Now replacing A318/319 on a few services into TLS

Replacing an earlier scanned photo with a better version on 17-Sep-21 (DeNoise AI).

 

The B747 SR was the 'short range' version of the B747-200 built especially for Japanese domestic services.

 

First flown in Sep-81 with the Boeing test registration N5573B, this aircraft was delivered to ANA All Nippon Airways as JA8156 in Dec-81.

 

It served with ANA for 23 years until it was 'traded in' to Boeing in Jul-04 and stored at Goodyear, AZ, USA as N233BA. It never flew again and was sold to Cargo Aircraft LLC for spares at the end that month. It was broken up at Goodyear in Jan/Feb-05.

A new sandstone gatepost pillar is in place at the northern end of Lord Derby's Coach Road. The previous one had been lying on the ground having been clouted by a "wide load" of agricultural produce.

Replacing a very old but well used Washtec SoftCare Pro

Replacing an earlier scanned slide with a better version 23-Dec-15.

 

Originally this aircraft was to have been registered G-BMMP but this wasn't taken up and it was delivered to Air Europe as G-DDDV in Mar-81.

 

Because UK & European leisure traffic is so seasonal, Air Europe were one of the forerunners in leasing out capacity during the 'low' season. This aircraft was leased to Air Florida between Nov-82/Apr-83. It was also leased to British Airtours between Nov-84/Apr-85.

 

When it returned to Air Europe the aircraft was sold to the GPA Group Ltd (later to become part of GECAS) and leased back. It was sub-leased to British Airtours again from Nov-85/Apr-86, and Nov-86/May-87, and again from Nov-87/Apr-88.

 

In Apr-88 British Airtours was renamed Caledonian Airways after British Airtours parent company British Airways had taken over British Caledonian. The aircraft continued with the new Caledonian until the end of Apr-88 when the lease was transferred to GB Airways.

 

It stayed with GB Airways until mid Nov-89 when it was returned to Air Europe and the GPA Group and leased to Gulf Air the same day as A4O-BL. It returned to GPA Group in Oct-92. In Dec-92 it was leased to East West Airlines (India) as VT-EWD but was repossessed by GPA Group in Oct-96 and stored.

 

In Dec-97 it was sold to Aero USA Inc as N633GP. The aircraft was leased to LAPA Lineas Aereas Privadas Argentinas in Feb-98 as LV-YGB. LAPA was renamed ARG Linea Privada Argentina in Sep-01. It was returned to AeroUSA Inc in Aug-03.

 

Two months later it was sold to La Rioja Air Company and was leased to Southern Winds (Argentina) in Nov-03. It was retired at Cordoba, Argentina, in Aug-05 after 24 years in service. It was last noted still stored at Cordoba in Aug-11 and I'm assuming it's since been broken up.

Replacing an earlier digital photo with a better version 14-Jun-19.

 

Taken from the Templeton Bridge.

 

First flown with the Airbus test registration F-WWCU, this aircraft was delivered to China Eastern Airlines as B-6052 in Oct-03. After 12 years in service it was sold to The Boeing Airplane Company in Apr-15 in part exchange for a Boeing 777-300ER and registered to Lufthansa Technik as D-AAAZ. It was stored at Schwerin (Parchim), Germany. It remained there for 3.5 years until it was ferried to Teruel, Spain in Sep-18 and permanently retired.

replaced...

For their early low-floor double-deck needs, to replace step entrance MCW Metrobus's and Volvo Olympian's, London United went for the Alexander ALX400 bodied Volvo B7TL's. The first ones to arrive began at number VA61. VA81 from that initial batch, new in 02/2000, is seen here entering Hammersmith Bus Station, on 09/08/2001, when operating on Service 220, out of Shepherds Bush garage. These replaced MCW Metrobus's on this route. In 09/2011, it was converted to single-door layout, from dual-door, and fitted with high back seating. It became part of the contract services division operating out of Fulwell, Twickenham and then Hounslow Heath, in the process. Later allocated to the United Transit fleet, it was renumbered VA40381 however in 08/2016, it was de-roofed by a hotel canopy! Withdrawn from service, it went for scrap, in 04/2017.

 

The camera being a Pentax MZ-M with the film being a Boots Colourslide.

 

I would request, as with all my photos, that they are not copied or downloaded in any way, shape or form. © Peter Steel 2001.

Replacing an earlier scanned photo with a better version 14-Aug-21 (DeNoiseAI).

 

An early B737NG (line No:96), this aircraft was first flown with the Boeing test registration N1786B. It was delivered to Air Pacific - Fiji as DQ-FJF in Sep-98, sold to a leasing company on delivery and leased back.

 

The aircraft was sub-leased to QANTAS Airways in Oct-01 and returned to Air Pacific in Apr-03. It was fitted with blended winglets in Apr-06 at Christchurch, NZ. Air Pacific was renamed Fiji Airways in Dec-13. The aircraft was ferried Nadi, Honolulu, Los Angeles, Bangor, Middlesborough-Teesside UK in Sep-20 and permanently retired. Updated 15-Aug-21.

Replacing an earlier scanned slide with a better version 26-Oct-21 (DeNoise AI).

 

Short-term lease to British Caledonian in basic Air Manchester livery.

 

A rare shot as this aircraft was only leased short-term in this hybrid livery for 10 weeks between mid Nov-83 and the end of Jan-84, it was previously destined for the very short-lived airline Air Manchester, painted in their full livery as G-BMAN but it was never delivered.

 

Delivered to Autair International Airways in Feb-68 as G-AVOF, it was sold to Cambrian Airways in Dec-69. The aircraft was briefly leased to Gulf Air in Oct/Nov-74. Cambrian was merged into British Airways in Apr-76. The aircraft was sold to British Aerospace in Nov-78 and leased back to British Airways.

 

It was returned to B.Ae in Aug-80 and stored. It was due to be sold to Air Manchester in mid 1982 as G-BMAN but they ceased operations and were merged into British Air Ferries in Sep-82. The sale was cancelled and the aircraft was given the temporary registration G-16-32 with British Aerospace in Sep-82 and became G-AVOF again in Mar-83.

 

In May-83 it was leased to British Island Airways for the summer season, returning to B.Ae in Nov-83. A week later it went to British Caledonian Airways on a short-term lease until the end of Jan-84 when it was returned to B.Ae.

 

It was leased to Dan-Air Services in May-84 for the summer season, returning to B.Ae in Oct-84. It was sold to Britt Airways (USA) in Mar-85 as N392BA. In May-87 it was sold to Okada Air, Nigeria, as 5N-AYT. It was stored at Benin City, Nigeria, in Dec-97 and broken up there around 1999.

Replacing an earlier scanned photo with a better version 11-Nov-17.

 

Built as a freighter, this aircraft was delivered to a lessor and leased to Atlas Air Cargo as N493MC in Oct-98. It was sold to Atlas Air in Nov-16. Current, updated 11-Jul-23.

As digital capture slowly replaces film for still photography, Dave Hill stands as a dual figure on either end in the death of a medium. A roll of film is strapped into the electric chair, and Dave Hill is both the man at the switch, and the governor calling in a last minute pardon. By defining a look that is purely digital, Dave Hill furthers the digital movement, but also allows film and a “film look” to retain an important place in photography. So for ushering us into a new age, Dave Hill is our newest artist of the week. Find out more at www.creativetempest.com

Replacing an earlier scanned photo with a better version 04-Dec-21, plus DeNoise AI 10-Dec-22.

 

Swissair Express, op by Flightline

 

This aircraft was delivered to Pacific Southwest Airlines (USA) as N365PS in Dec-85. It was sold to lessor on delivery and leased back to Pacific Southwest.

 

It was re-registered N189US in Dec-87 prior to being merged into US Air in Apr-88. The aircraft was withdrawn from use and stored at Mojave, CA, USA in May-91. US Air was renamed US Airways in Feb-97.

 

The aircraft was leased to Flightline (UK) as G-FLTA in Feb-98. It was wet-leased to Jersey European Airways between Oct-98/Mar-99, to Swissair Express between Mar-99/Apr-00, to Croatia Airlines between Apr/Jun-00 and to IAC Integrated Aviation Consortium between Apr-02/2008.

 

Flightline ceased operations in Dec-08, the aircraft was stored at Southend (UK) and returned to Westall Aviation in Apr-09.

It was sold to the Aircraft Holding Network (USA) as N174FF in Jul-12. It was due to be sold to Neptune Aviation Services for water-bomber conversion but the sale was cancelled.

 

The aircraft was sold to TAM Bolivia (the airline of the Bolivian Air Force) as FAB-106 in Nov-13. It was permanently retired at La Paz, Bolivia in 2017. Updated 10-Dec-12.

Replacing an earlier scanned photo with a better version, plus Topaz DeNoise AI 23-Jan-24.

 

Cyrillic titles, left side. English titles, right side. With additional 'operated by Albanian Airlines' titles with the word 'Albanian' painted out. The odd tail logo is Turan Air, overpainted with the Bulgarian flag.

 

A rough history... dates are approximate.

 

Built in 1986, this aircraft was delivered to LOT Polish Airlines as SP-LCB in Aug-86. It was sold to Turan Air (Azerbaijan) as 4K-733 in Jul-95.

 

In Jun-00 it was sold to Hemus Air (Bulgaria) in basic Turan Air livery as LZ HMP. At some point (late 2000 to early 2001) it was leased to Albanian Airlines.

 

The aircraft was sold to Bulgarian Air Charter as LZ-LCV in mid 2002. It was wet-leased to Kish Air (Iran) in early 2004, returning to Bulgarian Air Charter in mid 2004.

 

It was sold back to Turan Air as 4K-733 in Sep-06. Turan Air ceased operations in 2013 and the aircraft was stored at Baku, Azerbaijan. I can't find any further record of the aircraft and I'm assuming it was eventually broken up at Baku. Updated 17-Mar-24.

replaces the previous shot...Okanagan Lake BC Canada

Replacing an earlier scanned photo with a better version, plus Topaz DeNoise AI 04-Dec-24.

 

An early build Boeing 777 (Line No:30), this aircraft was delivered to Emirates Airline as A6-EMD in Jun-96. It was retired and initially stored at Dubai in Oct-14.

 

It was sold to Universal Asset Management Inc in Nov-14 and permanently retired at Tupelo, MS, USA. It was broken up there in Sep-15.

Replacing an earlier scanned photo with a better version 14-Dec-21 (DeNoise AI).

 

Taken through glass with some reflections

 

Fleet No: '779'.

 

This aircraft was ordered by Delta Air Lines and was allocated the registration N461DA, but this wasn't taken up and it was delivered to Delta as N452DA in Jan-73.

 

It was sold to Peoplexpress Airlines in Dec-83 and was re-registered N511PE in May-84. In Sep-86 the aircraft was sold to a lessor and leased back to Peoplexpress. In Feb-87 Peoplexpress was merged into Continental Airlines.

 

It was returned to the lessor in Aug-99 and stored at Miami, FL, USA. It was sold to Pegasus Aviation Inc in May-00 and converted to freighter configuration with a main deck cargo door in Feb-01.

 

The aircraft was leased to Kitty Hawk Aircargo in May-01. It was returned to the lessor and leased to CAT Custom Air Transport in Dec-02. It continued in service with CAT until it was retired in Jun-06 and stored at Roswell, NM, USA.

 

It was sold to U Boats Parts Inc in Jul-07 and was last noted at Roswell in Sep-11, still with it's engines but missing it's outer wings and other parts. It was eventually broken up.

The Elan Village suspension bridge crosses the river Elan about 0.5 km downstream of Caban Coch dam.

 

(More photographs of the Elan Valley can be found here: www.jhluxton.com/Wales/Powys/Elan-Valley/)

 

It was built by the Birmingham Corporation to provide access to the workers' village during the construction of the reservoir complex in the late 19th Century.

 

The bridge was closed to vehicles and pedestrians in 1988 because it was deemed too dangerous to use, it was replaced by a temporary “bailey bridge” to maintain access to Elan Village.

 

Today 30 years on the bridge remains in place but as yet has not been restored.

 

The Elan Village suspension bridge crosses the river Elan about 0.5 km downstream of Caban Coch dam.

 

It was built by the Birmingham Corporation to provide access to the workers' village during the construction of the reservoir complex in the late 19th Century.

 

The bridge was closed to vehicles and pedestrians in 1988 because it was deemed too dangerous to use, it was replaced by a temporary “bailey bridge” to maintain access to Elan Village.

 

Today 30 years on the bridge remains in place but as yet has not been restored.

Replacing this photo with better version 18-May-18

 

First flown with the Airbus test registration F-WWIM, this aircraft was delivered to SALE (Singapore Aircraft Leasing Enterprise - later renamed BOC Aviation Leasing) and leased to Aero Lloyd, Germany as D-ALAT in May-03. Aero Lloyd ceased trading in Oct-03 and the aircraft was repossessed by the lessor. It was being made ready for a winter wet-lease to Funjet Vacations (USA) which had been due to start on 03-Nov-13. In Dec-03 the aircraft was leased to Ryan International Airlines USA and flown by ex Aero Lloyd crews to fulfil the Funjet contract. It returned to SALE in May-04 and was briefly re-registered N996SE before being leased to Volare Airlines (Italy) in Jun-04 as I-PEKV. Volare ceased operations in Nov-04 and it was repossessed again and parked at Milan-Malpensa. It was re-registered EI-DIX to SALE (Ireland) Ltd and ferried to Cambridge, UK, for storage. In Apr-05 the aircraft was leased to Turkish Airlines as TC-JLL. It returned to BOC Aviation Leasing in May-15 and was immediately leased to Aegean Airlines as SX-DGX. Current (Feb-19).

 

I also have a photo of this in Turkish Airlines livery at ...

www.flickr.com/photos/kenfielding/4651971820

Replacing an earlier photo from Apr-15 with a better version Apr-17.

 

First flown with the Airbus test registration F-WWAJ in Nov-13. Interior fitout and painting at Airbus Hamburg-Finkenwerder was completed in Jun-14 and the aircraft was stored at Finkenwerder until it was delivered to Qatar Airways as A7-APB in Nov-14. Current (May-17).

Replacing an earlier digital photo with a better version 09-Oct-19.

 

Taken just a few months before the BKK airport code was transferred from Don Muang to the new Bangkok airport at Suvarnabhumi. Don Muang was re-coded DMK.

 

Operated by Bangkok Airways on behalf of Siem Reap Air on some services.

 

First flown in Mar-95 with the ATR test registration, this aircraft was stored at Toulouse until it was leased to Bangkok Airways as HS-PGE in Nov-95. It was returned to ATR and stored at Toulouse as F-WQNF in May-06. The aircraft was leased to Vietnam Airlines as VN-B216 in Jul-06. It was returned to ATR as F-WKVE in Jun-10 and was stored at St. Brieuc, France the following month. In Feb-11 it was leased to Azul Linhas Aereas Brasileiras as PR-AZT. It was transferred to Imetame Metalmechanica Ltda (Brasil), trading as Imetame Airline, in May-12 and was repainted in a special livery. It doesn't appear to be operational currently and I have no further information. Updated (Oct-19).

Here is a paper toy commission I finished up tonight for the good guys over at Replaced by Robots animation studio in Toronto. This little guy is there logo. His head can spin around on his body.

Sheffield Cathedral.

East Window - detail.

James Montgomery Memorial Window, 1857 - replaced 1880.

By William Francis Dixon (1848-1928).

In memory of James Montgomery died AD MDCCCLlV. The gift of John Newton Mappin, Churchwarden, MDCCCLVll.

 

William Francis Dixon was a pupil of Clayton & Bell. He first appears in business by himself at 18 University Street, London in 1875. He worked with various partners, including Edward Frampton, before going to Germany in 1894 to work for Mayer & Co of Munich.

 

James Montgomery was born at Irvine, Ayrshire on November 4th 1771. In 1776 he moved with his parents to the Moravian settlement at Gracehill, near Ballymena, County Antrim. Two years later he was sent to the Fulbeck Seminary, Yorkshire. He left Fulbeck in 1787, and rented a retail shop at Mirfield, West Yorkshire. Soon tiring of that, he entered upon a similar situation at Wath-on Dearne, near Rotherham, only to find it quite as unsuitable to his taste as the former. A journey to London, with a hope of finding a publisher for his youthful poems, ended in failure; and in 1792, he was glad to leave Wath for Sheffield to join Joseph Gales, an auctioneer, bookseller and printer of the Sheffield Register newspaper, as his assistant. In 1794, Gales left England to avoid a political prosecution. Montgomery took the Sheffield Register in hand, changed its name to the Sheffield Iris, and continued to edit it for 31 years. During the next two years he was imprisoned twice; first for reprinting therein a song in commemoration of the Fall of the Bastille, and secondly for giving an account of a riot in Sheffield. The editing of his paper, the composition and publication of his poems and hymns, the delivery of lectures on poetry in Sheffield and at the Royal Institute, London, and the earnest advocacy of Foreign Missions and the Bible Society in many parts of the country, gave great variety, but very little of stirring incident in his life. In 1833 he received a royal pension of £200 a year. He died in his sleep at the Mount, Sheffield, on April 30th 1854, and was honoured with a public funeral. A statue was erected in his memory in the Sheffield General Cemetery - since removed to the Cathedral Churchyard, and a stained glass window in the Parish Church - now the Cathedral. A Wesleyan Chapel and a public hall are also named in his honour.

Replaced a wrecked Corbeil

While having fun riding of road yesterday I hearda dull "twunk" from the rear wheel. A spoke had had enough. It was a quick job today before tea to repalce it.

Built in 1914 at no. 911 Wellington Street East.

 

"This is a Prairie-style single-story residence, noticeably located at the south-west corner of Wellington and Woodward in the city’s east-central area. It encompasses part of Lot 15, Plan 568 and Lot 29, Plan 930. GIS coordinates: 705,711.336 5,154,111.585 Meters

 

This handsome, distinctive, well maintained home is the best example of a Prairie-style residence to be found in Sault Ste. Marie. It is an elegant Craftsman style bungalow with a variety of gently pitched roof slopes and a small hipped dormer. The eaves are deep and bracketed. The columns are plain with square abacuses and no base. The inclusion of classical modillions in a residence is rare in Sault Ste. Marie and to Prairie-style homes. A variety of rustic building materials have been utilized: stucco, wood, brick and stone. The window groupings consist of both casement and sash with inner muntin bars. Those windows on the front have been replaced with modern aluminum windows but the windows around the sunroom on the east side and those on the partial second floor are original. Many of the original storm windows are stored in the garage. Craftsmanship in the building is excellent yet simple and functional. Even the interior fireplace sports hand-carved brackets of similar design to those supporting the overhanging exterior eaves. With the exception of the kitchen and bathroom, the main floor rooms are still finished with the original oak trim and floors. An old photo of the house indicates that cedar shingles once adorned the roof.

 

This residence was constructed, in its present form, in 1914 for Richard H. Carney who was District manager for Canada Life Assurance Co. It was the Carney family who was responsible for construction of the Carney Block on Queen St. It thus reflects the affluence of an upper middle class business family which was profiting from the Clergue industrial expansion of the day. A 1914 date and initials of the stone mason builder may be found in the basement wall mortar between the sandstone pieces. It is likely this sandstone was quarried from the locks as was typical for the day. This house was purchased in 1939 by the MacIntosh family who owned it until 2004.

 

The key exterior features that embody the heritage value of 911 Wellington St. E. include:

- Variety of gently pitched roof slopes provide horizontal emphasis reflecting the Prairiestyle bungalow

- Clerestory lighting that provides light to a half story loft

- A hipped dormer and deep bracketed eaves

- Columns with abacuses and no base but adorned with modillions

- Rustic building materials including stucco, wood, brick and stone

- Original casement windows with sash and inner muntin bars on the sunroom (east side)

and on the half story loft

- Home and property have been well maintained in traditional style with little change to

the exterior

- An interior with oak trim, baseboards and flooring unchanged save for the kitchen and

bathroom

- A beautiful fireplace with brackets supporting the mantle matching those under the

eaves on the exterior

- The best example of a classical Prairie-style residence in Sault Ste. Marie distinctively

located in a prominent east-central location

- A residence which reflects the affluence of a prominent Sault business family built

during the heyday of the Clergue industrial empire" - info from the Sault Ste. Marie Municipal Heritage Committee.

 

"Sault Ste. Marie (/ˈsuː seɪnt məˈriː/ SOO-seint-ma-REE) is a city on the St. Marys River in Ontario, Canada, close to the Canada–US border. It is the seat of the Algoma District and the third largest city in Northern Ontario, after Sudbury and Thunder Bay.

 

The Ojibwe, the indigenous Anishinaabe inhabitants of the area, call this area Baawitigong, meaning "place of the rapids." They used this as a regional meeting place during whitefish season in the St. Mary's Rapids. (The anglicized form of this name, Bawating, is used in institutional and geographic names in the area.)

 

To the south, across the river, is the United States and the Michigan city of the same name. These two communities were one city until a new treaty after the War of 1812 established the border between Canada and the United States in this area at the St. Mary's River. In the 21st century, the two cities are joined by the International Bridge, which connects Interstate 75 on the Michigan side, and Huron Street (and former Ontario Secondary Highway 550B) on the Ontario side. Shipping traffic in the Great Lakes system bypasses the Saint Mary's Rapids via the American Soo Locks, the world's busiest canal in terms of tonnage that passes through it, while smaller recreational and tour boats use the Canadian Sault Ste. Marie Canal.

 

French colonists referred to the rapids on the river as Les Saults de Ste. Marie and the village name was derived from that. The rapids and cascades of the St. Mary's River descend more than 6 m (20 ft) from the level of Lake Superior to the level of the lower lakes. Hundreds of years ago, this slowed shipping traffic, requiring an overland portage of boats and cargo from one lake to the other. The entire name translates to "Saint Mary's Rapids" or "Saint Mary's Falls". The word sault is pronounced [so] in French, and /suː/ in the English pronunciation of the city name. Residents of the city are called Saultites.

 

Sault Ste. Marie is bordered to the east by the Rankin and Garden River First Nation reserves, and to the west by Prince Township. To the north, the city is bordered by an unincorporated portion of Algoma District, which includes the local services boards of Aweres, Batchawana Bay, Goulais and District, Peace Tree and Searchmont. The city's census agglomeration, including the townships of Laird, Prince and Macdonald, Meredith and Aberdeen Additional and the First Nations reserves of Garden River and Rankin, had a total population of 79,800 in 2011.

 

Native American settlements, mostly of Ojibwe-speaking peoples, existed here for more than 500 years. In the late 17th century, French Jesuit missionaries established a mission at the First Nations village. This was followed by development of a fur trading post and larger settlement, as traders, trappers and Native Americans were attracted to the community. It was considered one community and part of Canada until after the War of 1812 and settlement of the border between Canada and the US at the Ste. Mary's River. At that time, the US prohibited British traders from any longer operating in its territory, and the areas separated by the river began to develop as two communities, both named Sault Ste. Marie." - info from Wikipedia.

 

Find me on Instagram.

Replacing an earlier digital photo with a better version, plus Topaz DeNoise AI 18-Oct-23.

 

Once the 'bmi' brand had become well known, the 'british midland' titles were removed. If you expand the photo you can see where its been painted out.

 

First flown with the Airbus test registration F-WWKL, this aircraft was leased to bmi british midland as G-WWBM in Apr-01.

 

As a result of a heavy landing the aircraft was withdrawn from service at Manchester in mid Sep-06, It had a cracked wing/main landing gear rib bearing lug, repairs took three months and it returned to service in Dec-06.

 

It was wet-leased to THY Turkish Airlines in Jun-10, returning to bmi in Mar-11. On it's return it was repainted in 'Star Alliance' livery and continued in operation.

 

Lufthansa sold it's major stake in bmi to the International Airlines Group (British Airways/Iberia etc) in Apr-12 and bmi had been integrated into British Airways by the end of the summer season in Oct-12.

 

bmi's A330's were not required by British Airways and G-WWBM was stored at London-Heathrow in Sep-12 as a 'standby' aircraft. It returned to service briefly in Oct-12 and was ferried to Victorville, CA, USA in Nov-12 for further storage before being returned to the lessor in Jun-13.

 

The aircraft was leased to Thomas Cook Airlines UK as G-CHTZ at the end of Oct-13. It was sub-leased to Condor Flugdienst for 9 days during Mar-17.

 

The Thomas Cook Group (UK) ceased operations on 23-Sep-19 taking Thomas Cook Airlines UK with it. The aircraft was impounded at Manchester (UK).

 

It was returned to the lessor, Aviation Capital Group, in Oct-19 and was stored at Newquay, UK in Nov-19. The aircraft was re-registered N839AG in May-20 and remained stored at Newquay. It was broken up there in Jan-22. Updated 16-Feb-22.

In the New Town, row after row and crescent after crescent of terrifically handsome buildings. A lot admittedly, are now offices, but there are a fair number of dwelling houses, if you have the bucks ...

 

A UNESCO World Heritage Site, a 26 year James Craig won the competition which led to the creation of New Town and later developments. Recent new developments to the city have led to threats from UNESCO which could lead to the withdrawal of the accolade. A major culprit in this instance is the development replacing the St James Centre, coyly nicknamed The Whip, as in 'Walnut Whip' by the developers, but more accurately named by the discerning, as The Turd. See:

 

www.riojaharo.co.uk/blog-entries/hotel-poo-edinburgh-no-9...

   

Replacing an earlier scanned photo with a better version, plus Topaz DeNoise AI 31-Jan-24.

 

Operated on behalf of Balkan Bulgarian Airlines by Slovak Airlines.

 

Named: "Gerlach" (very small, under the flight deck window).

 

Some of the dates in this history are approximate. The aircraft was built in 1995 and stored until it was delivered to Slovak Airlines in May-98. It was wet-leased to Balkan Bulgarian Airlines in mid 2001 and returned to Slovak Airlines in Oct-02.

 

It was sold to Pulkovo Avia as RA-85835 in Dec-03. Pulkovo Avia was merged into Rossiya Russian Airlines in Nov-06 and the aircraft continued in service until it was permanently retired at St. Petersburg, Russia in Dec-09. It was broken up at St. Petersburg in Aug-13

  

_______________________________________________________

Ms.Perfect PhotoGraphy 2010 ©Copyright

Photo's May Not Be Copied,Downloaded,Or Used In Any Way With Out My Permission.

 

Replaced , edited with cleaner edges. Thanks for the Fave on the original, David Nice!

Pavel Srníček (10 March 1968 – 29 December 2015) was a Czech football coach and former professional player who played as a goalkeeper.

 

In a career that lasted from 1990 to 2007, he notably played in the Premier League mainly for Newcastle United. In addition, he represented Sheffield Wednesday, Portsmouth and West Ham United in England's top flight, and also played in Serie A for Brescia, Serie B with Cosenza, in Portugal for Beira-Mar, and in his native country for Baník Ostrava. After retiring, he worked as a goalkeeping coach for his own private school and for AC Sparta Prague.

 

Srníček played internationally for the Czech Republic from 1994 to 2001, earning a total of 49 caps. He was part of their squad that came runners-up at UEFA Euro 96, and was their first-choice goalkeeper when they came third at the 1997 FIFA Confederations Cup and contested UEFA Euro 2000.

 

Srníček made 30 appearances in the Czechoslovak First League for Baník Ostrava spanning the 1989–90 and 1990–91 seasons. He was signed for English side Newcastle United in January 1991 by manager Jim Smith for a fee of £350,000, being one of 23 players signed by Smith in a 2+1⁄2-year period as manager. Smith left just two months after Srníček's arrival. Under manager Ossie Ardiles, Srníček established himself as Newcastle's first-choice goalkeeper ahead of John Burridge and Tommy Wright. Srníček experienced difficulty in the first 15 games of the 1991–92 season, conceding 32 goals in that period including six in a single match against Tranmere Rovers. Ardiles replaced Srníček as goalkeeper with Wright and by February 1992, the club was merely one place from last in the Second Division. This led to Kevin Keegan replacing Ardiles as manager, with the club winning seven of their remaining 16 games, only managing to confirm their future status in the division with an away win against Leicester City on the last day of the season. The club started the 1992–93 season in the new Football League First Division, winning all of their first 11 matches. Wright lost his place as goalkeeper to Srníček after 14 games of the season. At the end of the season, Keegan's first full one as manager, the club was promoted to the Premier League with 96 points. 1993 saw the arrival of Mike Hooper from Liverpool, who competed with Srníček for the position of goalkeeper.

 

Srníček marked the opening of the 1994–95 season, a 3–1 away victory against Leicester City, by being sent off. A "terrible error" by Srníček in a September 1994 match against Liverpool resulted in a goal for Liverpool striker Ian Rush, ending Newcastle's perfect start to the season and leading Glenn Moore of The Independent to question how much longer the goalkeeper would remain in the first team.

 

During Srníček's league suspension in 1995, former Reading man Shaka Hislop assumed position as the team's goalkeeper. Later an injury to Hislop enabled Srníček to return to the first team, upon which he entered into an impressive run of form. He was named man of the match in a December 1995 match against Everton, his team winning 1–0. During the 1990s, Srníček became the longest-serving foreign Newcastle player, passing the time spent at the club by Chilean brothers George and Ted Robledo.

 

Srníček played in the UEFA Cup, making a "vital save" from Amara Traoré and keeping a clean sheet as Newcastle beat Metz 2–0 in a December 1996 match in Newcastle, to qualify for the quarter finals of the competition.

 

Newcastle United Football Club is a professional association football club based in Newcastle upon Tyne, Tyne and Wear, England. The team compete in the Premier League, the first level of the English football league system, as of the 2023–24 season. Since the formation of the club in 1892, when Newcastle East End absorbed the assets of Newcastle West End to become Newcastle United, the club has played its home matches at St James' Park. Located in the centre of Newcastle, it currently has a capacity of 52,305.

 

The club has been a member of the Premier League for all but three years of the competition's history, spending 91 seasons in the top flight as of May 2023, and has never dropped below English football's second tier since joining the Football League in 1893. Newcastle have won four League titles, six FA Cups and an FA Charity Shield, as well as the 1968–69 Inter-Cities Fairs Cup, the ninth-highest total of trophies won by an English club. The club's most successful period was between 1904 and 1910, when they won an FA Cup and three of their League titles. Their last major domestic trophy was in 1955. More recently the club have been League or FA Cup runners-up on four occasions in the 1990s. Newcastle were relegated in 2009, and again in 2016. The club won promotion at the first time of asking each time, returning to the Premier League, as Championship winners, in 2010 and 2017. In October 2021, a consortium led by the Public Investment Fund, the sovereign wealth fund of Saudi Arabia, became majority owners of Newcastle United.

 

The team's traditional kit colours are black-and-white striped shirts, black shorts and black or white socks. Their crest has elements of the city coat of arms, which features two grey hippocamps. Before each home game, the team enters the field to "Going Home", with "Blaydon Races" also being sung during games. The 2005 film Goal! featured Newcastle United, and many signings mentioned the influence the film had on them.

 

The history of Newcastle United Football Club, an English professional association football club based in Newcastle upon Tyne, North East England, covers the club's entire history from its formation to the present day. Formed by a merger between Newcastle East End and Newcastle West End to become 'United' in 1892, the club was elected to the Football League, which they entered in 1893.

 

Newcastle are England's 9th most successful club of all time. They have been English champions four times (in 1905, 1907, 1909, 1927) and FA Cup winners six times (in 1910, 1924, 1932, 1951, 1952, 1955). The club have also won the 1909 Charity Shield, the 1968–69 Inter-Cities Fairs Cup, and the 2006 Intertoto Cup. Newcastle have reached the League Cup final twice, finishing runners-up in both years ( 1976 and 2023). They have played in England's top league from 1898–1934, 1948–61, 1965–78, 1984–89, 1993–2009, 2010–2016, and 2017–present, playing in the second tier at all other times.

 

The first record of football being played on Tyneside dates from 3 March 1877 at Elswick Rugby Club. Later that year, Newcastle's first association football club, Tyne Association, was formed. The origins of Newcastle United Football Club itself can be traced back to the formation of a football club by the Stanley Cricket Club of Byker in November 1881. They won their first match 5–0 against Elswick Leather Works 2nd XI. The team was renamed Newcastle East End F.C. in October 1882, to avoid confusion with the cricket club in Stanley, County Durham.

 

Shortly after this, another Byker side, Rosewood FC, merged with East End to form an even stronger side. Meanwhile, across the city, West End Cricket Club began to take an interest in football and in August 1882, they formed Newcastle West End F.C. West End played their early football on their cricket pitch, but in May 1886, the club moved into St James' Park. The two clubs became rivals in the Northern League. In 1889, Newcastle East End became a professional team, before becoming a limited company the following March.

 

West End soon became the city's premier club. East End were anxious not to be left behind and lured Tom Watson into becoming the club secretary/manager in the close season of 1888 and from that point, never looked back; Watson made several good signings, especially from Scotland, and the Heaton club went from strength to strength, while West End's fortunes slipped dramatically.

 

The region's first league competition was formed in 1889 and the FA Cup began to cause interest. Ambitious East End turned professional in 1889, a huge step for a local club, and in March 1890, they made an even more adventurous move by becoming a limited company with capital of 1,000 pounds in ten shilling notes. During the spring of 1892, in a season during which their results were at an all-time low, and in which they had lost to their bitter rivals, East End, five times, West End found themselves in serious trouble. They approached East End with a view to a take over, the directors having decided that the club could no longer continue.

 

What actually happened was that West End wound up, while some of its players and most of its backroom staff joined East End. East End also took over the lease on St. James' Park in May 1892.

 

With only one senior club in the city for fans to support, development of the club was much more rapid. Despite being refused entry to the Football League's First Division at the start of the 1892–93 season, they were invited to play in their new Second Division. However, with no big names playing in the Second Division, they turned down the offer and remained in the Northern League, stating "gates would not meet the heavy expenses incurred for travelling". In a bid to start drawing larger crowds, Newcastle East End decided to adopt a new name in recognition of the merger. Suggested names included Newcastle F.C., Newcastle Rangers, Newcastle City and City of Newcastle, but Newcastle United was decided upon on 9 December 1892, to signify the unification of the two teams. The name change was accepted by the Football Association on 22 December, but the club was not legally constituted as Newcastle United Football Club Co. Ltd. until 6 September 1895. At the start of the 1893–94 season, Newcastle United were once again refused entry to the First Division and so joined the Second Division, along with Liverpool and Woolwich Arsenal. They played their first competitive match in the division that September against Woolwich Arsenal, with a score of 2–2.

 

Turnstile numbers were still low, and the incensed club published a statement claiming "The Newcastle public do not deserve to be catered for as far as professional football is concerned". However, eventually figures picked up by 1895–96, when 14,000 fans watched the team play Bury. That season Frank Watt became secretary of the club, and he was instrumental in promotion to the First Division for the 1898–99 season. However, they lost their first game 4–2 at home to Wolves and finished their first season in thirteenth place.

 

In 1903–04, the club built up a promising squad of players, and went on to dominate English football for almost a decade, the team known for their "artistic play, combining team-work and quick, short passing". Newcastle started to purchase talented players, especially from Scotland, and soon had a squad to rival all of England. With players like Colin Veitch, Jackie Rutherford, Jimmy Lawrence and Albert Shepherd, Newcastle had a team of international talent. Bill McCracken, Jimmy Howie, Peter McWilliam and Andy Aitken were also household names in their day. Long after his retirement, defender Peter McWilliam said "The Newcastle team of the 1900s would give any modern side a two goal start and beat them, and further more, beat them at a trot".

 

Newcastle United went on to win the League on three occasions during the 1900s: in 1904–05, 1906–07 and 1908–09. Newcastle reached five FA Cup finals in the years leading up to World War I. In 1904–05, they nearly did the double, losing to Aston Villa in the 1905 FA Cup Final. They were beaten again the following year by Everton in the 1906 FA Cup Final. They reached the final again in 1908 where they lost to Wolves. In 1908 the team suffered a record 9–1 home defeat to local rivals Sunderland in the league but still won that season's league title. They finally won the FA Cup in 1910 when they beat Barnsley in the final. They lost again the following year in the final against Bradford City.

 

The team returned to the FA Cup final in 1924, in the second final held at the then new Wembley Stadium. They defeated Aston Villa, winning the club's second FA Cup.Three years later they won the First Division championship a fourth time in 1926–27. Record signing & Scottish international centre-forward Hughie Gallacher, one of the most prolific goal scorers in the club's history, captained the championship-winning team. Other key players in this period were Neil Harris, Stan Seymour and Frank Hudspeth. Seymour was to become an influential figure for the next 40 years as player, manager and director.

 

In 1930, Newcastle United came close to relegation, and at the end of the season Gallacher left the club for Chelsea, and at the same time Andy Cunningham became the club's first team manager. In 1931–32, the club won the FA Cup a third time in the infamous 'Over the Line' final. United won the game 2–1 after scoring a goal following a cross from Jimmy Richardson which appeared to be hit from out of play - over the line. There were no action replays then and the referee allowed the goal, a controversial talking point in FA Cup history.

 

Newcastle boasted master players like Sam Weaver and Jack Allen, as well as the first player-manager in the top division in Scottish international Andy Cunningham. But at the end of the 1933–34 season, the team were relegated to the Second Division after 32 seasons in the First. Cunningham left as manager and Tom Mather took over. Amazingly in the same season as they fell into the Second Division, United defeated Liverpool 9–2 and Everton 7–3 within the space of a week.

 

The club found it difficult to adjust to the Second Division and were nearly further relegated in the 1937–38 season, when they were spared on goal averages.

 

When World War II broke in 1939, Newcastle had a chance to regroup, and in the War period, they brought in Jackie Milburn, Tommy Walker and Bobby Cowell.

 

Newcastle United won no Wartime League trophies, but Jackie Milburn made his debut in 1943 in a "Stripes vs Blues" match. Milburn's side was losing at half-time 3–0, but following a switch from midfielder to centre forward, he scored 6 goals to help them win the match 9–3. Jackie went on to score 38 goals in the next 3 years of the league's life.

 

By the time peace was restored in 1945, Seymour was at the forefront of Newcastle's affairs, manager in all but name. He ensured that the Magpies possessed an entertaining eleven full of stars, a mix of home-grown talent like Jackie Milburn, Bobby Cowell and Ernie Taylor, as well as big signings in the shape of George Robledo, Bobby Mitchell, Joe Harvey, Len Shackleton and Frank Brennan.

 

Newcastle spent the first couple of years post-war in the Second Division. Crowds were extremely high after the return to football, and in 1946 Newcastle recorded the joint-highest victory in English League Football history, defeating Newport County 13–0. Len Shackleton, playing his debut in that match, scored 6 goals in the match, another record for Newcastle United.

 

Newcastle returned to the First Division in double of the time. Promotion was achieved in 1948 in front of vast crowds. An average of almost 57,000 at every home game saw United's fixtures that year, a national record for years to come. That was just the start of another period of success.

 

During the Fifties decade United lifted the FA Cup trophy on three occasions within a five-year period. In 1951 they defeated Blackpool 2–0, a year later Arsenal were beaten 1–0 and in 1955 United crushed Manchester City 3–1. The Magpies were known in every corner of the country, and so were their players; 'Wor Jackie' Milburn and Bobby 'Dazzler' Mitchell the pick of a side that was renowned the nation over. Other players of this time were Frank Brennan (like Mitchell a Scot), Ivor Broadis, Len White and Welshman Ivor Allchurch.

 

Despite having quality players throughout the era, stars like Allchurch, White and George Eastham during the latter years of the decade, United slipped from the First Division in 1961 under the controversial management of ex-Manchester United star, Charlie Mitten. It was a huge blow to the club.

 

An old war-horse returned to revitalise the Magpies in the shape of Joe Harvey, who had skippered the club to much of their post-war success. He teamed up with Stan Seymour to rebuild United and the Black'n'Whites returned to the elite as Second Division Champions in 1965. United then became very much an unpredictable side, always capable of defeating the best, but never quite realising their huge potential until very recently.

 

Joe Harvey's side qualified for Europe for the first time in 1968 and stunned everyone the following year by lifting the Inter Cities Fairs Cup; the forerunner of the UEFA Cup. United possessed a solid eleven and Newcastle's tradition of fielding a famous Number 9 at centre-forward since earliest years continued as big Welshman Wyn Davies was prominent along with the likes of Pop Robson, Bobby Moncur and Frank Clark.

 

In the years that followed European success, manager Harvey brought in a string of talented entertainers who thrilled the Gallowgate crowd. Pleasers like Jimmy Smith, Tony Green and Terry Hibbitt. And especially a new centre-forward by the name of Malcolm Macdonald.

 

Nicknamed 'Supermac', Macdonald was one of United's greatest hero figures. Brash, arrogant and devastating in front of goal, he led United's attack to Wembley in 1974, against Liverpool in the FA Cup. But the Magpies failed to bring the trophy back to Tyneside, and a complete lack of success in any of the competitions the next season resulted in Joe Harvey being sacked in mid-1975.

 

Blackburn manager Gordon Lee was appointed to replace Harvey, and despite a mediocre league campaign in 1975–76, led the club to its first League Cup final, which ended in defeat by Manchester City. Despite Macdonald controversially being sold to Arsenal for a cut price deal, the following season saw United's best League campaign for years, and by Christmas the club looked to have an outside chance of winning the title. However, Lee walked out on the club to take over at Everton at the start of 1977, and inexperienced coach Richard Dinnis was put in charge of the team after the players demanded that he be given the job. United's form initially remained quite consistent under Dinnis, and they secured 5th place and a UEFA Cup spot at the end of the season. However, the team totally fell apart the following season, and Dinnis was sacked after a run of ten straight League defeats and a thumping UEFA Cup exit at the hands of French team SC Bastia. Bill McGarry took over as manager, but was powerless to prevent United from being relegated in statistically their worst season ever. The only mercy they had was Leicester City's terrible goal difference preventing United from finishing bottom of the table.

 

McGarry remained in charge of the club, but only managed two midtable finishes before being sacked in the wake of an uninspiring start to the 1980–81 season, and it was his successor Arthur Cox who steered United back again to the First Division with ex England captain Kevin Keegan leading the attack, having joined the Magpies in a sensational deal in 1982.

 

The football inspired by Keegan captivated Tyneside and United stormed into the top division in a style only bettered by Kevin's own brand of football when he returned to the club as manager a decade later. Cox had also signed young winger Chris Waddle out of non-league football, as well as young striker Peter Beardsley, Liverpool midfielder Terry McDermott and former Manchester United midfielder David McCreery. The club was rocked however when Cox resigned after the board refused to offer him an improved contract in the aftermath of promotion, and, surprisingly, accepted an offer to take charge of Derby County - who had been relegated from the Second Division.

 

One of English footballs greatest talents, Paul Gascoigne or 'Gazza', emerged as an exciting 18-year-old midfielder in 1985-86, under Newcastle's next manager Jack Charlton, who left after only one season despite Newcastle achieving a secure mid-table finish on their return to the First Division. His successor was former player Willie McFaul. Newcastle consolidated their place in Division One but then a period of selling their best players (Beardsley to Liverpool, and Waddle and eventually Gascoigne both to Tottenham), rocked the club and led to supporter unrest, as did a share-war for control of the boardroom. The effect of this on the pitch soon proved evident, as McFaul was sacked after a dismal start to the 1988–89 season, and new boss Jim Smith was unable to turn Newcastle around, resulting in them finishing at the foot of the First Division in 1989 and dropping back into the Second Division.

 

Smith then signed Portsmouth striker Mick Quinn and Newcastle began the 1989–90 season on a high note, beating promotion favourites Leeds United 5–2 on the opening day with Quinn scoring four goals, and Newcastle appeared to be on the path to a revival. However, they missed out on automatic promotion by one place, before enduring a humiliating play-off exit at the hands of local rivals Sunderland. The intensifying boardroom battle soon took its toll on the club, and Smith resigned early in the following season with the side stuck in mid-table. Ossie Ardiles became the club's new manager, and despite being initially being the club's most popular manager since Joe Harvey, Newcastle dropped to the bottom of the Second Division in October 1991. Results failed to improve, despite the acquisition of a new striker in David Kelly and the efforts of promising young players including Steve Howey, Steve Watson and Gavin Peacock, and in February 1992 Ardiles was sacked. Despite being the best-supported side in the division and frequently still managing to pull in crowds of more than 20,000, Newcastle were also millions of pounds in debt and faced with the real prospect of third-tier football for the first time ever. A saviour was needed, and in came new chairman John Hall, who offered the manager's job to Kevin Keegan. Despite having vowed never to enter management following his retirement as a player, Keegan accepted the offer to manage Newcastle. His first task was to deliver Second Division survival.

 

Kevin Keegan returned as manager in the 1991–92 season, and survived relegation from the Second Division. The club's finances were transformed, with Hall aiming to put Newcastle among Europe's biggest clubs, and signings like Rob Lee and Andy Cole helped Newcastle to promotion the following season, 1992–93, as champions of the new First Division. The finish also secured qualification for the 1993–94 UEFA Cup upon return to the top flight in the 1993–94 Premier League season.

 

St James' Park was redeveloped during this time into an all-seated stadium with a capacity of 36,000. This increased to 52,000 in the late 1990s, after the rejection of Hall's proposal to build a larger stadium at Castle Leazes.

 

Keegan stunned fans and critics alike in 1995 when prolific striker Andy Cole was sold to Manchester United in exchange for £6 million and midfielder Keith Gillespie, leaving many to blame the sale to have affected Newcastle's title chances for the 1994–95 season, in which they finished sixth. The club, however, continued to build up a reputation for playing attacking football under Keegan. In the 1995–96 season, high-profile foreign stars David Ginola and Faustino Asprilla, in addition to British players Peter Beardsley and striker Les Ferdinand, guided the team to a second-place finish. During the 1996–97 season, Keegan made one signing, securing the services of England striker Alan Shearer for a then-world record transfer fee of £15 million to produce a shrewd partnership with Les Ferdinand, and claim a 5–0 victory over title rivals Manchester United. whilst remaining in contention to win the league.

 

With the team having failed to win any trophies under his reign, Keegan resigned as manager on 8 January 1997, saying, "I feel that I have taken the club as far as I can."

 

Kenny Dalglish replaced Keegan as manager, and maintained the club's good form through to the end of the season, finishing second. In the 1997–98 season, Les Ferdinand and David Ginola both left the club, whilst Alan Shearer broke his ankle in a pre-season friendly, keeping him out for the first half of the season. Dalglish signed Ian Rush, John Barnes, Duncan Ferguson and Stuart Pearce to bolster the squad, and achieved a 3–2 victory over Barcelona in the UEFA Champions League through a Faustino Asprilla hat-trick, but Dalglish's cautious brand of football, as opposed to the attacking style played under Keegan, did not prove successful—the club failed to progress beyond the Champions League group stage, finished 13th in the Premier League, and lost the FA Cup final to Arsenal. Dalglish began the 1998–99 season signing Nolberto Solano and Dietmar Hamann, but was soon dismissed following the club's declining form.

 

Ruud Gullit replaced him, however the club again finished the league in 13th place and again lost in the FA Cup final, this time to Manchester United F.C. Gullit resigned early in the 1999–2000 season, having fallen out with several senior players, including Alan Shearer and captain Rob Lee. Keith Gillespie later blamed Gullit's arrogance for his failure as manager of the club.

 

Ex-England manager Bobby Robson was brought in to replace Gullit in September 1999. He ensured Newcastle's survival in the Premiership, but the club remained in the bottom half of the table, finishing 11th in 1999–2000 and 2000–01. Robson, however, built up an exciting young squad, and an unlikely top four challenge emerged in 2001–02 season—Newcastle finished in fourth place.

 

Playing in the Champions League in 2002–03, Newcastle progressed to the second group stage in unlikely circumstances, beating Italian squad Juventus 1–0 along the way. United finished the 2002–03 season third in the Premier League, but lost their Champions League qualifier and played in the 2003–04 UEFA Cup instead, reaching the semi-final. In 2003–04, Newcastle finished fifth in the Premiership, lower than in previous seasons, and outside of Champions League contention.

 

Robson was then sacked following a poor start to the 2004–05 season and alleged discontent in the dressing room. In his autobiography, Robson was critical of Shepherd, claiming that while manager he was denied information regarding the players' contracts and transfer negotiations. He had previously publicly criticised the club's highly financed offer for Wayne Rooney, which the club later claimed they could not afford, stating young players were making excessive demands without first proving themselves on the pitch. He also criticised Shepherd and the club's deputy chairman Douglas Hall for their focus on the first team and St James' Park, causing them to neglect less glamorous issues, such as the training ground, youth development and talent scouts.

 

Graeme Souness replaced Robson and finished the season 14th in the league. Souness' arrival, however, was met with mixed reactions, with many expecting Robson being a hard task to improve upon, despite insisting he was aware of Sir Bobby's admiration and was ready for the role. In the January transfer window, Souness caused controversy in securing an £8 million bid for France international Jean-Alain Boumsong, who had joined Rangers for free just months before, prior to which Sir Bobby had travelled to France to review Boumsong but declined to sign him. The Stevens inquiry in 2007 documented that in this purchase Souness was accused of lack of consistency and was reviewed over the large media speculation the transfer received, but was eventually exonerated from any illegal participations. Going into 2005–06 season, despite signing several new players, including the return of Nolberto Solano from Aston Villa as well as Albert Luque from Deportivo de La Coruña for £10 million, Souness struggled with the opening games. He later blamed the state of the club's training ground for injuries suffered to players. The signing of Michael Owen (for a club record £17 million from Real Madrid) and his strike partnership with Alan Shearer produced goals at the end of 2005, but an injury caused Owen to miss the rest of the season and following a poor start to the new year, Souness was sacked in February 2006. Robbie Elliiot and Shay Given announced regret over his exit in the club's Season Review DVD but acknowledged his seeming favouritism of players and the amounting pressure on him damaged morale, whilst Alan Shearer blamed the injury crisis to first-team players.

 

Caretaker manager Glenn Roeder was issued the role of temporary first-team manager, seeing his first game against Portsmouth secure Alan Shearer's 201st goal for Newcastle United, becoming the club's all-time highest-scoring player. Roeder guided Newcastle from 15th to seventh place securing 32 league points from a possible 45 by the end of 2005–06, as well as securing a place in the UEFA Intertoto Cup and was given a two-year contract by chairman Freddy Shepherd. His appointment caused controversy, as at the time he did not hold the necessary UEFA Pro Licence to manage in the UEFA leagues and cup tournaments His role, however, was approved by UEFA who acknowledged that Roeder's diagnosis with a brain tumour in 2003 prevented him from developing his career, whilst Chairman Freddy Shepherd also fulfilled UEFA's request that he gain backing from all 19 other Premier League clubs to appoint him as manager. Alan Shearer retired at the end of the 2005–06 season scoring a record 206 goals.

 

Roeder encountered a difficult 2006–07 season, losing many players to injury, in particular Michael Owen, who had severely damaged his ligaments during the 2006 FIFA World Cup seeing him only play the final two games of the season. Newcastle won the 2006 Intertoto Cup, but a 5–1 exit to Birmingham City in the FA Cup, a round of 16 exit in the UEFA Cup and poor league results seeing a 13th-place finish led Roeder to resign in May 2007.

 

As the 2007 season drew to a close, St James Holdings Limited, the bid vehicle of billionaire businessman Mike Ashley, was reported to be in the process of buying the club. Ashley successfully acquired Sir John Hall's majority stake in the club in May 2007, leaving many to believe chairman Freddie Shepherd was set to depart after stepping down as chairman, should Ashley acquire more than 50 percent, which would see Shepherd no longer in control of the club and Ashley able to replace the board. Shepherd dismissed all speculation and proceeded to appoint ex-Bolton Wanderers boss Sam Allardyce as Newcastle manager, but eventually met with Mike Ashley and the board on 29 May. On 7 June 2007, Shepherd ended his 11 years with the club after Mike Ashley accepted his bid to buy his shares and in his role as chairman of the board, also having Shepherd advise the remaining shareholders to sell to Ashley. Ashley then announced he would be delisting the club from the London Stock Exchange upon completion of the takeover. The club officially ceased trading on the Stock Exchange as of 8 am on 18 July 2007 at 5p a share. Ashley brought in lawyer Chris Mort as the new club "deputy chairman".

 

Despite signing and building a seemingly strong squad, Sam Allardyce soon became widely unpopular with fans and players alike, and was surprisingly sacked by Ashley halfway through his first season after underwhelming results and pressure from the fans. Ashley, however, defended his decision to sack Allardyce, stating he made a mistake in not appointing his own choice of manager before the season started.

 

Kevin Keegan then made a sensational surprise return as manager. His return had an instant impact on club ticket sales as he sat with the fans, Mike Ashley and Chris Mort for the FA Cup replay 4–1 win against Stoke City. Following his return, Keegan had a disappointing first ten games back, with the club not winning a single game until his decision to include strikers Obafemi Martins, Michael Owen and Mark Viduka into a 4–3–3 formation, which saw the club back on goal-scoring and winning form and eventually finishing 12th in 2007–08. In May Keegan met with Mike Ashley and Director of Football Dennis Wise after he had suggested Champions League qualification was out of Newcastle United's reach and expressed dissatisfaction with the board's financial backing. Ashley was battling reports that he had lost hundreds of millions of pounds in a disastrous attempt to rescue bank HBOS. The morning following, after the club's 3–0 defeat to Arsenal, rumours were circulating that Keegan had either been sacked or resigned as Newcastle boss, citing board interference and his lack of control over transfers. Keegan confirmed the reports the same week, and reportedly held unsuccessful resolution talks with Mike Ashley the following week, leading to fan fury and protests around St James' Park, and marring the club's home defeat to Hull City, with fans accusing Ashley and club executives Dennis Wise, Tony Jimenez and Derek Llambias of forcing Keegan out.

 

Following mass media coverage of Keegan's departure, the club struggled to find a replacement, with the majority of managers showing no interest in the role. Ashley released a statement to the club's fans that in fear of his and his families reputation and safety, he was placing the club for sale. It was then announced that former Nottingham Forest manager Joe Kinnear was appointed temporary manager His appointment, however, saw a backlash from fans, prompting a verbal tirade from Kinnear at the media, who questioned his decision to take the job at such a time. By the end of the year, Ashley took the club off the market claiming he was unable to find a suitable buyer.

 

In the remainder of 2008–09, Kinnear won four out of 18 matches before stepping down due to reported heart problems. Chris Hughton then took temporary charge before Alan Shearer returned to Newcastle United as manager in April with Iain Dowie as his assistant. After winning only one out of eight games, the club was relegated to the Championship for the first time since 1992. Mike Ashley then re-issued his desire to sell the club once again and issued a £100 million sale price tag.

 

Prior to the start of the 2009–10 season, Keegan's dispute with the club was resolved after a Premier League Arbitration Panel ruled that he had been misled to believe he had the final word on the club's transfer policy when in fact Director of Football Dennis Wise had been handed such control. The signings of Xisco and Nacho González were ruled to have been made without the manager's approval; with González, Dennis Wise signed him only after viewing him off of YouTube. Wise and Derek Llambias were ruled to have deliberately misled the media to believe Keegan had the final say, which amounted to constructive dismissal. Keegan was awarded £2 million in compensation and re-offered his job as Newcastle United manager under fresh new terms, though in response to the offer, he stated the fans had "had enough" for the time being and declined. He stated in 2013 he would consider a return should Mike Ashley leave the club.

 

Chris Hughton was appointed full-time manager early in the 2009–10 season. The club dominated the Championship, winning 30 games, drawing 12 and losing only four, scoring a total of 90 goals and finishing top of the league with 102 points, thus re-gaining Premier League status at the first attempt.

 

Beginning 2010–11, Hughton remained on course to secure survival from relegation with the club's first win at the Emirates over Arsenal, and a memorable 5–1 defeat over Sunderland. However, fury once again was caused by the board, as the club controversially sacked Chris Hughton after a 3–1 defeat to West Bromwich Albion on 6 December 2010. Critics players and fans alike were shocked by Hughton's dismissal, leading to protests prior to the club's game against Liverpool in a bid to thank him for his work and support. Alan Pardew was then announced as being appointed manager on a five-and-a-half-year contract, with the club announcing they wanted a manager with more experience. Pardew stated he had nothing but respect for Chris Hughton and acknowledged the fact that other managers questioned his appointment. He secured his first win on his debut as manager with a 3–1 win over Liverpool On 31 January 2011, Newcastle sold striker Andy Carroll to Liverpool for a club record of £35 million. The sale of a young player at a high value proved controversial for Liverpool, with Alan Shearer ridiculing the price Liverpool paid as well as expressing sorrow at Newcastle for losing Carroll. Carroll himself stated that he did not want to leave the club but was forced out by the club's directors after Liverpool's final offer of £35 million; the board responded that Carroll had previously handed in a transfer request. Pardew said he was disappointed to lose Carroll, but pledged to invest in the club's summer transfer window. The remainder of the season saw Leon Best score a hat-trick on his debut in a 5–0 defeat of West Ham United, a memorable 4–4 comeback against Arsenal, and a 4–1 defeat of Wolverhampton Wanderers, eventually finishing 12th in the league.

 

Entering 2011–12, Pardew was reportedly denied the £35 million from the sale of Andy Carroll for transfers and told to sell players to raise funds, having claimed he had been assured the finances upon Carroll's departure. Kevin Keegan had previously stated Alan Pardew should not have expected the money following his issues with the board in 2008. The club signed many French-speaking players in the transfer window, including Yohan Cabaye, Mathieu Debuchy, Sylvain Marveaux and Demba Ba. and with impressive results throughout the season, Newcastle finished fifth.

 

In the 2012–13 UEFA Europa League, Newcastle reached the quarter-finals, and in the January transfer window, the French revolution continued into the new year, with Moussa Sissoko and Yoan Gouffran joining the squad. The team, however, had a poor 2012–13 Premier League and finished 16th in the Premier League.

 

Beginning the 2013–14 season, in a surprise move Joe Kinnear returned to the club as Director of Football, instantly causing fan fury following his outburst that he was "more intelligent" than the fans and critics, as well as mispronouncing various players names during a radio interview. However, he resigned after just eight months on the job following further critique for managing to sign only two players on loan—Loïc Rémy and Luuk de Jong—throughout the season's summer and January transfer windows, as well selling Yohan Cabaye to Paris Saint-Germain for £20 million, considered to be one of the most influential players at the time. Following the lack of transfer activity, Mike Ashley once again faced a fan revolt, with protests being launched at him to sell the club, and entered a dispute with several media titles whom the club banned from Newcastle United media facilities, press conferences and player interviews, declaring stories reported were intensely exaggerated and aimed only to damage Ashley's image further. Throughout the season, the club remained on course to ensure a top half finish, notably defeating Manchester United at Old Trafford for the first time since 1972. Nonetheless, the team struggled for goals following the sale of Cabaye. Further dismay upon the season was caused when Pardew was banned for seven matches and fined £100,000 for an assault on Hull City midfielder David Meyler. The club then encountered a poor run of form, losing eight out of ten games and finishing the season tenth in the league, though the club confirmed Alan Pardew would stay on.

 

The opening eight games of the 2014–15 season proved disappointing, with the club failing to secure a win. After the dip in form, however, the club had an emphatic resurgence, seeing a five-game unbeaten run whilst also surprising League Cup holders Manchester City with a 2–0 win and progressing to the quarter-finals of the tournament. Pardew, however, resigned from the club on 30 December 2014 following immense pressure from fans calling for his departure, with many posters at games designed with the Sports Direct logo advertising a website demanding his resignation. Pardew admitted in the months leading up to his departure that protests from the fans were affecting his family and was subsequently feeling unhappy at the club. He was replaced by his assistant manager John Carver, though the team subsequently earned just 13 points out of a possible 50, surviving relegation on the final day of the season with a victory over West Ham, Carver was dismissed before the club's pre-season for 2016 began. The club paid tribute to player Jonás Gutiérrez following his successful recovery from testicular cancer to resume his playing career.

 

Beginning the 2015–16 season, former England F.C. Manager Steve McClaren was appointed manager, signing Georginio Wijnaldum, Aleksandar Mitrovic, Chancel Mbemba, Florian Thauvin, Henri Saivet, Jonjo Shelvey, Andros Townsend and Ivan Toney. McClaren however struggled to produce results winning 6 and drawing 6 out of 28 games, whilst exiting both the FA Cup and League Cup in the Third Round. McClaren was subsequently sacked on 11 March 2016 with critics and former players voicing their favour of the decision. Rafael Benítez was announced as McClaren's successor the same day, signing a three-year deal. Benítez recorded his first victory in 3–0 defeat of Swansea City in the Premier League on 17 April 2016 after 5 games in charge, and maintained an emphatic 5-game unbeaten streak to the end of the season. Newcastle were however relegated from the Premier League along with Aston Villa and Norwich finishing 18th place, 2 points below safety. Betting websites confirmed after the final game that the club's 5–1 defeat of Tottenham Hotspur matched the initial odds of Leicester City's 5000/1 win of the 2015–16 Premier League season.

 

Starting the 2016-17 season, Rafa Benítez signed 12 new players full-time and also acquired 5 players on loan, whilst 8 players left the club and another 12 on loan. New signings Dwight Gayle and Matt Ritchie proved popular scoring a combined total of 39 goals, finishing among the top goalscorers that season. Despite failing to improve on their dominant success in the 2009/10 championship season, the club remained in contention for the trophy throughout; threatened only by Brighton & Hove Albion Newcastle enjoyed a 3-game winning streak to the final day of the season and lifted the Football League Championship trophy on 8 May 2017 following a 3–0 win over Barnsley. Rafa Benítez denied speculation that he would leave the club following promotion to the Premier League and confirmed his commitment to the club for the foreseeable future. Shortly prior to the season's finish, the club was subject to raids by HMRC following suspicions of tax evasion. Managing Director Lee Charnley was arrested during the raid, but was later released without charge.

 

Ending the 2017-18 season, the club finished 10th in the Premier League defeating the current champions Chelsea on the final day of the season, the highest finish achieved within 4 years. Beginning the 2018–19 season, Mike Ashley again came under scrutiny following lack of major signings in the summer transfer window, with many fans accusing him of lacking interest in the club following his purchase of troubled retail chain House of Fraser for £90m. Despite the January signing of Miguel Almirón from Atlanta United FC for £21 million surpassing the club's transfer record fee of £16.8 million for Michael Owen in 2005, the club struggled throughout the season with 12 wins, 9 draws and 17 losses seeing a 13th place league table finish, whilst exiting the League Cup at the 2nd round in a 3–1 defeat of Nottingham Forest F.C and a 4th round exit of the FA Cup in a 2–0 defeat to Watford F.C. The season also saw heavy speculation regarding Rafa Benítez remaining at the club following reports he was still in negotiations following the end of the season.

 

Following fresh reports of Ashley's intention to sell the club, Sheikh Khaled Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Founder and Chairman of The Bin Zayed Group of Companies, a member of the Al Nahyan royal family of Abu Dhabi, confirmed he had agreed terms to purchase the club for £350 million. On 5 June 2019 a company named Monochrome Acquisitions Limited was registered in Nahyan's name, whilst managing director Lee Charnley applied to have four companies linked to Ashley's company St James Holdings Ltd struck off, leaving many to believe the club was on course to be sold. Talks of a takeover however stalled throughout the summer transfer window, whilst Ashley confirmed he had not received an official bid from any prospective buyer.

 

Benítez rejected a new contract offer and departed the club on 30 June 2019, accepting a move to Chinese Super League side Dalian Yifang in a £12 million deal. Ashley criticised Benítez stating unfair demands were made making it impossible for him to remain as manager. Notable player departures saw Salomón Rondón join Benitez at Dalian Yifang after returning to West Bromwich Albion F.C. from loan, whilst Ayoze Perez joined Leicester City for £30 million and Mohamed Diamé was released by Newcastle upon the expiry of his contract at the end of the 2018–19 season.

 

BBC Sport reported in July 2019 that Steve Bruce had resigned from his managerial position at Sheffield Wednesday after he earlier admitted that he had held talks with Newcastle United over their managerial vacancy. His appointment was confirmed on 17 July. Sheffield Wednesday however stated there were still outstanding legal issues with Bruce having resigned just 48 hours before, leading a report being filed to the Premier League alleging misconduct in his appointment. Newcastle United denied any wrongdoing and stated they were confident no case could be escalated. Reaction from the fans was mixed, with some feeling Bruce would not achieve the standard set by Benítez, whilst his recent lack of Premier League football and management of rival club Sunderland proved controversial. Bruce later acknowledged Benítez's popularity and stated he hoped the fans would not rush to judgement and give him time to prove himself and manager of Newcastle. Due to visa problems in China, Bruce watched his first match as manager from the stands which saw Newcastle achieve a third-place finish in the pre-season 2019 Premier League Asia Trophy following a 1–0 victory over West Ham United F.C. Bruce quickly made his first transfer, signing Joelinton from TSG 1899 Hoffenheim for £40 million, breaking the club's transfer fee record previously held by Miguel Almirón at £21 million just 6 months before, before signing French international winger Allan Saint-Maximin from OGC Nice on a permanent deal for £16.5 million, Sweden international defender Emil Krafth for £5 million, central midfielder Kyle Scott on a free signing following his departure from Chelsea, and Netherlands international defender Jetro Willems on loan from Frankfurt F.C until the end of the 2019–20 season. Bruce made his final transfer of the pre-season on deadline day by re-signing striker Andy Carroll, who had left the club over 7 years earlier. On 4 February 2020, Steve Bruce's side ended a 14-year drought by reaching the 5th round of the FA Cup they beat League One side Oxford United 2–3 in a replay thanks to a late winner from Allan Saint-Maximin in extra time.

 

From March 2020, the season was affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. On 13 March, following an emergency meeting between the Premier League, The Football Association (FA), the English Football League and the FA Women's Super League, it was unanimously decided to suspend professional football in England. On 19 March, the suspension was extended indefinitely, with a restart date of 17 June announced in late May with all remaining games to be played without crowd attendance.

 

Newcastle finished the season in 13th place. Defender Danny Rose was an outspoken critic of the decision to continue the season, citing the virus was still in major circulation and accused the FA of having no concern for footballers' health. Karl Darlow has since urged players at the club to get vaccinated following his hospitalisation from complications of Covid, whilst manager Steve Bruce admitted some players had voluntarily declined the vaccination.

 

The 2020-21 season saw all matches played without crowd attendance until May 2021, in light of the COVID-19 pandemic. Newcastle failed to improve on the previous season, finishing 12th in the premier league and were knocked out of the FA Cup in the third round added time to Arsenal and exited the EFL Cup in the quarter-finals losing 1–0 to Brentford.

 

In April 2020, it was widely reported that a consortium consisting of Public Investment Fund, PCP Capital Partners and the Reuben Brothers, was finalising an offer to acquire Newcastle United. The proposed sale prompted concerns and criticism, such as arguments considering it sportwashing of the country's human rights record, as well as ongoing large-scale piracy of sports broadcasts in the region. However the consortium announced its withdrawal from the Newcastle deal on July 30, 2020, after multiple media reports highlighted realm as the staunch violator of human rights, and the WTO ruled that it was behind the piracy campaign using pirate-pay-service beoutQ. "With a deep appreciation for the Newcastle community and the significance of its football club, we have come to the decision to withdraw our interest in acquiring Newcastle United Football Club," the group said in its statement upon withdrawal. The group also stated that the "prolonged process" was a major factor in them pulling out. The collapse of the takeover was met with widespread criticism from Newcastle fans, with Newcastle MP Chi Onwurah accusing the Premier League of treating fans of the club with "contempt" and subsequently wrote to Masters for an explanation. Despite the consortium's withdrawal, disputes over the takeover continued. On 9 September 2020, Newcastle United released a statement claiming that the Premier League had officially rejected the takeover by the consortium and accused Masters and the Premier League board of " acting appropriately in relation to [the takeover]", while stating that the club would be considering any relevant legal action. The Premier League strongly denied this in a statement released the next day, expressing "surprise" and "disappointment" at Newcastle's statement.

 

On October 7, 2021, the Public Investment Fund, PCP Capital Partners and RB Sports & Media confirmed that they had officially completed the acquisition of Newcastle United. Governor of the investment fund Yasir bin Othman Al-Rumayyan was appointed non-executive chairman, whilst Amanda Staveley and Jamie Reuben were both appointed as directors and each held a 10% shareholding in the club.

 

The takeover led to widespread speculation that manager Steve Bruce was expected to leave the club. Although not denying the speculation that the club was keen to appoint a new manager, Staveley stated Bruce was to remain for the new owners first game against Tottenham Hotspur; his 1000th match as a football manager. However following Newcastle losing the game 3-2 and alleged discontent among the players, Bruce left the club by mutual consent. Bruce stated his sadness at leaving the club and felt Newcastle fans launched unnecessary verbal abuse at him during his time there. Interim manager Graeme Jones as well as Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta supported Bruce's claims stating the abuse he received was off putting for other managers to take the role.

 

Eddie Howe was appointed as manager on 8 November 2021. The announcement was made following reports that the club had discussed the role with him the previous week and confirmed following his attendance at the away draw to Brighton & Hove Albion. On 19 November 2021, Newcastle announced that Howe had tested positive for COVID-19 and would miss his first game in charge, which instead forced him to watch his first game as manager from a hotel room as Newcastle drew 3–3 with Brentford on 20 November.

 

Lee Charnley, who acted as Managing Director under Ashley's ownership, left the club on 19 November 2021 following a six-week handover period. His departure was the final of Mike Ashley's hierarchy, with Staveley stating the club was undergoing a "formal process" to appoint a new figure to replace the role.

 

Eddie Howe had to wait until 4 December 2021 for his first win as Newcastle manager in a 1–0 win against Burnley, which was also the first win since the takeover happened. Howe then made five signings in the first January transfer window under the new ownership which included a marquee singing in Brazilian midfielder Bruno Guimarães from Olympique Lyonnais. The transfer window and the players that were already there that Howe improved helped Newcastle to go on a 9-game unbeaten run in the Premier League to get them 10 points clear from the relegation zone and increasing the chance of guaranteeing survival. After Newcastle's 1–0 win against Crystal Palace, this was the first time the club had managed to win 6 home games in a row since 2004 when Sir Bobby Robson was in charge. Newcastle finished in 11th place after a run of 12 wins in their final 18 games, and became the first team in Premier League history to avoid relegation after not winning any of the first 14 games they played.

 

On 30 May 2022, the club announced they had reached an agreement of a compensation fee with Brighton & Hove Albion to appoint Dan Ashworth as the new Sporting Director, the appointment was confirmed on 6 June 2022. On 15 July 2022, the club brought in Darren Eales, from MLS side Atlanta United, as the club's new Chief Executive Officer - acting as a "key member of the club's leadership structure".

 

Newcastle United was set up as a private company limited by shares on 6 September 1895. However, by the 1930s, ownership of the company was dominated by a small number of individuals: Alderman William McKeag, George and Robert Rutherford, and William Westwood, 1st Baron Westwood. George Stanley Seymour was allocated some shares when he joined the board in 1938.

 

By the second half of the 20th century, these shareholdings had passed to the next generation: Gordon McKeag, Robert James Rutherford, Stan Seymour Jr. and William Westwood, 2nd Baron Westwood. The Magpie Group led by Sir John Hall built up a large shareholding in the club and then took control in 1992. In 2007, St James Holdings Limited, the bid vehicle of billionaire businessman Mike Ashley, secured control of the club and in 2021, the Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia, PCP Capital Partners and RB Sports & Media confirmed that they had acquired ownership of the club.

  

A short trip along the coast....

 

Blackpool Transport is coming to the end of an ambitious fleet upgrade programme which sees it replace its entire fleet with brand new buses at least at Euro VI or better. The vast majority of the fleet is now at this standard, which Blackpool calls ‘Palladium’ and fresh order has been announced at the recent Coach and Bus 2019 show for a further 4 Enviro 400s of the City variety and a further 15 Enviro 200s. This will take its fleet of ADL buses to 107, being 59 ADL 400Citys, 26 long and 22 Short Enviro 200MMCs. This order will probably see off the last of Blackpool’s remaining Tridents plus will lead to the withdrawal of the first Palladium branded buses, these being ten Euro V Volvo B7RLE/Plaxton Centro’s.

 

Seen here is a 2018 delivery of its first Enviro 200MMC, 233 (YX18KWN) a short wheelbase model heading through the seaside Cleveleys, just north of Blackpool.

Here's something you dont see every day in Red Wing. I drove down along the tracks to take some river and railroad pictures when I came up to these grain hoppers lying on thier sides. I'm guessing they are replacing the wheels since the cars apear to be in pretty decent shape..Does anybody know what is going on here?

 

Photographed in Red Wing Minnesota

March 31st 2012

Tumblr ● Twitter

Replacing an earlier scanned photo with a better version, plus Topaz DeNoise AI 26-Nov-23.

 

Factory fresh and one of the final few B757's to come out of Seattle-Boeing Field, arriving at Manchester on delivery. with unusual red titles.

 

A late build Boeing 757 (Line No: 1026), this aircraft was delivered to the CIT Leasing Corporation and leased to Air 2000 as G-OOBC in Mar-03. The aircraft titles were changed to First Choice Airways in Nov-03 and the company was officially renamed First Choice Airways in May-04.

 

In May-08 the First Choice Holiday Group was merged into the TUI Group and First Choice Airways was merged into Thomson Airways in Nov-08 although the aircraft continued to operate in the First Choice Livery.

 

It was fitted with blended winglets in Feb-10 and was finally repainted into standard Thomson Airways livery in Mar-10. It was sold to Avolon Aerospace in Apr-17 while the lease to Thomson Airways continued.

 

In line with other airlines in the TUI Group, Thomson Airways was renamed TUI Airlines UK at the end of Oct-17. The aircraft was withdrawn from service in Mar-20 and stored at Luton, UK due to the COVID-19 Pandemic.

 

It didn't return to service and was ferried to Goodyear, AZ, USA and returned to the lessor in Sep-20. The aircraft was sold to the Bank of Utah (as Trustee for SF Airlines) as N203DP. It was ferried to Chengdu, China at the end of Sep-20 for freighter conversion.

 

The aircraft was converted to a freighter with a main deck cargo door and delivered to SF Airlines (Shun Feng Airlines) as B-220J in Mar-21. Current, updated 26-Nov-23.

AI generated illlustration:

 

OpenArt.ai prompt:

 

Realistic, middle-aged male using a camera to photograph a detailed diorama of an adventure scene including action figures and dolls

replaced 1/30/2012 with new version, 3h21m (newer subs 420s instead of 300s). still need to recover the core of m42.

 

18x300s (1h30m)

 

canon 200 f2.8L @ f/2.8

sbig stt-8300m

astrodon L 5nm filter

G11 + Gemini2

Guiding with PhD + Lodestar + 9x50 finder

 

FOV is 5.33x4.02 degrees. this is the full frame of the KAF8300.

 

processed with pixinsight 1.7

 

Replacing an earlier scanned photo with a better version 11-Mar-18, plus DeNoise AI 13-Jan-23.

 

Still in basic NWT Air livery with Air Bridge titles.

 

This aircraft was delivered to Western Airlines as N7143C, a L.188A, in May-61. It was converted to freighter configuration with a main deck cargo door in Mar-69.

 

The aircraft was sold to International Jetair Ltd as CF-IJV in Mar-71. It became C-FIJV at the end of May-74 when Canada introduced the C-Gxxx registration series. International Jetair was merged into Northwest Territorial Airways in 1976 and the company was later renamed NWT Air (North West Territories).

 

The aircraft was sold to Air Bridge Carriers in Mar-91 and re-registered G-FIJV in Aug-91. Air Bridge Carriers was renamed Hunting Cargo Airlines in Aug-92. It was re-registered EI-HCE in Apr-97. It was withdrawn from use and stored at East Midlands Airport (UK) in Jun-98.

 

The aircraft was sold to Atlantic Air Transport as G-FIJV in Sep-98. The aircraft was permanently retired at Coventry, UK in late 2006 and was finally broken up there in May-13.

Shenandoah County Public Schools

Bus 24 - 2022 IC CE

Replaced a 2000 International Bluebird 3800

Bus 6 - 2022 IC CE

Replaced a 2004 IC CE

Replacing an earlier scanned photo with a better version 24-Nov-21 (DeNoise AI).

 

The tiny titles under the 'British' say 'Part of Walker Aviation'...

 

British European was renamed FlyBe Airlines in Jul-02. This aircraft was still in the original Jersey European livery with British European titles and 'www.flybe.com' titles on the engines.

 

First flown with the Bombardier test registration C-FDHZ, this aircraft was delivered to a lessor and leased to British European Airways (not the BEA which had become part of British Airways) as G-JEDJ in Jan-02.

 

British European was renamed FlyBe Airlines in Jul-02. The aircraft was returned to the lessor in Jan-12 and stored at Exeter, UK. It was ferried to Toronto (Canada) in Aug-12 and returned to Bombardier Inc as C-GSVY.

 

It was sold to Nordic Aviation Capital A/S and leased to Eznis Airways (Mongolia) as JU-9917 in Feb-13. The aircraft was repossessed when Eznis ceased operations in May-14 and stored at Billund, Denmark.

 

In Nov-14 it was re-registered OY-YAG and repainted all white. It was leased to US Bangla Airlines (Bangladesh) as S2-AGW in Jun-15. US Bangla bought it in Sep-15. The aircraft was withdrawn from use and stored at Dhaka, Bangladesh in May-19. Permanently retired? Updated 21-Dec-23.

The de Havilland DH.98 Mosquito was a British multi-role combat aircraft with a two-man crew that served during and after the Second World War. It was one of few operational front-line aircraft of the era constructed almost entirely of wood and was nicknamed "The Wooden Wonder". The Mosquito was also known affectionately as the "Mossie" to its crews. Originally conceived as an unarmed fast bomber, the Mosquito was adapted to roles including low to medium-altitude daytime tactical bomber, high-altitude night bomber, pathfinder, day or night fighter, fighter-bomber, intruder, maritime strike aircraft, and fast photo-reconnaissance aircraft. It was also used by the British Overseas Airways Corporation (BOAC) as a fast transport to carry small high-value cargoes to, and from, neutral countries, through enemy-controlled airspace.

 

When the Mosquito began production in 1941, it was one of the fastest operational aircraft in the world. Entering widespread service in 1942, the Mosquito was a high-speed, high-altitude photo-reconnaissance aircraft, continuing in this role throughout the war. From mid-1942 to mid-1943 Mosquito bombers flew high-speed, medium or low-altitude missions against factories, railways and other pinpoint targets in Germany and German-occupied Europe. From late 1943, Mosquito bombers were formed into the Light Night Strike Force and used as pathfinders for RAF Bomber Command's heavy-bomber raids. They were also used as "nuisance" bombers, often dropping Blockbuster bombs - 4,000 lb (1,812 kg) "cookies" - in high-altitude, high-speed raids that German night fighters were almost powerless to intercept.

 

As a night fighter, from mid-1942, the Mosquito intercepted Luftwaffe raids on the United Kingdom, notably defeating Operation Steinbock in 1944. Starting in July 1942, Mosquito night-fighter units raided Luftwaffe airfields. As part of 100 Group, it was a night fighter and intruder supporting RAF Bomber Command's heavy bombers and reduced bomber losses during 1944 and 1945. As a fighter-bomber in the Second Tactical Air Force, the Mosquito took part in "special raids", such as the attack on Amiens Prison in early 1944, and in precision attacks against Gestapo or German intelligence and security forces. Second Tactical Air Force Mosquitos supported the British Army during the 1944 Normandy Campaign. From 1943 Mosquitos with RAF Coastal Command strike squadrons attacked Kriegsmarine U-boats (particularly in the 1943 Bay of Biscay, where significant numbers were sunk or damaged) and intercepting transport ship concentrations.

 

The Mosquito flew with the Royal Air Force (RAF) and other air forces in the European theatre, and the Mediterranean and Italian theatres. The Mosquito was also used by the RAF in the South East Asian theatre, and by the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) based in the Halmaheras and Borneo during the Pacific War.

 

By the early-mid-1930s, de Havilland had a reputation for innovative high-speed aircraft with the DH.88 Comet racer. The later DH.91 Albatross airliner pioneered the composite wood construction that the Mosquito used. The 22-passenger Albatross could cruise at 210 miles per hour (340 km/h) at 11,000 feet (3,400 m), better than the 100 miles per hour (160 km/h) Handley Page H.P.42 and other biplanes it was replacing. The wooden monocoque construction not only saved weight and compensated for the low power of the de Havilland Gipsy Twelve engines used by this aircraft, but simplified production and reduced construction time.

 

Air Ministry bomber requirements and concepts:

 

On 8 September 1936, the British Air Ministry issued Specification P.13/36 which called for a twin-engined medium bomber capable of carrying a bomb load of 3,000 pounds (1,400 kg) for 3,000 miles (4,800 km) with a maximum speed of 275 miles per hour (443 km/h) at 15,000 feet (4,600 m); a maximum bomb load of 8,000 pounds (3,600 kg) which could be carried over shorter ranges was also specified. Aviation firms entered heavy designs with new high-powered engines and multiple defensive turrets, leading to the production of the Avro Manchester and Handley Page Halifax.

 

In May 1937, as a comparison to P.13/36, George Volkert, the chief designer of Handley Page, put forward the concept of a fast unarmed bomber. In 20 pages, Volkert planned an aerodynamically clean medium bomber to carry 3,000 pounds (1,400 kg) of bombs at a cruising speed of 300 miles per hour (480 km/h). There was support in the RAF and Air Ministry; Captain R N Liptrot, Research Director Aircraft 3 (RDA3), appraised Volkert's design, calculating that its top speed would exceed the new Supermarine Spitfire. There were, however, counter-arguments that, although such a design had merit, it would not necessarily be faster than enemy fighters for long. The ministry was also considering using non-strategic materials for aircraft production, which, in 1938, had led to specification B.9/38 and the Armstrong Whitworth Albemarle medium bomber, largely constructed from spruce and plywood attached to a steel-tube frame. The idea of a small, fast bomber gained support at a much earlier stage than sometimes acknowledged though it was unlikely that the Air Ministry envisaged it not using light alloy components.

  

Project Mosquito:

 

Once design of the DH.98 had started, de Havilland built mock-ups, the most detailed at Salisbury Hall, in the hangar where E0234 was being built. Initially, this was designed with the crew enclosed in the fuselage behind a transparent nose (similar to the Bristol Blenheim or Heinkel He 111H), but this was quickly altered to a more solid nose with a more conventional canopy.

 

The construction of the prototype began in March 1940, but work was cancelled again after the Battle of Dunkirk, when Lord Beaverbrook, as Minister of Aircraft Production, decided there was no production capacity for aircraft like the DH.98, which was not expected to be in service until early 1941. Although Lord Beaverbrook told Air Vice-Marshal Freeman that work on the project had better stop, he did not issue a specific instruction, and Freeman ignored the request. In June 1940, however, Lord Beaverbrook and the Air Staff ordered that production was to focus on five existing types, namely the Supermarine Spitfire, Hawker Hurricane, Vickers Wellington, Armstrong-Whitworth Whitley and the Bristol Blenheim. Work on the DH.98 prototype stopped, and it seemed that the project would be shut down when the design team were denied the materials with which to build their prototype.

 

The Mosquito was only reinstated as a priority in July 1940, after de Havilland's General Manager L.C.L Murray, promised Lord Beaverbrook 50 Mosquitoes by December 1941, and this, only after Beaverbrook was satisfied that Mosquito production would not hinder de Havilland's primary work of producing Tiger Moth and Oxford trainers and repairing Hurricanes as well as the licence manufacture of Merlin engines. In promising Beaverbrook 50 Mosquitoes by the end of 1941, de Havilland was taking a gamble, because it was unlikely that 50 Mosquitos could be built in such a limited time; as it transpired only 20 Mosquitos were built in 1941, but the other 30 were delivered by mid-March 1942.

 

During the Battle of Britain, nearly a third of de Havilland's factory time was lost because the workers took cover in the factory's bomb shelters. Nevertheless, work on the prototype went quickly, such that E0234 was rolled out on 19 November 1940.

 

In the aftermath of the Battle of Britain, the original order was changed to 20 bomber variants and 30 fighters. It was still uncertain whether the fighter version should have dual or single controls, or should carry a turret, so three prototypes were eventually built: W4052, W4053 and W4073. The latter, both turret armed, were later disarmed, to become the prototypes for the T.III trainer. This caused some delays as half-built wing components had to be strengthened for the expected higher combat load requirements. The nose sections also had to be altered, omitting the clear perspex bomb-aimer's position, to solid noses designed to house four .303 machine guns and their ammunition.

 

Overview:

 

The Mosquito was a fast, twin-engined aircraft with shoulder-mounted wings. The most-produced variant, designated the FB Mk VI (Fighter-bomber Mark 6), was powered by two Merlin Mk 23 or Mk 25 engines driving three-bladed de Havilland hydromatic propellers. The typical fixed armament for an FB Mk VI was four Browning .303 machine guns and four 20 mm Hispano cannon while the offensive load consisted of up to 2,000 pounds (910 kg) of bombs, or eight RP-3 unguided rockets.

 

Construction:

 

The oval-section fuselage was a frameless monocoque shell built in two halves being formed to shape by band clamps over a mahogany or concrete mould, each holding one half of the fuselage, split vertically. The shell halves were made of sheets of Ecuadorean balsawood sandwiched between sheets of Canadian birch, but in areas needing extra strength— such as along cut-outs— stronger woods replaced the balsa filler; the overall thickness of the birch and balsa sandwich skin was only 7⁄16 inch (11 mm). This sandwich skin was so stiff that no internal reinforcement was necessary from the wing's rear spar to the tail bearing bulkhead. The join was along the vertical centre line. This split construction greatly aided the assembly of the internal equipment as it allowed the technicians easy access to the fuselage interior. While the glue in the plywood skin dried, carpenters cut a sawtooth joint into the edges of the fuselage shells, while other workers installed the controls and cabling on the inside wall. When the glue completely dried, the two halves were glued and screwed together. The fuselage was strengthened internally by seven bulkheads made up of two plywood skins parted by spruce blocks, which formed the basis on each half for the outer shell. Each bulkhead was a repeat of the spruce design for the fuselage halves; a balsa sheet sandwich between two plywood sheets/skins. Bulkhead number seven carried the fittings and loads for the tailplane and rudder, The type of glue originally used was Casein, which was later replaced by "Aerolite", a synthetic urea-formaldehyde, which was more durable. Many other types of screws and flanges (made of various woods) also held the structure together.

 

The fuselage construction joints were made from balsa wood and plywood strips with the spruce multi-ply being connected by a balsa V joint, along with the interior frame. The spruce would be reinforced by plywood strips at the point where the two halves joined to form the V-joint. Located on top of the joint the plywood formed the outer skin. During the joining of the two halves ("boxing up"), two laminated wooden clamps would be used in the after portion of the fuselage to act as support. A covering of doped Madapolam (a fine plain woven cotton) fabric was stretched tightly over the shell and a coat of silver dope was applied, after which the exterior camouflage was applied. The fuselage had a large ventral section cut-out, which was braced during construction, to allow it to be lowered onto the wing centre-section. Once the wing was secured the lower panels were replaced, and the bomb bay or armament doors fitted.

 

The all-wood wing was built as a one-piece structure and was not divided into separate construction sections. It was made up of two main spars, spruce and plywood compression ribs, stringers, and a plywood covering. The outer plywood skin was covered and doped like the fuselage. The wing was installed into the roots by means of four large attachment points. The engine radiators were fitted in the inner wing, just outboard of the fuselage on either side. These gave less drag. The radiators themselves were split into three sections: an oil cooler section outboard, the middle section forming the coolant radiator and the inboard section serving the cabin heater. The wing contained metal framed and skinned ailerons, but the flaps were made of wood and were hydraulically controlled. The nacelles were mostly wood, although, for strength, the engine mounts were all metal as were the undercarriage parts. Engine mounts of welded steel tube were added, along with simple landing gear oleos filled with rubber blocks. Wood was used to carry only in-plane loads, with metal fittings used for all triaxially loaded components such as landing gear, engine mounts, control surface mounting brackets, and the wing-to-fuselage junction. The outer leading wing edge had to be brought 22 inches (56 cm) further forward to accommodate this design. The main tail unit was all wood built. The control surfaces, the rudder and elevator, were aluminium framed and fabric covered. The total weight of metal castings and forgings used in the aircraft was only 280 lb (130 kg).

 

In November 1944, several crashes occurred in the Far East. At first, it was thought these were as a result of wing structure failures. The casein glue, it was said, cracked when exposed to extreme heat and/or monsoon conditions. This caused the upper surfaces to "lift" from the main spar. An investigating team led by Major Hereward de Havilland travelled to India and produced a report in early December 1944 stating that "the accidents were not caused by the deterioration of the glue but by shrinkage of the airframe during the wet monsoon season". However a later inquiry by Cabot & Myers definitely attributed the accidents to faulty manufacture and this was confirmed by a further investigation team by the Ministry of Aircraft Production at Defford which found faults in six different Marks of Mosquito (all built at de Havilland's Hatfield and Leavesden plants) which showed similar defects, and none of the aircraft had been exposed to monsoon conditions or termite attack; thus it was concluded that there were construction defects found at the two plants. It was found that the "Standard of glueing...left much to be desired”. Records at the time showed that accidents caused by "loss of control" were three times more frequent on Mosquitoes than on any other type of aircraft. The Air Ministry forestalled any loss of confidence in the Mosquito by holding to Major de Havilland's initial investigation in India that the accidents were caused "largely by climate" To solve the problem, a sheet of plywood was set along the span of the wing to seal the entire length of the skin joint along the main spar.

 

Information regarding the de Havilland DH98 Mosquito has been taken from excerpts contained on Wikipedia

 

Aston Martin Ulster Roadster (1936)

 

In 1927 Aston Martin was taken over by race driver A. C. Bertelli. He designed a 1.5-litre, SOHC engine which would eventually power the LeMans-racing Ulster. Thoughout the years the engine was devloped to include dry sump lubrication.

 

The Aston Martin Ulster stands as one of the most respected pre-war racecars. It was largely based on the Mark II which came before it.

 

The Ulster had a breif two year race program. During this time they dominated the British Tourist Trophy at Goodwood. In 1934, Ulsters took first, second and third place. The best LeMans result was achieved in 1935. Chassis LM20 raced to third overall which put it first in the 1101 to 1500cc class.

 

After the race efforts, Aston Martin readied a production version of the LeMans cars. Twenty-One of these cars were built of which all are accounted for today.

 

Aston Martin Ulster information used from:

 

www.supercars.net/cars/2084.html

 

In the 1980's a small number (7) replicas of the Aston Martin Ulster Roadster were manufactured as a kit car:

 

Fergus Mosquito (Aston Martin Ulster replica)

 

Kop Hill Climb - 25th September 2011

 

Fergus Mosquito - an Aston Martin Ulster replica.

 

Only seven were made in Kingsbridge, Devon, in the 1980s, using donor Morris Marina B-series engines and other parts.

 

UIJ233 is the best of the 7 replicas.

 

These two models, the de Havilland DH98 Mosquito aircraft and the Aston Martin Ulster Roadster of 1936 have been created in Lego miniland scale for Flickr LUGNuts' 79th Build Challenge, - 'LUGNuts goes Wingnuts" - featuring automotive vehicles named after, inspired by or related to aircraft.

Replacing an earlier scanned photo with a better version 22-May-22 (DeNoise AI).

 

This registration was previously used on an Air New Zealand DC-10-30.

Replacing an earlier scanned photo with a better version 15-Jun-17 (DeNoise AI 19-Sep-22)

 

Yellow 'Super Resort Express' livery.

 

This aircraft was delivered to JAL Japan Airlines as JA8110 in Mar-72. It was sold to a lessor in Oct-93 and leased back to JAL. In Nov-95 it was sold to JAZ Japan Air Charter and leased back to JAL until it was returned to JALways in Dec-99.

 

It was sold to The Gulf Falcon Group (United Arab Emirates) the following day and leased to Air Gulf Falcon as P4-GFE (Aruba - flag of convenience!). The aircraft was registered 3C-GFE (Equatorial Guinea) in Mar-00 and re-registered again in Jul-00 in 5Y-GFE (Kenya).

 

It was leased to Spirit of Africa Airlines as ST-AQL (Sudan) in Feb-01 for a Haj Pilgrimage operation and returned to Air Gulf Falcon in May-01. In Jul-01 it was re-registered again, as 3D-PAF (Swaziland) and leased to Sky Aviation the following month.

 

In Jul-02 it was re-registered 3D-PAJ, still with Sky Aviation. It returned to the Gulf Falcon Group in Nov-02. In Jan-03 it was leased to Spirit of Africa Airlines again as ST-AQL for another Haj Pilgrimage and returned to the Gulf Falcon Group in Dec-03 and was stored at Sharjah, UAE.

 

It was ferried to Jakarta - CGK in early 2004 where it was permanently retired. The aircraft was sold to Blue Nile Leasing in 2006 and sold shortly after to the NAT Group. It was last noted still stored at Jakarta - CGK in Sep-13. Updated 19-Sep-22.

 

Note: It's interesting that despite all the registration changes in countries with dubious Civil Aviation Authorities, this aircraft actually spent most of its time sitting on the ground at Sharjah, UAE.

Replacing the usual Boeing 787-9.

The scheme to replace much of the once outdated diamond fleet has been completed today with the introduction of second hand Enviro 200 MX60 GXF into service. This B37F seated vehicle has been fitted with our normal fuel saving technologies, including the ADL automated manual transition which just slots into place of the old gearbox. Our agreement with ADL also sees this bus have many rattles rectified to improve ride quality.

 

This bus replaces KU52 RXW, a B37F seated dennis dart. This bus has been sold already to Mid West Motors, who are coming soon to collect the bus.

Replacing an earlier scanned photo with a better version 30-Dec-14.

 

This aircraft was delivered to South African Airways as ZX-CDW in Jan-59. It was due to be re-registered ZS-SBW but that wasn't taken up. Sold to BMA British Midland Airways in Jan-72 it became G-AZLT. It was wet-leased to Cyprus Airways in Feb-75 returning to British Midland in Nov-75. The aircraft was badly damaged when it aquaplaned on landing at Leeds/Bradford in heavy rain in Oct-80. It was dismantled and taken to East Midlands by road in Feb-81 where it was repaired. The wings were replaced with those off Viscount G-BAPD (c/n 340) which had been withdrawn from use in Sep-78 and stored at East Midlands. The hybrid aircraft returned to service as G-BMAT in Mar-81. It was sold to British Aerospace in May-86 and leased back to British Midland. It was returned to British Aerospace in Dec-86 and stored at Coventry. It was sold to Baltic Airlines in Mar-88. In Feb-89 it was transferred to Hot Air as G-OHOT and leased to BAF British Air Ferries in Nov-89. British Air Berries was renamed British World Airlines in Apr-93. Sadly, the aircraft was lost when it crashed while en-route Edinburgh / Coventry on 25-Feb-94.

 

Note: The aircraft was en-route from Edinburgh to Coventry in severe icing conditions when the no. 2 engine failed and the prop auto feathered. The no. 3 engine also ran down. The crew, at that moment descending from 15,000 feet, were cleared for an immediate descent to 7,000 and then to 5,000. The crew elected to divert to Birmingham since the engines wouldn't restart. The crew managed to restart the no. 2 engine a little later, but then the no. 4 engine failed. Just a few minutes short of Birmingham radio and intercom were lost. The Viscount struck trees and broke up near Uttoxeter, Staffordshire, UK.

Lamborghini Gallardo - Brookfield, WI