM607

[Stratpicker]

Having just finished the excellent book by Rowland White on XM607 and its part in BLACK BUCK, what happened to it after it came back from Ascension Island??
AFAIK it is (or was) a 'Gate Guardian' at Waddington, a sad end for such a 'famous' aircraft.
Why was it not able to get the same 'fate' as XH558 and remain flying ,or at least become a ground runner?
What made XH558 special and XM607 not?
Where is it now?
cheers
Ian

[s4wgb]

.

[Paul Creasey]

Hello,

The Vulcan that appeared at Abingdon yesterday afternoon was XH558 - now based at the former RAF Finningley (OK - RHADS, if you prefer!) - and operated by The Vulcan Operating Company. This is a "private" enterprise, supported by The Vulcan To The Sky Trust (VTTST - a registered charity) and The Vulcan To The Sky Club (an active supporter's club). The history of '558 since it left RAF service in March 1993 has been a chequered one following initial acquisition by the Walton organisation at Bruntingthorpe. I think it is fair to say that, without the Walton's initial purchase of the airframe - and equally importantly a large quantity of spare parts - a flying Vulcan in 2011 simply would not have happened. Following a successful bid for lottery funding, VTTST was formed and they have been responsible for upkeep and maintenance of '558 in flying condition for a number of years now. This has included some very deep (and expensive!) maintenance and modification tasks, as well as the not inconsiderable job of obtaining and maintaining the necessary approvals from the Civil Aviation Authority to operate '558 as a civilian aircraft. '558 receives no official government support (although the RAF have been very supportive of the project in a number of ways) and relies totally on private contributions and sponsorship (appx £2 million per annum) to keep going.

As for XM607 - she still resides at RAF Waddington, alongside the A15 and opposite the Waddo viewing area. As Ian quite rightly stated, '607 was one of the Falklands "Black Buck" aircraft (and isn't Rowland White's "Vulcan 607" an EXCELLENT read?). As-to finishing it's life as a "Gate Guardian" - that's a MUCH better end than the sad sight of most of the Vulcan fleet being literally hacked to pieces by the scrapmen in the mid 1980's!!

So............why wasn't '607 preserved in flying condition? She had had quite a hard life, and was very close to her finite "fatigue life" - the long trips to/from the South Atlantic wouldn't have helped - whereas '558 had rather more (although still finite) fatigue life left.
The short answer, I guess, was simply down to MONEY!
To keep one flying Vulcan ('558) and two taxiable ground running examples ('426 at Southend and '655 at Wellesbourne) continues to stretch the abilities of many supporters almost to the limit.
Regrettably, whilst there are many people who purport to "love Vulcans", there are rather fewer who are either prepared to "put their hands in their pockets" or get involved with the practical aspects of maintenance and repair!

Regards
Paul.

[Stratpicker]

Hello Peter
Thanks for the cracking answer.
I guess then that TVOC got hold of a Vulcan with the longest airframe life and are making the best of it.
Like many others I do put my hand down 'occasionally' to support the VTTST but it always strikes me that cash is forever going to be in short supply to keep this Bird in the air. It must be a terrible Money Pit but the saving grace is that she FLIES.
I found Rowland Whites book in the local Charity shop for 50p (!) and demolished it in two sittings. Superbly written, he makes you feel as if you are the 6th crew member (or 7th if you count the AARI's as 'crew'). I had no idea at all of the calamities and near disasters that happened to BLACK BUCK ONE, merely accepted the Press of 1982 at the time. I think we have to remember too that the Victor drivers also had balls of steel. Without them and the massive organisational planning and quick thinking, the Mission would have been ruined.
The photo credits at the back of my book don't line up in the paperback edition. It refers to three sections of photos - my p/b has only two - maybe the downside of it going to p/b from hardback.
Being at Waddington, the ancestoral home of XM607, they will hopefully keep it clean and tidy, unlike the scruffy mess that was the one I saw at Blackpool a few years ago (2004/5?), when visiting family.
cheers
ian

[Paul Creasey]

Hello Ian,
I think you're right (without wanting to take ANYTHING away from the Vulcan jockeys!) - the Victor crews WERE the unsung heroes of the Black Buck missions! The logistics of getting the Vulcans to the Falklands and back (the longest bombing missions in history at the time) were truly astounding.
Cash will ALWAYS be short with a project like XH558 - I feel that those who prefer to think otherwise live in cloud cuckoo land. That's not to say that I don't have some issues with the way the project is organised, but when the RAF announced disposal of '558 way back in 1992, there was no way that I would have put money on the prospect of a flying Vulcan nearly twenty years later. The team really HAVE (and continue to) "pulled rabbits out of hats"!
'607 - standing at the side of the A15 south of Lincoln - is maintained (by the RAF) in relatively good condition. Certainly much better than some other static examples around the World!
Some years ago, my Wife visited Blackpool on a "girlie weekend", and took a few photos of the Vulcan (XL391) there for me - I could have CRIED!! - what a mess!! After a failed attempt at selling it, it was put out of it's misery and scrapped - a salutory lesson for anyone who wants to "preserve" an airframe (even a static one), without any appreciation of the issues and costs involved.

Regards
Paul (Peter's my "little Bro'" - one of the guitarists in the Clan!).

P.S.....and thanks for "putting your hand down" for VTTST occasionally, too! Having commenced the best display season ever with the appearance at Abingdon yesterday, '558 remains on a hand-to-mouth basis and it could all come to nothing (again!) by the end of this month if the hat doesn't produce some more rabbits!!