Originally conceived by British Leyland, the Metro was built to similar principals as those of the Mini it was intended to replace, with a small, practical platform with as much use available to the passenger as was possible. The car came under various initial guises, including the Austin Metro, the Austin miniMetro, the Morris Metro van and the MG Metro, a version of the car with a 1.3L A-Series Turbo Engine.

 

Although the car was launched in 1980, development of a Mini replacement had dated back to the beginning of the 70's. Dubbed ADO88 (Amalgamated Drawing Office project number 88), the Metro was eventually given the go ahead in 1977, but wanted to have the appeal of some of the larger 'Supermini' (what a contradiction in terms) cars on the market, including cars such as the Ford Fiesta and the Renault 5. Designed by Harris Mann (the same guy who gave us the Princess and the Allegro), the car was given a much more angular body for the time, but despite its futuristic looks did share many features of the earlier Mini, including the 675cc BMC-A Series engine that dated back to 1959, and the gearbox. Initial cars also included the Hydragas Suspension system originally used on the Allegro and the Princess, though with no front/rear connection. The car was also built as a hatchback, which would eventually be a key part of its success as the Mini instead utilised only a small boot.

 

The Metro was originally meant for an earlier 1978 launch, but a lack of funds and near bankruptcy of British Leyland resulted in the car's launch being pushed back. This delay however did allow the folks at Longbridge to construct a £200m robotic assembly plant for the new Metro line, with the hope of building 100,000 cars per year. Finally the car entered sales 3 years late and got off to quite promising initial sales, often being credited for being the saviour of British Leyland. The Metro was in fact the company's first truly new model in nearly 5 years, with the 9 year old Allegro still in production, the 1980 Morris Ital being nothing more than a 7 year old Marina with a new face, and the 5 year old Princess not going anywhere!

 

As mentioned, an entire myriad of versions came with the Metro, including the luxury Vanden Plas version and the sporty MG with its top speed of 105mph and 0-60mph of 10.1 seconds. Eventually the original incarnation of the car, the Austin Metro, went on to sell 1 million units in it's initial 10 year run, making it the second highest selling car of the decade behind the Ford Escort. However, like most other British Leyland products, earlier cars got a bad reputation for poor build quality and unreliability, combined with the lack of rustproofing that was notorious on many BL cars of the time.

 

The show was not over however, as in 1990 the car was given a facelift and dubbed the Rover Metro. The 1950's A-Series engine was replaced by a 1.1L K-Series, and the angular bodyshell was rounded to similar principals as those by acclaimed styling house Ital to create a more pleasing look for the 90's. This facelift, combined with an improvement in reliability and build quality, meant that the car went on to win the 'What Car?' of the Year Award in 1991.

 

In 1994 the car was given yet another facelift, with once again a more rounded design and removal of the Metro name, the car being sold as the Rover 100. Engines were once again changed, this time to a 1.5L Peugeot engine and more audacious colour schemes were available for the even more rounded design of the new car. However, the car was very much starting to look and feel its age. Aside from the fact that the design dated back to 1977, the new car was not well equipped, lacking electric windows, anti-lock brakes, power steering, or even a rev counter! In terms of safety, it was very basic, with most features such as airbags, an alarm, an immobiliser and central locking being optional extras.

 

Eventually the curtain had to fall on the Metro, and in 1997, twenty years after the initial design left the drawing board, it was announced that the car would be discontinued. Spurred on by dwindling sales due to lack of safety and equipment, as well as losing out to comparative cars such as the ever popular Ford Fiesta, VW Polo and Vauxhall Corsa, with only fuel economy keeping the car afloat, Rover axed the Metro in 1998 with no direct replacement, although many cite the downsized Rover 200 a possible contender. Stumbling blindly on, the next car to fill the gap in Rover's market was the 2003 CityRover, based on the TATA Indica, which flopped abysmally and pretty much totalled the company (but that's another story).

 

In the end only 2,078,000 Metro's were built in comparison to the 5.3 million examples of the Mini that it was meant to replace. The main failings of the Metro were down to the fact that the car was too big compared to the Mini, and the rounded old-world charm of the Coopers and Clubmans was replaced by the angular corners. Because of this the car simply didn't have the novelty that the Mini continued to claim even 20 years after the first ones left the factory, and the Mini would even go on to outlive the Metro by another 2 years, ending production in 2000, then going on to have a revival in the form of BMW's New Mini Cooper that's still being built today. Unlike the Mini, the Metro also failed to conquer the international market in the same way, scoring its 2 million units pretty much in Britain alone, although some cars were sold in France and Spain, but only to the total of a few hundred.

 

The Metro however survived only on fuel economy and its spacious interior, but by the early 1990's, whilst other car manufacturers had moved on leaps and bounds, Rover continued to be stuck in the past with not the money or the enthusiasm to change what was a terribly outdated and extremely basic car. Towards the end the Metro, which had only a few years earlier won awards for its practical nature, was ending up on lists for Worst car on the market.

 

Today however you can still see Metro's, later editions are especially common on the roads of Britain. Earlier models built under British Leyland have mostly rusted away and are apparently only down to about a thousand nowadays, but the Rover 100's and Rover Metros continue to ply their trade, a lonely reminder of how here in Britain, we can never ever seem to move on!

Replacing an earlier scanned print with a better version 18-Nov-18.

 

On short term lease to British Airways, operated by British Air Ferries..

 

Taken through glass from the old Emirates offices in the Control Tower Block Extension. Slightly blurred.

 

First flown in Oct-91 with the British Aerospace test registration G-6-203, the aircraft was re-registered G-BTTP the following day and stored. It was transferred to British Aerospace Asset Management in Jan-92.

 

It was briefly leased to British Air Ferries in May-92 and operated on behalf of British Airways in Jun-92. It was returned to BAAM in Sep-92.

 

The aircraft was due to be sold to to China Northwest Airlines but the sale didn't take place. It was leased to Air UK in Apr-94. Air UK was renamed KLMuk at the end of Jan-98.

 

In Jan-00 it was transferred to a new 'low-cost' subsidiary, 'Buzz', operated by KLMuk. As so often happened when large airlines tried to compete with established 'low-cost' airlines, Buzz wasn't a success and KLM sold it to Ryanair at the end of Mar-03. The rest of KLMuk was merged into KLM cityhopper.

 

This aircraft was stored and returned to the lessor in Oct-03 when it was moved to Bristol-Filton (now closed) for further storage. It remained stored until it was leased to Eurowings (Germany) as D-AEWQ at the end of May-05.

 

It was stored at Exeter (UK) in late Jun-10 and ferried to Bucharest-Baneasa (Romania) Oct-10 for further storage and returned to the lessor as G-BTTP in Dec-10.

 

The aircraft was sold to Albanian Airlines as ZA-MAN in Jun-11. It was permanently retired at Tirana, Albania in Nov-11.

Replacing an earlier scanned photo with a better version.

 

With a Hapag-Lloyd B737-400 and a Delta B757-200 in the background.

Replaced the plastic OEM skid plate with the beefy one from JNS Engineering. Just handling it, you know it is quality kit. In contrast, the stocker already had a crack in one of the mount point.

 

Now I don't need to fear driving off curbs any more. :-)

The original installation included two horse troughs [one of which had been replace by a modern copy in 1992].

 

The contract for Luas Cross City heritage works was awarded to KN Network Services (KNN). Various items of historical and cultural significance had been carefully removed by the Contractor to secure storage for a period of up to two years and have been returned during the last few months.

  

The heritage works began in 2014 with the successful removal to storage of the Lady Grattan Fountain at St. Stephen’s Green. The fountain which dates from 1888 was in excellent condition and was returned close to its original location this year. Close inspection of the fountain and troughs had shown that some repairs which were carried out in the past have given way. Some new repairs to the stonework were recently undertaken.

Some background:

]The VF-4 Lightning III began development in 2005 under the initial designation of the VF-X-4. Developed as a successor craft to the VF-1 Valkyrie, the VF-4 Lightning III was designed as a variable fighter that emphasized mobility in outer space.

 

The VF-4's development began with the prototype VF-X-4 and the VF-X-3. However, when Earth was devastated in Space War I the loss of military facilities also resulted in loss of the VF-X-3. Amongst the airframes under development exist prototype No. 1 craft, VF-X-4V1 and the trial manufactured VF-4A-0 and thus the surviving VF-X-4 was developed and completed as the VF-4 Lightning III. A trial-produced variable fighter, designated the VF-4A-0, was also built using 25% VF-1 Valkyrie parts.

 

VF-X-4 underwent flight tests, including being test piloted by Space War I veteran Hikaru Ichijo. Once successful operational models were ready, the VF-4 began mass production on February 2012. Initial deployment began on the SDF-2 Megaroad-01 in VF-1 Skull and SVF-184 Iron Chiefs Squadrons on September 2012. When the SDF-2 Megaroad launched in the same month, Hikaru Ichijō flew a VF-4 alongside the new colonization vessel as the ship lifted from Earth and began exploration outside of the Sol system.

 

As a result of integrating existing Overtechnology and Zentradi-series technology, the VF-4 had a characteristic three-hulled-type airframe structure remarkably different from the conservative VF-1 Valkyrie design. The three-hulled style of the VF-4 increased fuselage volume, propellant capacity and armament load capability that all resulted in a 40% improved combat ability over the VF-1. Fully transformable, the VF-4 could shift into Battroid and Gerwalk modes like previous variable fighters.

 

However, the VF-4 did suffer minor mobility problems within an atmosphere and the new type was primarily deployed to the Space Air Corps of emigrant fleets to serve as the main fighter craft of the UN Forces in the 2020s. It was because flight performance within the atmosphere was not as good as the VF-1 that the VF-5000 Star Mirage became the main combat craft within atmosphere, while the VF-4 operated mainly in outer space.

 

Built as a space fighter, the VF-4 primary weapons became two large beam cannons, though the craft was capable of carrying a GU-11 gun pod in Gerwalk and Battroid modes. In addition to the powerful primary beam guns, the Lightning III also featured twelve semi-recessed long-range missiles, as well as underwing pylons for additional missiles and other stores.

The VF-4 was only slightly heavier than the VF-1, but featured considerably more powerful engines, making the craft ideal for operations deeper out in space. The Lightning III was also much faster in the atmosphere than the older VF-1, although the VF-4’s flight mobility performance was not as great.

 

The VF-4 was also notable as the first production variable fighter to utilize a HOTAS system (Hands On Throttle And Stick) for the cockpit HMI (Human-Machine Interface). Furthermore, the VF-4's cockpit was laid out as a single hexagonal MFD (Multi-Function Display) that proved so successful that it was retrofitted into "Block 6" VF-1 fighters, as well as providing the template for all future variable fighter cockpits.

 

By the end of 2015, mass production of the VF-1 series at last had come to an end. From 2020 onward, the VF-4 Lightning III officially replaced the VF-1 to become the main variable fighter of U.N. Forces. Production of the VF-4 continued for a decade and ceased in 2022, with a total of 8,245 Lightning III variable fighters produced.

The VF-4 variable fighter remained in active service into the late 2040's but was complemented or substituted in many branches of the UN Forces by the cheaper and more atmospherically maneuverable VF-5000 Star Mirage. The VF-4 Lightning III was eventually replaced as the main variable fighter of U.N. Spacy in the later half of the 2030s by the VF-11 Thunderbolt.

  

General characteristics:

Manufacturer: Stonewell/Bellcom

Equipment Type: Variable fighter

Government: U.N. Spacy, U.N. Space Marines

Introduction: 2012

Operational Deployment: September 2012

 

Dimensions:

Accommodation: pilot only

Fighter Mode: wingspan 12.65 meters; height 5.31 meters; length 16.8 meters

Mass: empty 13.95 metric tons

Structure: space metal frame, SWAG energy conversion armor

 

Powerplant:

2x Shinnakasu/P&W/Roice FF-2011 thermonuclear turbine engines,

rated at 14,000 kg (137.34 kN) each

2x dorsal rocket engines (mounted on top of the main thermonuclear turbine engines)

2x ramjet engines (embedded into the inner wing sections)

P&W HMM-1A high-maneuverability vernier thrusters

 

Performance:

Fighter Mode: Mach 3.02 at 10,000 m

Mach 5.15 at 30,000+ m

Thrust-to-weight ratio: (empty) 2.01 (rating for turbine engine thrust ONLY)

g limit: unknown

 

[Armament:

2 x large beam cannons in forward engine nacelles

12x semi-recessed long range missiles (mounted on engine nacelles and ventral fuselage)

8x underwing pylons for missiles, gun pods an/or drop tanks

  

The kit and its assembly:

Well, this build has been lingering for almost 25 years in the back of my mind. It just took so long that a suitable IP kit (with a reasonable price tag) would materialize!

The original inspiration struck me with a VF-4 profile in the source book "This is animation special: Macross PLUS" from 1994, which accidently fell into my hands in a local Japanese book store. Among others, a side and top view profile of an aggressor VF-4 in an all-brown, Soviet-style paint scheme was featured. At that time I found the idea and the scheme pretty cool, so much that I even built a modified 1:100 VF-1 as a ground attack aircraft in this paint scheme.

 

However, the original VF-4 profile from the source book had always been present, but for years there had been no affordable kit. There have been garage/resin kits, but prices would start at EUR 250,-, and these things were and are extraordinarily rare.

Things changed for the better when WAVE announced an 1:72 VF-4 kit in late 2016, and it eventually materialized in late 2017. I immediately pre-ordered one from Japan (in a smart move, this even saved money) and it eventually turned up here in Germany in early 2018. Patience pays out, it seems...

I had preferred a 1:100 kit, though, due to space issues and since almost any other Macross variable fighter model in my collection is in this small scale, but I am happy that a decent VF-4 kit at all appeared after so many years!

 

Concerning the WAVE kit, there’s light and shadow. First of all, you have to know that you get a VF-4A. This is mentioned nowhere on the box, but might be a vital information for hardcore modelers. The early VF-4A is a rather different aircraft than the later VF-4G, with so fundamental differences that it would warrant a completely new kit! On the other side, with a look at the kit’s parts, I could imagine that a VF-4B two-seater could be easily realized in the future, too.

 

The kit is a solid construction, a snap-fit kit molded in different colors so that it can be built without painting. This sounds toy-like, but - like many small scale Bandai Valkyrie kits - anything you ask for is actually there. When you use glue and put some effort into the kit and some donor parts, you can make a very good model from it.

 

The kit's box is pretty oversized, though (any sprue is shrink-wrapped, horrendous garbage pile and wasted space!), and the kit offers just a single decal (water-slide decals, not stickers) option for a Skull Squadron VF-4A – AFAIK it’s Hikaru Ichijoe’s machine that appears in one of the Macross Flash Back 2012 music videos, as it escorts the SDF-02 “Megaroad” colonial ship after launch from Earth towards the center of our Galaxy.

 

The parts are crisply molded, and I actually like the fact that the kit is not as uber-engineered as the Hasegawa Valkyries. You can actually call the WAVE kit simple - but in a positive sense, because the parts number is reduced to a minimum, material strength is solid and the kit's construction is straightforward. Fit is excellent – I just used some putty along the engine gondolas due to their complex shape, but almost anything else would either fit almost perfectly or just call for some sanding. Impressive!

 

Surface details etc. are rather basic, but very crisp and emphasized enough that anything remains visible after adding some paint. However, after all, this aircraft is just a fictional animation mecha, and from this perspective the kit is really O.K..

 

After building the kit I most say that it's nothing that leaves you in awe, and for a retail price of currently roundabout EUR 50-70,- (I was lucky to get it for an early bird deal at EUR 40,-, but still pricey for what I got) the kit is pretty expensive and has some weaknesses:

 

The model comes with a decent (= simple) cockpit and a very nice and large pilot figure, but with no ordnance except for the semi-recessed long-range missiles (see below). The cockpit lacks any side consoles, floor or side wall details. If you put the pilot into the cockpit as intended, this is not a big issue, since the figure blocks any sight into the cockpit’s lower regions. However, the side sticks are molded into the pilot’s hands, so that you have to scratch a lot if you want to present the cockpit open and with an empty seat.

 

The landing gear is simple, too, and the wells are very shallow (even though they feature interior details). As a special feature, you can switch with some extra parts between an extended or retracted landing gear, and there are extra parts that allow the air intakes and some vectoring nozzles to be closed/extended for orbital operations. However, detail fetishists might replace the OOB parts with the landing gear from an 1:72 F-18 for an overall better look.

 

Provisions for underwing hardpoints are actually molded into the lower fuselage part (and could be punched/drilled open - another indication that more VF-4 boxings with extra sprues might follow?), but the kit does not come with any pylons or other ordnance than the dozen fuselage-mounted AAMs. Furthermore, the semi-recessed missiles are just that: you only get the visible halves of the only provided ordnance, which are simply stuck into slits on the model’s surface. As a consequence, you have to mount them at any rate – building a VF-4 for a diorama in which the missiles are about to be loaded would require massive scratch-building efforts and modifications.

 

Another problem indirectly arises when you put some effort into the kit and want to clean and pre-paint the missiles before assembly: every missile is different and has its allocated place on the VF-4 hull. The missiles are numbered – but only on the sprue! Once you cut them out, you either have to keep them painstakingly in order, or you will spend a long evening figuring out where which missile belongs! This could be easily avoided if the part number would be engraved on the missiles’ back sides – and that’s what I actually did (with a water-proof pen, though) in order to avoid trouble.

 

The clear canopy is another issue. The two parts are crystal-clear, but, being a snap-fit kit, the canopy parts have to be clipped into the fuselage (rear part) and onto a separate canopy frame (front part). In order to fit, the clear parts have cramps molded into their bases – and due to the excellent transparency and a magnifier effect, you can see them easily from the outside – and on the inside, when you leave the cockpit open. It’s not a pretty solution, despite the perfect fit of the parts.

One option I can think of is to carefully sand the cramps and the attachment points away, but I deem this a hazardous stunt. I eventually hid the cramps behind a thin line of paint, which simulates a yellow-ish canopy seal. The extra windscreen framing is not accurate, but the simplest solution that hides this weak point.

 

The kit itself was built OOB, because it goes together so well. I also refrained from adding pylons and ordnance – even though you can easily hang anything from Hasegawa’s VF-1 weapon set under the VF-4’s wings and fuselage. A final, small addition was a scratched, ventral adapter for a 3.5 mm steel rod, as a display for the flight scene beauty pic.

  

Painting and markings:

As mentioned above, the livery is based on an official profile which I deem authentic and canonical. My aircraft depicts a different machine from VFT-127, though, since I could not (and did not really want to) 100% replicate the profile's machine from the Macross PLUS source book, "13 Red". Especially the squadron’s emblem on the fin would create massive problems.

 

For the two-tone wrap-around scheme I used Humbrol 72 (Khaki Drill) and 98 (Chocolate Brown), based on the printed colors in the source book where I found the scheme. The pattern is kept close to the benchmark profile, and, lacking an underside view, I just mirrored the upper scheme. The starboard side pattern was guesstimated.

As a second-line aggressor aircraft, I weathered the VF-4 with a black ink wash, some post-shading with various lighter tones (including Humbrol 160, 168, 170 and 187) and did some wet-sanding treatment for an uneven and worn look.

 

Interior surfaces were painted according to visual references from various sources: the landing gear and the air intakes became white, while the cockpit was painted in RAF Dark Sea Grey.

 

In order to add some color to the overall brown aircraft I decided to paint the missiles all around the hull in white with tan tips – in the profile, the appear to be integrated into the camouflage, what I found dubious.

 

Most stencils come from the OOB sheet, but I added some more from the scrap box. The grey "kite" roundels come from an 1:72 Hasegawa Macross F-14 Tomcat kit sheet, which I acquired separately for a reasonable price. Even though it took four weeks to be delivered from Asia, the investment was worthwhile, since the sheet also provided some useful low-viz stencils.

 

The VAT-127 “Zentraedi Busters” unique tail insignia was more complicated, because these had to be printed at home. As a side note, concerning the fin marking, I recently found a translation of the benchmark profile's text on mahq.net, which is interesting: "The Regult within the targeting reticle on the tail met with disapproval from micronized Zentraedi pilots, and so was only used for a short time." The comment also reveals that the original aircraft's modex is "713", not just "13" as depicted, so I tried to reflect these details on my build, too.

 

I eventually settled for a solution that was partly inspired by the kit’s OOB fin marking and the wish for more contrast for the motif: I scanned the original Regult pod illustration from the source book and printed it on white decal sheet. This was sealed with two layers of glossy acrylic varnish (applied with a rattle can) and then cut into a white field that fills the fixed part of the fin (using the WAVE kit’s OOB fin markings as reference). Once in place and dry, two black outlines were added separately (generic decal material) which help blend the decal and the surroundings. Finally, thin strips of silver decal sheet were used for the fins’ leading edges.

 

This design variation, compared with the original “13 Red” illustration, led to the idea of a flight leader’s machine with slightly more prominent markings. In order to take this concept further I also gave the aircraft a white stripe around the front fuselage, placed under the kite roundel and again with black outlines for a consistent look. It’s not much different from “13 Red”, but I think that it looks conclusive and, together with the white fin markings and the missiles, livens up the VF-4’s look.

 

The appropriate flight leader tactical code “01 Red” was puzzled together from single digits from a Begemot Su-27 sheet, the rest of the bort numbers were taken from the OOB sheet (which incidentally feature a “01” code, too).

 

Concerning the OOB decal sheet, there’s much light but also some deep shadow. While the register is excellent and the carrier film flexible enough to lay down smoothly, the instructions lack information where to place the zillion of stencils (“No step” and “Beware of Blast” stuff) are to be placed! You only get references for the major markings – the rest has either to be guessed, OR you are in possession of the VF-4 source book from Softbank Publishing which was (incidentally?) released in parallel with the WAVE kit. This mecha porn offers an overview of all(!) relevant stencils on the VF-4A’s hull, and ONLY with this information the exhaustive decal sheet makes some sense…

 

As final steps, the VF-4 received some dry-brushing with light grey around the leading edges, some chipped paint was simulated with dry-brushed aluminum and, finally, light soot stains around the vectoring nozzles all around the hull and the weapon bays were created with graphite. Then the kit was sealed with matt acrylic varnish (Italeri).

  

Well, in the end, it’s not a carbon copy of the inspiring illustration, but rather another machine from the same squadron, with more creative freedom. I stayed as true to the benchmark as possible, though, and I like the result. Finally, after almost 25 years, I can tick this project off of my long ideas and inspiration list.

 

Considering the kit itself, I am really torn. I am happy that there finally is a VF-4 IP kit at all after so many years, but to me it’s a contradictive offer. I am not certain about the target group, because for a toy-like snap-fit kit it’s too detailed and expensive, but for the serious modeler it has some major flaws.

The biggest issue is the kit’s horrendous price – even if it would be more detailed or contained some fine resin or PE parts (which I would not want, just a “good” plastic kit). Sure, you can put some effort into the kit and improve it, e .g. in the cockpit or with a donor landing gear, but weak points like the “flat” missiles and the lack of proper bays for them are IMHO poor. For the relatively huge price tag I’d hoped for a “better” OOB offer. However, the kit is easy to build and a good representation of the Lightning III, and I am curious if there are kit variants in WAVE’s pipeline?

The Adelaide Gaol's construction started in 1840 and was to be built to the design of George Strickland Kingston, Civil Engineer to the Colony. Completion took until 1847–1848.

It was meant to replace the original which was a casual structure of wooden palings which allowed prisoners to escape.

  

Replacing an earlier digital photo with a better version 18-Apr-23.

 

'Real Madrid' logojet

 

Named: "La Saeta".

 

This aircraft was delivered to Transpacific Enterprises Inc (USA) as N939MC in Mar-87. It was sold to a lessor on delivery and leased back to Transpacific Enterprises. It was immediately subleased to TranStar Airlines (USA).

 

TransStar was previously Muse Air which had been bought out by Southwest Airlines and renamed. However, it was unprofitable and Southwest shut it down in Sep-87.

 

The aircraft was returned to the lessor in Sep-87 when TranStar ceased operations. It was leased to Continental Airlines a few days later. Continental re-registered it N14879 in Aug-93.

 

It was returned to the lessor in Jun-05 and stored at Goodyear, AZ, USA. In Mar-06 the aircraft was leased to Swiftair (Spain) as EC-JQV. It was permanently retired at Madrid, Spain in Oct-10 and broken up there in Mar-12.

Replaced 1990s Pony kiddie ride "Kiddie's Pony" (Yellow) At Angels World New York in 5502 5th Ave, Brooklyn, NY. It played Take Me Out To The Ballgame. Manufactured by Paul W. Hawkins Mfg Co in 1970s. Replaced into 1980s Horse kiddie ride "Carnival Horse" (Bright pink)

Replaced the stock brace with the 46mm bracket for the Feiyu-Tech WG and G4 gimbals.

 

For an even better fit, all three sides of the the frame can be machined about 0.5mm to increase the clearance.

Replacing an earlier digital photo with a better version, plus DeNoise AI, 10-Feb-23.

 

First flown with the Airbus test registration D-AVZS, this aircraft was delivered to Kingfisher Airlines (India) as VT-KFY in Nov-07. It was sold to AWAS Ireland Leasing on delivery and leased back to Kingfisher.

 

Kingfisher ceased operations at the end of Sep-12 and the aircraft was stored at Delhi. The closure of Kingfisher was a mess and the lessor was unable to repossess the aircraft until Jul-13 when it was re-registered OE-ICK.

 

In the runup to their closure, Kingfisher had been 'borrowing' parts off grounded aircraft to keep others flying and it was early Jan-14 before the lessor was able to ferry the aircraft via Dubai to Dublin, Ireland.

 

After two months in maintenance and storage at Dublin, the aircraft was leased to Aegean Airlines (Greece) as SX-DGP in Mar-14. It was withdrawn from service and stored at Athens, Greece in Sep-22.

 

The aircraft was ferried to Antayla, Turkey in Jan-23 and returned to the lessor as 2-XDGP. Currently parked at Antalya it's awaiting lease to a new Turkish company, BBN Airlines. Updated 10-Feb-23.

Replacing an earlier scanned photo with a better version, plus Topaz DeNoise AI 16-Jun-23.

 

Skyservice USA was an Airtours Group Company which operated tour charter flights from west coast USA to Hawaii. The aircraft was operated on behalf of Skyservice USA by Ryan International Airlines. It was in Manchester on maintenance.

 

This aircraft was delivered to Western Airlines as N912WA in Jul-79. Western was merged into Delta Air Lines in Apr-87. Delta was primarily a Lockheed Tristar operator and so the Aircraft was sold to UAS United Aviation Services and leased to SAS Scandinavian Airlines charter subsidiary Scanair in May-88, retaining it's US registration.

 

Scanair sub-leased it to American Airlines the following month. The aircraft returned to Scanair in Mar-89 and was sub-leased to World Airways in Jun-89. In Dec-89 it was re-registered SE-DHX. The lease to World Airways continued although it was now flown by Scanair crews.

 

World Airways sub-leased the aircraft to Malaysia Airlines in Jun-90 for a Haj Pilgrimage operation. It returned to World in Aug-90 and was returned to Scanair. In Jul-91 the aircraft was sub-leased to Sun Country Airlines, it was re-registered N571SC in Mar-94.

 

The aircraft is seen here being reversed into the engine test bay at Manchester. I'm assuming they had been working on the No:2 (centre) engine as the integral work platform is open under the engine.

 

[Confusing bit, part 1]. In Jan-94, Scanair had merged with Conair Scandinavia to form Premiair (Denmark). In 1996 Premiair was taken over by Airtours International Airways UK. The aircraft was returned to Airtours in Jun-98 and was repainted in basic Airtours livery. In Sep-98 it was leased to Ryan International and operated with Skyservice USA titles.

 

[Confusing bit, part 2]. Ryan International were operating services for California based holiday operator 'Sun Trips' between the US west coast and Hawaii. Sun Trips was owned by... yes, you guessed it, Airtours International.

 

In Jul-00 the aircraft was re-registered N571RY and continued to be operated by Ryan International. The titles were changed to 'Sun Trips' in Jan-01 and it continued in service until Apr-03 when it was returned to Airtours (who had now been renamed MyTravel Airways) and the lessor. The aircraft was permanently retired at Kemble, UK and was broken up there in Jul-03.

Replacing an earlier digital photo with a better version 05-Jun-25.

 

Named: "Dufourspitze 4634m" later "Zurich" (Apr-07)

 

First flown in Jul-03 with the Airbus test registration F-WWJL, this aircraft was delivered to Swiss International Airlines as HB-JMB in Sep-03. It was withdrawn from service and stored at Amman, Jordan in Mar-21, returning to service in Aug-21. Current.

Some varied shots at the Temporary Transbay Terminal. It's been a while since I was here, and since then AC Transit and WestCat have received new Alexander Dennis double decker busses. I managed to grab a handful of those today along with the gaggle of Gillig's that AC Transit has. I even managed to grab two MCI's and Golden Gate's Orion V's that are being replaced.

 

©FranksRails Photography, LLC.

Replacing the 75A is the NEW Service 5 which is seen here turning onto Shields Road heading to Garvock Bank.

Replacing an earlier digital photo with a better version 17-Jul-19, plus DeNoise AI 24-Dec-22.

 

First flown with the Boeing test registration N1786B, the aircraft also used N1782B before being delivered to Pembroke Capital and leased to Azzurra Air (Malta) as EI-CRQ in Apr-99.

 

It was returned to the lessor in Apr-02 and immediately leased to Hamburg International Airlines as D-AHID. It returned to the lessor in Apr-08 and was stored at Istanbul, Turkey. It ferried to Maastricht, Netherlands in Dec-08 where it was fitted with blended winglets before being leased to Aires Colombia in Jan-09 as HX-4608-X.

 

The '-X' suffix was dropped later that year when it became HX-4608. The aircraft was re-registered EI-EEV in Apr-10 while the lease to Aires Colombia continued. In Dec-11 Aires Colombia was renamed LAN Airlines Colombia. The aircraft was returned to the lessor in Jan-14.

 

In Mar-14 it was leased to Europe Airpost as F-GZTG [Note: up to that point Europe Airpost had been primarily a cargo and French Postal Service operator but branched out into passenger service, initially with 2 B737-700's].

 

In Nov-14 the aircraft was leased to Air Transat as C-GTQI for the winter season, returning to Europe Airpost in Apr-15 as F-GZTG. In Jun-15, Europe Airpost was merged to the ASL Airlines Group, becoming ASL Airlines France.

 

The aircraft was again leased to Air Transat as C-GTQI in Nov-15, returning to ASL France in Apr-16, this time as F-GZTN. The winter sub-lease to Air Transat as C-GTQI was repeated between Nov-16 / Mar-17 (returning as F-GZTQ), Nov-17 / Apr-18 and Oct-18 / Apr-19.

 

The aircraft was removed from service in Apr-22 and ferried to Blytheville, AR, USA for storage. It was returned to Fortress Transportation (FTAI) in Sep-22 and permanently retired at Blytheville. Updated 24-Dec-22.

Replacing an earlier digital photo with a better version 18-Feb-24.

 

Another long history. This aircraft was delivered to Britannia Airways as G-OBYC in May-96. It was sold to a lessor on delivery and leased back to Britannia Airways.

 

It was sub-leased to Britannia Airways GmbH (Germany) as D-AGYC in Apr-98 and returned to Britannia Airways (UK) as G-OBYC in Apr-99. It was leased to Britannia Airways GmbH as D-AGYC again between Mar / Nov-00.

 

The aircraft was wet-leased to Garuda Indonesia Airlines in Jan-03 for a Haj Pilgrimage operation, returning to Britannia Airways in Mar-03. The wet-lease to Garuda was repeated between Dec-03 / Mar-04 and Dec-04 / Feb-05.

 

Britannia Airways was renamed Thomsonfly .com in May-05 and the Haj Pilgrimage wet-lease to Garuda was repeated between Dec-05 / Feb-06. In Jul-06 the aircraft was returned to the lessor and leased to Air Italy as I-AIGG in Aug-06.

 

Air Italy operated Haj Pilgrimage flights for Saudia - Saudi Arabian Airlines between Dec-09 / Jan-10, Oct / Dec-10, Sep / Nov-11 and Sep / Nov-12. In Apr-13 Air Italy merged with MeridianaFly to form the 'new' Meridiana. The Meridiana name was discontinued when it became Air Italy again in Mar-18.

 

The aircraft was withdrawn from service and stored at Milan - Malpensa in Jan-19. It was ferried to Tel Aviv, Israel in Mar-19 and returned to the lessor.

 

It was sold UPS United Parcel Service a few days later and converted to full freighter configuration with a main deck cargo door in Aug-19 when it was registered N392UP. The aircraft entered service in Sep-19. Current, updated 18-Feb-24.

Replacing an earlier scanned photo with a better version 03-Aug-22 (DeNoise AI).

 

travelcitydirect,com were an online UK travel company which operated trans-Atlantic charter services to Florida from the UK. Their flights were operated by Air Atlanta Europe using their AOC. Flights were operated with two B747-200's and later a B747-300 for just a couple of years before operations ceased.

 

Delivered to Cathay Pacific Airways as VR-HID in Jun-81, it became B-HID in Aug-97 after Hong Kong became an autonomous region of China. The aircraft was leased to Air Atlanta Icelandic in Nov-98 as TF-ABA and immediately sub-leased to Iberia.

 

It returned to Air Atlanta in Jun-00. It was wet leased to many companies during it's time with Air Atlanta. Virgin Atlantic Airways (Jan/Oct-01), Nigeria Airways (May/Jul-02), Garuda Indonesian Airlines on Haj Pilgrimage ops (Jan/Mar-03), Air Algerie (Jul/Oct-03) and Saudi Arabian Airlines on Haj Pilgrimage ops (Jan/Mar-04).

 

In May-04 it was transferred to Air Atlanta Europe and operated for TravelCityDirect.com until it returned to Air Atlanta Icelandic in Nov-04. And finally, it was leased to Malaysia Airline System between Dec-05 & Jan-05 on Haj Pilgrimage ops. It was retired at Sharjah, UAE, in Oct-05 and was subsequently broken up.

Replacing the SX4 sedan

Replacing the Echo in Toyota’s U.S. product lineup and making its debut at the LA Auto Show, the 2007 Yaris is the second generation of a car that was Toyota’s best-selling model in Europe. With 3-door hatchback and 4-door sedan body styles with modern styling and upscale interiors, Yaris is aimed at youthful buyers. Powering the Yaris will be a 1.5-liter, 106 horsepower 4-cylinder engine mated to either a 5-speed manual or 4-speed automatic transmission.

Replacing an earlier scanned 6"x4" print with a better version 17-Feb-19.

 

Operating a Football Charter bringing fans of Galatasaray who were playing Manchester United. It was a 3-3 draw.

 

The only Istanbul Airlines B737-400 to have round 'dots' over the i's, all the rest had square 'dots'. Hows that for a piece of useless information!

 

A long history and a lifetime of mostly short leases... This aircraft was delivered to the GPA Group Ltd and leased to SAHSA Airlines (Servicio Aéreo de Honduras S.A.) as HR-SHL in Aug-90, it didn't stay long and was returned to the lessor in Feb-91.

 

It was leased to VASP Brasil as PP-SOH in Apr-91 and returned to the lessor in Mar-92. In Apr-92 the aircraft was leased to MAS Malaysian Airline System as 9M-MJR and returned to the lessor in Apr-93.

 

Two weeks later it was leased to Istanbul Airlines as TC-AYA. It was wet-leased to Carnival Airlines (USA) between Nov-95/Apr-95, and to Myanmar Airways International between Nov-96/Jun-97. It was returned to the lessor in Jul-00 as N683GE and stored (Istanbul Airlines ceased operations in Aug-00!).

 

The aircraft was leased to Garuda Indonesia Airlines as PK-GWW in Jan-01 and it returned to the lessor in Feb-06. It was re-registered N683GE again the Mar-06 and leased to Orenburg Airlines (Orenair) as VP-BGQ later that month. It returned to the lessor as N837TM in Apr-14 and was stored at Roswell, NM, USA.

 

It was sold to Jetran LLC in Dec-14 and moved to San Jose, Costa Rica is Jan-15 where its storage continued. In Apr-15 the aircraft was sold to the Texas Aviation Group LLC and remained stored at San Jose until it moved to Dothan, AL, USA in Sep-15 for freighter conversion.

 

It was converted to freighter configuration in early 2016 and was due to be leased to Modern Transportes Aereos (Brasil) as PP-YBB but the lease was cancelled.

 

Instead, it was sold to Airwork Flight Operations Ltd (New Zealand) as ZK-PAT in Jul-16 and operates on behalf of Parcel Air. Now 32 years old it continues in service. Updated 19-Oct-22.

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

The main route connecting Canterbury, Herne Bay and Whitstable is the Triangle route. But there are also routes 4 and 6 which 'fill the gaps'. Here is the 4 nearing journey's end in Canterbury.

 

The driver has helpfully changed the destination blinds for a more locally appropriate display, with 'City Centre' rather than 'Canterbury', and having the Canterbury Sainsbury's as a 'via' point. At the start of the journey, the blinds would have read "Estuary View, University, [b]Canterbury[/b]".

 

The vehicle is a Dennis Trident with Alexander ALX400 bodywork, new to this company in August 2004, and it is based at Herne Bay (HB) depot. This was actually new to the Triangle route at HB. The Tridents were eventually replaced by Scanias, and the Scanias were recently replaced by the 'MMC' Scanias.

Replaced wet skin

Replacing an earlier scanned photo with a better version 09-Mar-21.

 

Looking a little the worse for wear. Stored at Vancouver after use by the Atmospheric Research Department of the University of Washington USA (minus radome, windows and patches on the fuselage where equipment had been fitted for it's atmospheric research).

 

This aircraft was originally delivered to the United States Air Force serialled 52-5796 in 1954. It was transferred to the United States Coast Guard in 1976. It was sold to 'Roy L Stafford' as N3984A in 1983. In Aug-84 the aircraft was sold to the University of Washington and re-registered N327UW in Dec-84. It was sold to Matata USA Inc in Jan-01 and sold on to Air Tahoma In Feb-03. Finally, it was sold to Cargo Panama Three as HP-1614CTH in Oct-06. It was withdrawn from use and permanently retired in 2008.

Replacing an earlier scanned photo with a better version 17-Jun-21.

 

This aircraft was delivered to ILFC International Lease Finance Corporation and leased to Britannia Airways as G-BYAU in May-94. The marketing name was changed to Thomson,co.uk (the tour operator) in Apr-04 with additional small 'Operated by Britannia' titles. It was changed again in Nov-04 and became Thomsonfly,com, then to Thomson Airways in Nov-08. The aircraft was returned to the lessor in May-12 and immediately sold to FedEx Federal Express as N927FD. It was stored at Victorville, CA, USA until May-13 when it was converted to freighter configuration with a main deck cargo door. It's based in Europe and occasionally visits it's old hometown in Manchester. Current, updated 17-Jun-21.

I replaced the original with a slightly better version. I fixed up the ground, got rid of some colors that blended when I saved it, and gave the goombas white eyes.

+++ DISCLAIMER +++

Nothing you see here is real, even though the conversion or the presented background story might be based historical facts. BEWARE!

  

Some background:

The MiG-37Sh (Sh = shturmovik) was a heavily modified version of the basic MiG-37 stealth attack and reconnaissance plane. Dissatisfaction with the basic MiG-37 sans suffixe in the air-to-ground role, esp. due to its limited internal weapon load and agility at low level of flight, and the need to replace the ageing Russian MiG-27 and early Su-25 fleet after the millennium led to a further and radical development of the basic airframe, while keeping the proven stealth features.

 

The resulting 'Sh' variant was consequently optimized for all-weather ground attack, with a focus on a high chance of survival in front line service as well as an improved low-level handling and loiter time.

 

The 2nd generation 'Sh' prototype flew in summer 1999. A small number of MiG-37Sh has been built since, and in the long line of the MiG-37 development the aircraft received the NATO code ‘Ferret G’. Probably 20 of these machines serve alongside 1st generation versions of the MiG-37. Lack of funds seems to hamper large-scale production, even though the type already proved its effectiveness, e .g. in the Chechen conflict (see below).

 

Most visible difference of the new 'Sh' to its predecessors was a completely new wing. This new design featured a bigger wing span, lower sweep, a much higher aspect ration and also a much bigger profile. This new wings, together with the type's typical medium grey RAM surface coating, quickly earned it the nickname ‘бе́лая сова́ ‘ (‘Snowy owl’).

The new wings' anhedral had to be strongly reduced and the bigger internal wing space not only allowed additional fuel tanks to be integrated.

 

The more rigid wing structure now also allowed the optional attachment of two hardpoint per wing for external ordnance loads, the inner ones being able to carry 1.000kg, the outer ones 500kg. The inner pair is ‘wet’ for PTB-800 drop tanks in ferry configuration, there seems to be no provision for an IFR probe installation. But compared to the 1st generation MiG-37 versions, this new feature considerable expands the offensive potential, esp. for long range deployment or when the plane is simply on a non-stealthy mission.

 

Another new feature was a downward-sloping nose profile for improved pilot visibility. It also holds the highly effective Kyra-23 laser-television sighting system, which includes an A/W TV camera, a missile guidance antenna and integrates an S-31E2 KOLS, a combined laser rangefinder and IRST. This system more or less replaces an active, radar-based fire control system and is also installed on MiG-29 and Su27 interceptors. It provides exceptional gun-laying accuracy and is used for both air-to-ground guidance as well as to track and combat low-flying planes, helicopters and even cruise missiles.

 

The Mig-37Sh's PrNK-23K nav/attack system was borrowed from the sophisticated MiG-27K. It provides automatic flight control, gun firing, and weapons release. The capabilities of the aircraft in the ASM role are being enhanced by the incorporation of modern avionics systems consisting primarily of two Multi-Function Displays (MFDs) Mission and Display Processor (MDP), Sextant Ring Laser Gyros (RLG INSI), combined GPS/GLONASS navigation, HUD with UFCP, Digital Map Generator (DMG), jam-resistant Secured Communication, stand-by UHF communication, data link and a comprehensive Electronic Warfare (EW) Suite. A mission planning and retrieval facility, VTR and HUD Camera are also fitted.

 

The aircraft retains stand-by (conventional) instrumentation, including artificial horizon, altimeter and airspeed indicator, to cater for the failure of HUD and the MFDs. The modified plane also received much-improved electronic and Infra red countermeasure (ECM & IRCM) systems, including an SPO-15 radar homing & warning system (RHAWS) and an SO-69 identification-friend-or-foe (IFF) transponder.

 

Additional kevlar cockpit armour plates were installed. The undercarriage was revised to facilitate operation from poorer-quality airfields. It has a much simpler design and also allows more room under the plane for easier maintenance.

 

In order to improve agility, the MiG-37Sh received two Klimov RD-33MK turbofans (the same as used in the MiG-29MK, without afterburner and a special nozzle arrangement which adds cold air for a reduced IR signature) and modified vectored trust nozzles. The latter are still 2D, as featured on the original MiG-37 design, but can now move independently so that roll and slow speed manoeuvrability are considerably enhanced – the MiG-37Sh is not solely a ground attack aircraft, it is also supposed to take on attack helicopters and even cruise missiles near ground level. Rumor has it that its agility is immense, largely limited by the g-forces the pilot can accept.

 

With the emphasis on strike and low-level attack requirements, a fixed single-barreled GSh-30-1 30mm cannon with 300 rounds was installed in a shallow fairing under the plane’s starboard belly. It features a closable nozzle, so that the radar and also IR signature of the weapon is minimized – it is only exposed when actually made ready to fire.

 

Compared to the MiG-37 sand suffix, provisions were made to mount more weapons, mainly missiles and precision-guided munitions against ground targets. Self defence and limited air-to-air capability was also on the designers’ agenda. Therefore, and thanks to the bigger fuel capacitiy in the bigger wing tanks, two additional internal weapon bays could be incorporated into the lower wing roots.

These are to store a single, compact R-60/AA-8 "Aphid" IR missile each, leaving the original weapon bays free for offensive armament like a single KAB-500 guided bomb in each of them.

 

Overall, the offensive potential of the ‘Sh’ variant increased tremendously compared to the 1st generation MiG-37 types: thanks to its uprated engines and the new wings with greater lift, the MiG-37Sh can carry up to 3 tons of weaponry, about 40% more than the original MiG-37 sans suffix. It is able to deliver strikes with much more accuracy, in all weather conditions and with a much higher chance of survivability in hostile environment.

 

MiG-37 actively took part in the Russian Army's operations against rebels in the Chechen Republic. In December 2000, a pair of early production MiG-37Sh from Lipetsk-based 970 IISAP (Instructional & Test Composite Air Regiment) arrived to the area, accompanied by several Su-25, to provide reconnaissance and target designation in the conflict theatre.

 

The MiG-37Sh were quickly thrown into action: On 6 January 2001, the MiG-37Sh used live weapons against a real enemy for the first time. On 9 January, at the entry into a mountain gorge in the area of a settlement named Komsomolskoye, a single MiG-37Sh used Kh-29L missiles to destroy a warehouse full of ammunition belonging to Chechen insurgents.

 

On 6 February, in the forest-covered mountain area to the south of the village of Tsentoroj, the strike group composed of two MiG-37Sh and two Su-25 discovered and, from a range of 3 km, destroyed a fortified camp of insurgents using KAB-500L guided bombs.

 

14 February, saw a similar strike group carrying out a "hunting" mission in the area of Oak-Yurt and Hatun. In difficult conditions, pilots found and destroyed eight targets. These missions tested the type's airframe, as well as its on-board systems and armament. Its successful performance in difficult, mountainous terrain once again confirmed the usefulness of the many advanced features of the MiG-37Sh design, including its power and manoeuvrability.

 

It is unclear if the type has been used in combat since, e .g. in Afghanistan. It has participated in a number of exercises, though, including "Boundary 2004" which took place on the Edelweiss mountain range in Kyrgyzstan, in August 2004. Once again the "Ferret G" demonstrated its advantages by operating at a high altitude and an air temperature of more than 30 °C. Among other sorties, a single MiG-37Sh provided cover for the landing of troops, taking down two Ka-50 helicopters in mock air combat, and then successfully worked on ground targets using its precision weapons as well as unguided rockets.

  

General characteristics:

Crew: 1

Length: 53 ft 6 in (16.34 m)

Wingspan: 43 ft 1 1/2 in (13.18 m)

Height: 10 ft 9 in (3,24m)

Empty weight: 24.250 lbs (11.000 kg)

Loaded weight: 33.730 lbs (15.300 kg)

Max. takeoff weight: 39,690 lbs (18.000 kg)

 

Performance:

Maximum speed: 610 mph (980 km/h)

Range: 1.030 miles (1.650 km)

Service ceiling: 39.400 ft (12.000 m)

Rate of climb: 12.960 ft/min (72 m/s)

Engine: 2 Klimov RD-33MK turbofans w/o afterburner rated at 53.0 kN (11,900 lbs.), fitted with 2D vectored thrust nozzles

 

Armament:

1× GSh-30-1 30mm cannon with 300 rounds .

Four internal weapon bays (two bays for a single AA-8 "Aphid" or a twin ‘Igla’ light air-to-air missile starter; two bays in tandem fore and aft the main gear wells for various weapons incl. guided missiles and bombs).

Four external hard points (2 under each inner wing); total internal and external weapon ordnance 3.000kg.

Five UV-26 dispensers in the tail section (w. 120 chaff/flare cartridges in each pod)

  

The kit and its assembly:

I guess that everyone who is into whiffy model is familiar with Italieri’s fantasy MiG-37B kit from 1988, and I already built 3 of them since then.

 

Nevertheless, with my recent interest in Soviet/Russian air industries I felt an itch to build another (better) one, this time with major modifications. Esp. the stubby wings and the senselessly wide and low MiG-23-style landing gear had always been points that did not truly convince me. And since I had such a kit in 1:72th scale in store, I took action.

 

Surprisingly, you find a lot of individual conversions of the ‘Ferret E’ kit in the Internt. Many are colourful, but few are IMHO convincing as a complete work, lacking thought about the plane’s concept or mission. So, here’s my take on it, the ‘Snowy Owl’ version. All in all I wanted to present a realistic and optimized ground attack plane, based on the original and pretty interesting MiG-37 design, pushing my personal “Sh” version towards Su-25, MiG-27 and even Su-24 ground attack aircraft.

 

Most obvious change concerns the wings. These were taken from an F-117 donation kit, a horrible thing (probably the early Revell kit) that a friend gave me. Installing them to the fuselage was tough, since they are much thicker than the original, stubby wing spades!

 

A new landing gear, borrowed from an F-18, and a new nose section (built from scratch & putty and inspired by the installation on MiG-27 fighter bombers) were further changes. Other modifications include additional weapon bays for short range AAMs under the wing gloves à la F-22, the narrow gun fairing nect to the front wheel well and the auxiliary air intake doors on the upper side.

 

The engine exhaust area has been modified, since I wanted to get away with the original tabletops that are supposed to be vectored nozzles(?). I added some side panels, made from styrene sheet, as well as a central divider, which now offers space for some warning sensors and chaff dispensers. The vectored nozzles were re-built from the original parts as well as styrrene profiles.

 

Minor changes were made to several antennae and sensors all around the plane. The cockpit was left more or less OOB – it is pretty detailed, and together with the landing gear one of the original kit’s highlights. I just added a Matchbox pilot figure and some details behind the ejection seat.

 

The weapons come from the scrap box: the AA-8's belong to the ESCI Ka-34 whif Hokum helicopter, the guided bombs are fantasy weapons built from scratch.

  

Painting/Finish

A tough task from a creative point of view. I neither wanted the stereo-typical all-black stealth look, nor a Russian tactical paint scheme (even though the latter would have been appropriate for the aircraft's role).

A Flanker scheme or even the garish Su-34 ‘Greenbottle Fly’ look also did not seem appropriate, as well as the Su-24-inspired light grey/white livery which is suggested in the OOB kit.

 

Since I wanted something murky and mysterious, still with a kind of prototype look, I finally settled on two simple grey tones: a uniform medium grey for the upper sides (Testors 2059, 'Dark Sea Grey') and for a twist, a dark grey for the undersides (Testors 1592, RAL 7021 'Schwarzgrau').

I find that such simple designs make a whif plane much more realistic than flamboyant colours or weird paint schemes – leave this to “real” planes in whiff guises. Another factor for this all-grey livery is that I wanted to use the (many) light grey OOB stencil decals, making them stand subtly out against the darker shades below. Lighter shades of grey and ochre were used for antennae, di-electric covers and the wings' leading edges.

 

The cockpit was painted in typical Russian Blue-Green, air intakes, air brakes and the landing gear with its wells were, after consulting pictures of modern Russian fighters, painted in Barley Grey (Humbrol 167).

 

The wheels received dark green disks (Humbrol 149), the bomb/missile bays were - as a contrast - painted in a chromate primer color (a mix of Humbrol 81 and 225, Olive Yellow and Mid-Stone), a detail I found on photographs of Tu-95 and Tu160 interiors. Looks weird, but: why not?

 

Unfortunately, the final matte varnish ended in a minor disaster: I used a water-based, acryllic matt varnish (for a VERY matt finish), but it reacted with both some decals and the enamel paint, not certain why? Probably not enough stirring, and the Begemot decals seem to be very sensitive to humidity and setting solution.

 

Originally, the machine sported neat low-viz Russian insignia (just red outlines for the stars, featured e .g. on Suchoi’s T-50/PAK FA prototype) from a Begemot decal sheet (called “Demo Flankers” – it is massive, featuring decals for almost 20 prototypes with all markings and the respective paint schemes in a booklet!). They looked great, but crincled under the matt varnish and had to be scraped off, together with some other Begemot decals.

 

Hence, the final finish of the kit is not the best, I tried to save as much as possible. Since I did not want to invest into another aftermarket decal sheet, I used the light and dark red, opaque Red Stars without outlines from the original Italeri decal sheet. With the light and dark grey as backgorund the result is O.K., but I had another outcome envisaged. :(

  

All in all, though, a small but catchy project. Not as good as planned, but an attempt to make more of the wacky Italeri MiG-37 than just another black piece of charcoal.

Replacing an earlier scanned photo with a better version, plus Topaz DeNoise AI 31-Jul-25.

 

Fleet No: "301".

 

'Eagle' tail livery.

Replacing phone pole snapped in windstorm previous night. 255 Blue Hill Avenue, Milton, MA 10/8/20

Replacing an earlier scanned slide with a better version 09-Mar-16.

 

Dan-Air, no titles.

 

Delivered to the original Caledonian Airways as G-AXYD in Mar-70, Caledonian took over BUA British United Airways in Nov-70 to form Caledonian//BUA. The company was renamed British Caledonian Airways in Sep-71.

 

The aircraft was sold to Dan-Air Services in Apr-76. It was leased to British Caledonian Airways between Jan/Mar-84 and again in Nov-87 until B.Cal was merged into British Airways in Mar-88 when the aircraft was returned to Dan-Air Services.

 

It was sold to ILFC International Lease Finance Corporation in Nov-92 and leased to British World Airlines a few days later. It was initially stored at Southend, UK. The registration G-OBWF was assigned but not taken up.

 

It was returned to ILFC in Apr-95 and was immediately sold to Aircraft Financing & Trading. The aircraft was sold to Oriental Airlines in Aug-95 for spares use and was finally broken up in Sep-98.

Replacing an earlier scanned photo with a better version 21-Mar-18.

 

The aviation photography purists won't like this one (too much fence and grass) but in my book, a poor photo is far preferable to no photo at all...

 

On the left... N120FE.

Delivered to Eastern Air Lines as a Boeing 727-25C in Feb-67 as N8156G, the aircraft was fitted with a main-deck cargo door and could be used in either passenger or freighter configuration. Eastern operated it as 'QC/Quick Change' version with the seating mounted on full width pallets which enabled faster turnrounds between passenger and cargo services. It was sold to FedEx Federal Express as N120FE in Aug-81 and converted to full freighter configuration. The aircraft was sold to a lessor in Nov-91 and leased back to FedEx. It continued in service until it was returned to the lessor in Nov-02 and permanently retired at Memphis, TN, USA. The registration was cancelled in Jan-03.

 

Note: The registration N120FE has been re-used on a Boeing 767-300F with FedEx.

 

On the right... C-FBWX.

This aircraft, a standard Boeing 727-25, was delivered to Eastern Air Lines as N8135N in Sep-65. It was sold to Aerostar in Jul-82 but they don't seem to have been able to keep up the payments and it was repossessed by Eastern Air Lines in Aug-83 and stored. The aircraft was sold to FedEx Federal Express in Jul-88 and remained stored until it was converted to freighter configuration with a main deck cargo door in Jan-89, when it was also re-registered N.1.5.3.F.E. The aircraft was leased to Brooker-Wheaton Aviation Ltd (Canada) in May-91 and operated for Federal Express. It was re-registered C-FBWX in Nov-91. The aircraft was transferred to Morningstar Express in Aug-92 and continued to be operated for Federal Express. It was returned to FedEx Federal Express (USA) as N.1.5.3.F.E. in Jan-01 and continued in operation until it was permanently retired and stored at Mojave, CA, USA in Jan-02. The aircraft was ferried to Jacksonville-Cecil Field (VQQ) in Apr-02 and donated to the FCCJ Foundation for use as a training aid by the Florida Community College - Cecil Commerce Centre. It was seen still intact at Cecil Field in Nov-11.

SR 542 was closed in mid-July 2015 so crews could remove an old split box culvert and fill, then build a new bridge over Anderson Creek. The highway is an important link to eastern Whatcom County. As the new bridge is completed, the crews will restore a natural creek bed that will allow better fish passage in Anderson Creek. Removing the culverts also eliminates a chronic maintenance issue.

Replaces my previous version. Changes include removal of upper nose sensor, removal of windscreen green sun tinting, landing gear doors closed (as would be on the actual aircraft), revision of the camoflauge scheme to to more accurate colors and pattern, and new armament including 2 Mk84 2000lb LGBs, 2 LAU-19 FFAR (Folding Fin Aerial Rocket) pods, 2 AIM-9 Sidewinder air to air missiles, and the retained 25mm belly gun pod system.

The Ferrari Berlinetta Boxer (BB) is a sports car that was produced by Ferrari in Italy between 1973 and 1984. Replacing the front engined Daytona, it was the first in a series of Ferraris to use a mid-mounted flat-twelve engine. The Boxer was designed by Leonardo Fioravanti and was the first mid-engined road-car to bear the Ferrari name and the Cavallino Rampante (prancing horse) logo. It was replaced by the Testarossa, which continued to use the flat-twelve engine.

 

Production of the BB was a major step for Enzo Ferrari. He felt that a mid-engined road car would be too difficult for his buyers to handle, and it took many years for his engineers to convince him to adopt the layout.[3] This attitude began to change as the marque lost its racing dominance in the late 1950s to mid-engined competitors. As a result, the rear-mid-engined 246 P Formula 1 car was introduced in 1960, followed by the Dino SP racing sports prototypes in 1961. In 1963, the company also moved its V12 engines to the rear with its P and LM racing cars.

 

The first "Boxer" was the 365 GT/4 BB shown at the 1971 Turin Motor Show. Designed to rival the Lamborghini Miura and the newly developed Lamborghini Countach, it was finally released for sale in 1973 at the Paris Motor Show. 387 were built, of which 88 were right-hand drive (58 of those for the UK market), making it the rarest of all Berlinetta Boxers. The Pininfarina-designed body followed the P6 show car with popup headlights.

 

Though it shared its numerical designation with the Daytona, the Boxer was radically different. It was a mid-engined car like the Dino, and the now flat-twelve engine was mounted longitudinally rather than transversely (as it was mounted in the Dino; the Daytona was a conventional front-engine, longitudinal design). The engine produced 253 kW; (339 hp) @ 7,200 rpm, slightly more than the Daytona.

 

The engine shared its internal dimensions with the V12 from the Daytona, but was spread out to 180° as on Ferrari's 1970 Formula One car and was mounted above a five-speed manual transmission. One major difference in this engine was its use of timing belts rather than chains. Although referred to as a Boxer, the 180° V12 was not a true boxer engine, but rather a flat engine.

replaced the window display today for the fashion department. installed two Window Mannequins, and Rootstein's Renata and Maggie. Hate the clothes, but did the best I could from the pile I was handed.

Replaced 202 as MAC fitness bus

Gradually replacing older Dennis Tridents on service 472,are ADL Enviro 400s,one such example is seen here,about to depart at Woolwich.

Buick revived the Roadmaster name for a B-body station wagon in 1991, replacing the Estate Wagon in the lineup. Using the 115.9-inch (2,940 mm) wheelbase that was introduced for the 1977 model year, the wagon was called the Roadmaster Estate Wagon. A sedan joined the wagon for 1992, with its own distinct sheet metal, although it shared parts with other full-size GM models. The Roadmaster Estate was a badge engineered Chevrolet Caprice Estate (also sold as the Oldsmobile Custom Cruiser) the three variants differing mainly in grille design and trim. It was slightly larger than the all-new Buick Park Avenue in 1991.

 

Simulated woodgrain side and back panels (made of vinyl) were standard on the Roadmaster Estate, although a delete option (WB4 wood delete) was available for credit. The "Vista Roof", a fixed sunroof over the second-row seats that was not available on the Caprice, was standard as well. The Roadmaster Estate could seat up to eight with an optional third-row seat. All these wagons initially used Chevrolet's 5.0 L small-block V8, but both Buicks used the larger 5.7 L version from 1992.

 

From 1994–1996, the Roadmaster, like all B-Body variants, began utilizing the iron head version of the Gen II LT1 V8, its 350 c.i/5.7 liters producing 260 hp (194 kW) and 335 lb·ft (454 N·m) of torque. The switch from the Gen I TBI 5.7L V8 was due to increasing standards for emissions and fuel economy that the aging Gen I could no longer meet. This motor was shared with the Impala SS of the same era and was related to the 4.3 L/265 c.i. L99 V8 that was the base motor for the Chevrolet Caprice, and varied mainly from the F body and Corvette applications by:

 

A) using iron heads rather than aluminum (specified by police departments for durability and utilized throughout the B-Body line) B) a milder cam that produced a better torque curve for the heavy B-Bodies. C) various intake silencers used to make the engine more palatable to the luxury market and/or pass drive-by noise standards. D) Two bolt main journal bearing caps (also true with the F-body LT1 engines, but not the Corvette).

 

The Roadmaster was only delivered with the 5.7 L LT1, however, and such cars can be detected visually by a factory-installed stainless steel dual exhaust. The interior of the LT1 cars are distinguished by utilizing analog gauges rather than digital. However, unlike its stablemates, the 9C1 Caprice and Impala SS the Roadmaster was limited to 108 mph (174 km/h) due to the factory-fitted tires not being rated to run the 140 mph (230 km/h) plus the 9C1 and SS were capable of. The engine returns 17 mpg-US (14 L/100 km; 20 mpg-imp) city/25 mpg-US (9.4 L/100 km; 30 mpg-imp) highway for a 4,200 lb (1,900 kg) full-sized car (4500 lb for the wagon), up 1 mpg-US city from the previous version.

 

The transmission from 1994–96 was changed from the 'analog' 700R4/4L60 to the electronically controlled version of the same, the 4L60E.

 

Ordered with the towing package, the 94-96 Roadmaster was advertised to tow up to 5000 pounds, although the Estate Wagon owner's manual extended that to 7,000 lbs when using a weight distributing hitch, dual sway controls, increasing the rear tire pressure to 35 psi and disabling the Electronic Level Control. The tow package added 2.93 gears and a limited slip differential, heavy duty cooling system including oil and transmission coolers, and a factory installed self leveling rear suspension consisting of air shocks, a height sensor between the rear axle and body and an on-board air compressor. The most distinctive feature was the combination of one conventional fan driven mechanically from the engine alongside of one electric fan, offset to the left (non-towpack cars came with two electric fans).

 

GM discontinued both the Roadmaster sedan and the Roadmaster Estate in 1996, ending production on December 13 of that year. This was blamed on the smaller but more expensive and luxurious Park Avenue growing in size; the Roadmaster trim levels never exceeded that of the smaller but still full-sized Buick LeSabre, as this enabled the Park Avenue to remain as Buick's flagship car. Interestingly, both the Park Avenue and LaSabre were front-engine front-wheel drive cars, in contrast to the Roadmaster's front-engine rear-wheel drive layout. Another reason was largely a response to the SUV craze, as the Arlington, Texas factory where the assembly line that specialized in RWD cars were built was converted to truck and SUV production. Along with the discontinuation of the related Cadillac Fleetwood and Chevrolet Caprice, this signalled the end of General Motors' production of rear-wheel drive, full-size cars. When discontinued, the Roadmaster Estate and the similar Chevrolet Caprice wagon brought up the end of the era of the full-size family station wagon.

 

Canada's prime minister from 1993–2003, the Right Honourable Jean Chretien, was driven in armoured Buick Roadmasters during his term of office

 

[Text from Wikipedia]

 

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buick_Roadmaster

 

This Lego miniland scale 1992 Buick Roadmaster Estate has been created for Flickr LUGNuts' 96th Build Challenge - The 8th Birthday, titled - 'Happy Crazy Eight Birthday, LUGNuts' - where all previous build challenges are available to build to. This model is built to the LUGNuts 81st Build Challenge, - "Generation Gap" - a challenge to build a vehicle or group of vehicles which represent a car line that has existed in more than one generation.This model complements the 1950 Buick Roadmaster Estate posted recently.

 

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beamish_Museum

 

Beamish Museum is the first regional open-air museum, in England, located at Beamish, near the town of Stanley, in County Durham, England. Beamish pioneered the concept of a living museum. By displaying duplicates or replaceable items, it was also an early example of the now commonplace practice of museums allowing visitors to touch objects.

 

The museum's guiding principle is to preserve an example of everyday life in urban and rural North East England at the climax of industrialisation in the early 20th century. Much of the restoration and interpretation is specific to the late Victorian and Edwardian eras, together with portions of countryside under the influence of industrial revolution from 1825. On its 350 acres (140 ha) estate it uses a mixture of translocated, original and replica buildings, a large collection of artefacts, working vehicles and equipment, as well as livestock and costumed interpreters.

 

The museum has received a number of awards since it opened to visitors in 1972 and has influenced other living museums. It is an educational resource, and also helps to preserve some traditional and rare north-country livestock breeds.

 

History

Genesis

In 1958, days after starting as director of the Bowes Museum, inspired by Scandinavian folk museums, and realising the North East's traditional industries and communities were disappearing, Frank Atkinson presented a report to Durham County Council urging that a collection of items of everyday history on a large scale should begin as soon as possible, so that eventually an open air museum could be established. As well as objects, Atkinson was also aiming to preserve the region's customs and dialect. He stated the new museum should "attempt to make the history of the region live" and illustrate the way of life of ordinary people. He hoped the museum would be run by, be about and exist for the local populace, desiring them to see the museum as theirs, featuring items collected from them.

 

Fearing it was now almost too late, Atkinson adopted a policy of "unselective collecting" — "you offer it to us and we will collect it." Donations ranged in size from small items to locomotives and shops, and Atkinson initially took advantage of a surplus of space available in the 19th-century French chateau-style building housing the Bowes Museum to store items donated for the open air museum. With this space soon filled, a former British Army tank depot at Brancepeth was taken over, although in just a short time its entire complement of 22 huts and hangars had been filled, too.

 

In 1966, a working party was established to set up a museum "for the purpose of studying, collecting, preserving and exhibiting buildings, machinery, objects and information illustrating the development of industry and the way of life of the north of England", and it selected Beamish Hall, having been vacated by the National Coal Board, as a suitable location.

 

Establishment and expansion

In August 1970, with Atkinson appointed as its first full-time director together with three staff members, the museum was first established by moving some of the collections into the hall. In 1971, an introductory exhibition, "Museum in the Making" opened at the hall.

 

The museum was opened to visitors on its current site for the first time in 1972, with the first translocated buildings (the railway station and colliery winding engine) being erected the following year. The first trams began operating on a short demonstration line in 1973. The Town station was formally opened in 1976, the same year the reconstruction of the colliery winding engine house was completed, and the miners' cottages were relocated. Opening of the drift mine as an exhibit followed in 1979.

 

In 1975 the museum was visited by the Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother, and by Anne, Princess Royal, in 2002. In 2006, as the Grand Master of the United Grand Lodge of England, The Duke of Kent visited, to open the town masonic lodge.

 

With the Co-op having opened in 1984, the town area was officially opened in 1985. The pub had opened in the same year, with Ravensworth Terrace having been reconstructed from 1980 to 1985. The newspaper branch office had also been built in the mid-1980s. Elsewhere, the farm on the west side of the site (which became Home Farm) opened in 1983. The present arrangement of visitors entering from the south was introduced in 1986.

 

At the beginning of the 1990s, further developments in the Pit Village were opened, the chapel in 1990, and the board school in 1992. The whole tram circle was in operation by 1993.[8] Further additions to the Town came in 1994 with the opening of the sweet shop and motor garage, followed by the bank in 1999. The first Georgian component of the museum arrived when Pockerley Old Hall opened in 1995, followed by the Pockerley Waggonway in 2001.

 

In the early 2000s two large modern buildings were added, to augment the museum's operations and storage capacity - the Regional Resource Centre on the west side opened in 2001, followed by the Regional Museums Store next to the railway station in 2002. Due to its proximity, the latter has been cosmetically presented as Beamish Waggon and Iron Works. Additions to display areas came in the form of the Masonic lodge (2006) and the Lamp Cabin in the Colliery (2009). In 2010, the entrance building and tea rooms were refurbished.

 

Into the 2010s, further buildings were added - the fish and chip shop (opened 2011)[28] band hall (opened 2013) and pit pony stables (built 2013/14) in the Pit Village, plus a bakery (opened 2013) and chemist and photographers (opened 2016) being added to the town. St Helen's Church, in the Georgian landscape, opened in November 2015.

 

Remaking Beamish

A major development, named 'Remaking Beamish', was approved by Durham County Council in April 2016, with £10.7m having been raised from the Heritage Lottery Fund and £3.3m from other sources.

 

As of September 2022, new exhibits as part of this project have included a quilter's cottage, a welfare hall, 1950s terrace, recreation park, bus depot, and 1950s farm (all discussed in the relevant sections of this article). The coming years will see replicas of aged miners' homes from South Shields, a cinema from Ryhope, and social housing will feature a block of four relocated Airey houses, prefabricated concrete homes originally designed by Sir Edwin Airey, which previously stood in Kibblesworth. Then-recently vacated and due for demolition, they were instead offered to the museum by The Gateshead Housing Company and accepted in 2012.

 

Museum site

The approximately 350-acre (1.4 km2) current site, once belonging to the Eden and Shafto families, is a basin-shaped steep-sided valley with woodland areas, a river, some level ground and a south-facing aspect.

 

Visitors enter the site through an entrance arch formed by a steam hammer, across a former opencast mining site and through a converted stable block (from Greencroft, near Lanchester, County Durham).

 

Visitors can navigate the site via assorted marked footpaths, including adjacent (or near to) the entire tramway oval. According to the museum, it takes 20 minutes to walk at a relaxed pace from the entrance to the town. The tramway oval serves as both an exhibit and as a free means of transport around the site for visitors, with stops at the entrance (south), Home Farm (west), Pockerley (east) and the Town (north). Visitors can also use the museum's buses as a free form of transport between various parts of the museum. Although visitors can also ride on the Town railway and Pockerley Waggonway, these do not form part of the site's transport system (as they start and finish from the same platforms).

 

Governance

Beamish was the first English museum to be financed and administered by a consortium of county councils (Cleveland, Durham, Northumberland and Tyne and Wear) The museum is now operated as a registered charity, but continues to receive support from local authorities - Durham County Council, Sunderland City Council, Gateshead Council, South Tyneside Council and North Tyneside Council. The supporting Friends of Beamish organisation was established in 1968. Frank Atkinson retired as director in 1987. The museum has been 96% self-funding for some years (mainly from admission charges).

 

Sections of the museum

1913

The town area, officially opened in 1985, depicts chiefly Victorian buildings in an evolved urban setting of 1913.

 

Tramway

The Beamish Tramway is 1.5 miles (2.4 km) long, with four passing loops. The line makes a circuit of the museum site forming an important element of the visitor transportation system.

 

The first trams began operating on a short demonstration line in 1973, with the whole circle in operation by 1993.[8] It represents the era of electric powered trams, which were being introduced to meet the needs of growing towns and cities across the North East from the late 1890s, replacing earlier horse drawn systems.

 

Bakery

Presented as Joseph Herron, Baker & Confectioner, the bakery was opened in 2013 and features working ovens which produce food for sale to visitors. A two-storey curved building, only the ground floor is used as the exhibit. A bakery has been included to represent the new businesses which sprang up to cater for the growing middle classes - the ovens being of the modern electric type which were growing in use. The building was sourced from Anfield Plain (which had a bakery trading as Joseph Herron), and was moved to Beamish in the late 1970s and early 1980s. The frontage features a stained glass from a baker's shop in South Shields. It also uses fittings from Stockton-on-Tees.

 

Motor garage

Presented as Beamish Motor & Cycle Works, the motor garage opened in 1994. Reflecting the custom nature of the early motor trade, where only one in 232 people owned a car in 1913, the shop features a showroom to the front (not accessible to visitors), with a garage area to the rear, accessed via the adjacent archway. The works is a replica of a typical garage of the era. Much of the museum's car, motorcycle and bicycle collection, both working and static, is stored in the garage. The frontage has two storeys, but the upper floor is only a small mezzanine and is not used as part of the display.

 

Department Store

Presented as the Annfield Plain Industrial Co-operative Society Ltd, (but more commonly referred to as the Anfield Plain Co-op Store) this department store opened in 1984, and was relocated to Beamish from Annfield Plain in County Durham. The Annfield Plain co-operative society was originally established in 1870, with the museum store stocking various products from the Co-operative Wholesale Society (CWS), established 1863. A two-storey building, the ground floor comprises the three departments - grocery, drapery and hardware; the upper floor is taken up by the tea rooms (accessed from Redman Park via a ramp to the rear). Most of the items are for display only, but a small amount of goods are sold to visitors. The store features an operational cash carrier system, of the Lamson Cash Ball design - common in many large stores of the era, but especially essential to Co-ops, where customer's dividends had to be logged.

 

Ravensworth Terrace

Ravensworth Terrace is a row of terraced houses, presented as the premises and living areas of various professionals. Representing the expanding housing stock of the era, it was relocated from its original site on Bensham Bank, having been built for professionals and tradesmen between 1830 and 1845. Original former residents included painter John Wilson Carmichael and Gateshead mayor Alexander Gillies. Originally featuring 25 homes, the terrace was to be demolished when the museum saved it in the 1970s, reconstructing six of them on the Town site between 1980 and 1985. They are two storey buildings, with most featuring display rooms on both floors - originally the houses would have also housed a servant in the attic. The front gardens are presented in a mix of the formal style, and the natural style that was becoming increasingly popular.

 

No. 2 is presented as the home of Miss Florence Smith, a music teacher, with old fashioned mid-Victorian furnishings as if inherited from her parents. No. 3 & 4 is presented as the practice and home respectively (with a knocked through door) of dentist J. Jones - the exterior nameplate having come from the surgery of Mr. J. Jones in Hartlepool. Representing the state of dental health at the time, it features both a check-up room and surgery for extraction, and a technicians room for creating dentures - a common practice at the time being the giving to daughters a set on their 21st birthday, to save any future husband the cost at a later date. His home is presented as more modern than No.2, furnished in the Edwardian style the modern day utilities of an enamelled bathroom with flushing toilet, a controllable heat kitchen range and gas cooker. No. 5 is presented as a solicitor's office, based on that of Robert Spence Watson, a Quaker from Newcastle. Reflecting the trade of the era, downstairs is laid out as the partner's or principal office, and the general or clerk's office in the rear. Included is a set of books sourced from ER Hanby Holmes, who practised in Barnard Castle.

 

Pub

Presented as The Sun Inn, the pub opened in the town in 1985. It had originally stood in Bondgate in Bishop Auckland, and was donated to the museum by its final owners, the Scottish and Newcastle Breweries. Originally a "one-up one down" cottage, the earliest ownership has been traced to James Thompson, on 21 January 1806. Known as The Tiger Inn until the 1850s, from 1857 to 1899 under the ownership of the Leng family, it flourished under the patronage of miners from Newton Cap and other collieries. Latterly run by Elsie Edes, it came under brewery ownership in the 20th Century when bought by S&N antecedent, James Deuchar Ltd. The pub is fully operational, and features both a front and back bar, the two stories above not being part of the exhibit. The interior decoration features the stuffed racing greyhound Jake's Bonny Mary, which won nine trophies before being put on display in The Gerry in White le Head near Tantobie.

 

Town stables

Reflecting the reliance on horses for a variety of transport needs in the era, the town features a centrally located stables, situated behind the sweet shop, with its courtyard being accessed from the archway next to the pub. It is presented as a typical jobmaster's yard, with stables and a tack room in the building on its north side. A small, brick built open air, carriage shed is sited on the back of the printworks building. On the east side of the courtyard is a much larger metal shed (utilising iron roof trusses from Fleetwood), arranged mainly as carriage storage, but with a blacksmith's shop in the corner. The building on the west side of the yard is not part of any display. The interior fittings for the harness room came from Callaly Caste. Many of the horses and horse-drawn vehicles used by the museum are housed in the stables and sheds.

 

Printer, stationer and newspaper branch office

Presented as the Beamish Branch Office of the Northern Daily Mail and the Sunderland Daily Echo, the two storey replica building was built in the mid-1980s and represents the trade practices of the era. Downstairs, on the right, is the branch office, where newspapers would be sold directly and distributed to local newsagents and street vendors, and where orders for advertising copy would be taken. Supplementing it is a stationer's shop on the left hand side, with both display items and a small number of gift items on public sale. Upstairs is a jobbing printers workshop, which would not produce the newspapers, but would instead print leaflets, posters and office stationery. Split into a composing area and a print shop, the shop itself has a number of presses - a Columbian built in 1837 by Clymer and Dixon, an Albion dating back to 1863, an Arab Platen of c. 1900, and a Wharfedale flat bed press, built by Dawson & Son in around 1870. Much of the machinery was sourced from the print works of Jack Ascough's of Barnard Castle. Many of the posters seen around the museum are printed in the works, with the operation of the machinery being part of the display.

 

Sweet shop

Presented as Jubilee Confectioners, the two storey sweet shop opened in 1994 and is meant to represent the typical family run shops of the era, with living quarters above the shop (the second storey not being part of the display). To the front of the ground floor is a shop, where traditional sweets and chocolate (which was still relatively expensive at the time) are sold to visitors, while in the rear of the ground floor is a manufacturing area where visitors can view the techniques of the time (accessed via the arched walkway on the side of the building). The sweet rollers were sourced from a variety of shops and factories.

 

Bank

Presented as a branch of Barclays Bank (Barclay & Company Ltd) using period currency, the bank opened in 1999. It represents the trend of the era when regional banks were being acquired and merged into national banks such as Barclays, formed in 1896. Built to a three-storey design typical of the era, and featuring bricks in the upper storeys sourced from Park House, Gateshead, the Swedish imperial red shade used on the ground floor frontage is intended to represent stability and security. On the ground floor are windows for bank tellers, plus the bank manager's office. Included in a basement level are two vaults. The upper two storeys are not part of the display. It features components sourced from Southport and Gateshead

 

Masonic Hall

The Masonic Hall opened in 2006, and features the frontage from a former masonic hall sited in Park Terrace, Sunderland. Reflecting the popularity of the masons in North East England, as well as the main hall, which takes up the full height of the structure, in a small two story arrangement to the front of the hall is also a Robing Room and the Tyler's Room on the ground floor, and a Museum Room upstairs, featuring display cabinets of masonic regalia donated from various lodges. Upstairs is also a class room, with large stained glass window.

 

Chemist and photographer

Presented as W Smith's Chemist and JR & D Edis Photographers, a two-storey building housing both a chemist and photographers shops under one roof opened on 7 May 2016 and represents the growing popularity of photography in the era, with shops often growing out of or alongside chemists, who had the necessary supplies for developing photographs. The chemist features a dispensary, and equipment from various shops including John Walker, inventor of the friction match. The photographers features a studio, where visitors can dress in period costume and have a photograph taken. The corner building is based on a real building on Elvet Bridge in Durham City, opposite the Durham Marriot Hotel (the Royal County), although the second storey is not part of the display. The chemist also sells aerated water (an early form of carbonated soft drinks) to visitors, sold in marble-stopper sealed Codd bottles (although made to a modern design to prevent the safety issue that saw the original bottles banned). Aerated waters grew in popularity in the era, due to the need for a safe alternative to water, and the temperance movement - being sold in chemists due to the perception they were healthy in the same way mineral waters were.

 

Costing around £600,000 and begun on 18 August 2014, the building's brickwork and timber was built by the museum's own staff and apprentices, using Georgian bricks salvaged from demolition works to widen the A1. Unlike previous buildings built on the site, the museum had to replicate rather than relocate this one due to the fact that fewer buildings are being demolished compared to the 1970s, and in any case it was deemed unlikely one could be found to fit the curved shape of the plot. The studio is named after a real business run by John Reed Edis and his daughter Daisy. Mr Edis, originally at 27 Sherburn Road, Durham, in 1895, then 52 Saddler Street from 1897. The museum collection features several photographs, signs and equipment from the Edis studio. The name for the chemist is a reference to the business run by William Smith, who relocated to Silver Street, near the original building, in 1902. According to records, the original Edis company had been supplied by chemicals from the original (and still extant) Smith business.

 

Redman Park

Redman Park is a small lawned space with flower borders, opposite Ravensworth Terrace. Its centrepiece is a Victorian bandstand sourced from Saltwell Park, where it stood on an island in the middle of a lake. It represents the recognised need of the time for areas where people could relax away from the growing industrial landscape.

 

Other

Included in the Town are drinking fountains and other period examples of street furniture. In between the bank and the sweet shop is a combined tram and bus waiting room and public convenience.

 

Unbuilt

When construction of the Town began, the projected town plan incorporated a market square and buildings including a gas works, fire station, ice cream parlour (originally the Central Cafe at Consett), a cast iron bus station from Durham City, school, public baths and a fish and chip shop.

 

Railway station

East of the Town is the Railway Station, depicting a typical small passenger and goods facility operated by the main railway company in the region at the time, the North Eastern Railway (NER). A short running line extends west in a cutting around the north side of the Town itself, with trains visible from the windows of the stables. It runs for a distance of 1⁄4 mile - the line used to connect to the colliery sidings until 1993 when it was lifted between the town and the colliery so that the tram line could be extended. During 2009 the running line was relaid so that passenger rides could recommence from the station during 2010.

 

Rowley station

Representing passenger services is Rowley Station, a station building on a single platform, opened in 1976, having been relocated to the museum from the village of Rowley near Consett, just a few miles from Beamish.

 

The original Rowley railway station was opened in 1845 (as Cold Rowley, renamed Rowley in 1868) by the NER antecedent, the Stockton and Darlington Railway, consisting of just a platform. Under NER ownership, as a result of increasing use, in 1873 the station building was added. As demand declined, passenger service was withdrawn in 1939, followed by the goods service in 1966. Trains continued to use the line for another three years before it closed, the track being lifted in 1970. Although in a state of disrepair, the museum acquired the building, dismantling it in 1972, being officially unveiled in its new location by railway campaigner and poet, Sir John Betjeman.

 

The station building is presented as an Edwardian station, lit by oil lamp, having never been connected to gas or electricity supplies in its lifetime. It features both an open waiting area and a visitor accessible waiting room (western half), and a booking and ticket office (eastern half), with the latter only visible from a small viewing entrance. Adorning the waiting room is a large tiled NER route map.

 

Signal box

The signal box dates from 1896, and was relocated from Carr House East near Consett. It features assorted signalling equipment, basic furnishings for the signaller, and a lever frame, controlling the stations numerous points, interlocks and semaphore signals. The frame is not an operational part of the railway, the points being hand operated using track side levers. Visitors can only view the interior from a small area inside the door.

 

Goods shed

The goods shed is originally from Alnwick. The goods area represents how general cargo would have been moved on the railway, and for onward transport. The goods shed features a covered platform where road vehicles (wagons and carriages) can be loaded with the items unloaded from railway vans. The shed sits on a triangular platform serving two sidings, with a platform mounted hand-crane, which would have been used for transhipment activity (transfer of goods from one wagon to another, only being stored for a short time on the platform, if at all).

 

Coal yard

The coal yard represents how coal would have been distributed from incoming trains to local merchants - it features a coal drop which unloads railway wagons into road going wagons below. At the road entrance to the yard is a weighbridge (with office) and coal merchant's office - both being appropriately furnished with display items, but only viewable from outside.

 

The coal drop was sourced from West Boldon, and would have been a common sight on smaller stations. The weighbridge came from Glanton, while the coal office is from Hexham.

 

Bridges and level crossing

The station is equipped with two footbridges, a wrought iron example to the east having come from Howden-le-Wear, and a cast iron example to the west sourced from Dunston. Next to the western bridge, a roadway from the coal yard is presented as crossing the tracks via a gated level crossing (although in reality the road goes nowhere on the north side).

 

Waggon and Iron Works

Dominating the station is the large building externally presented as Beamish Waggon and Iron Works, estd 1857. In reality this is the Regional Museums Store (see below), although attached to the north side of the store are two covered sidings (not accessible to visitors), used to service and store the locomotives and stock used on the railway.

 

Other

A corrugated iron hut adjacent to the 'iron works' is presented as belonging to the local council, and houses associated road vehicles, wagons and other items.

 

Fairground

Adjacent to the station is an events field and fairground with a set of Frederick Savage built steam powered Gallopers dating from 1893.

 

Colliery

Presented as Beamish Colliery (owned by James Joicey & Co., and managed by William Severs), the colliery represents the coal mining industry which dominated the North East for generations - the museum site is in the former Durham coalfield, where 165,246 men and boys worked in 304 mines in 1913. By the time period represented by Beamish's 1900s era, the industry was booming - production in the Great Northern Coalfield had peaked in 1913, and miners were relatively well paid (double that of agriculture, the next largest employer), but the work was dangerous. Children could be employed from age 12 (the school leaving age), but could not go underground until 14.

 

Deep mine

Reconstructed pitworks buildings showing winding gear

Dominating the colliery site are the above ground structures of a deep (i.e. vertical shaft) mine - the brick built Winding Engine House, and the red painted wooden Heapstead. These were relocated to the museum (which never had its own vertical shaft), the winding house coming from Beamish Chophill Colliery, and the Heapstead from Ravensworth Park Mine in Gateshead. The winding engine and its enclosing house are both listed.

 

The winding engine was the source of power for hauling miners, equipment and coal up and down the shaft in a cage, the top of the shaft being in the adjacent heapstead, which encloses the frame holding the wheel around which the hoist cable travels. Inside the Heapstead, tubs of coal from the shaft were weighed on a weighbridge, then tipped onto jigging screens, which sifted the solid lumps from small particles and dust - these were then sent along the picking belt, where pickers, often women, elderly or disabled people or young boys (i.e. workers incapable of mining), would separate out unwanted stone, wood and rubbish. Finally, the coal was tipped onto waiting railway wagons below, while the unwanted waste sent to the adjacent heap by an external conveyor.

 

Chophill Colliery was closed by the National Coal Board in 1962, but the winding engine and tower were left in place. When the site was later leased, Beamish founder Frank Atkinson intervened to have both spot listed to prevent their demolition. After a protracted and difficult process to gain the necessary permissions to move a listed structure, the tower and engine were eventually relocated to the museum, work being completed in 1976. The winding engine itself is the only surviving example of the type which was once common, and was still in use at Chophill upon its closure. It was built in 1855 by J&G Joicey of Newcastle, to an 1800 design by Phineas Crowther.

 

Inside the winding engine house, supplementing the winding engine is a smaller jack engine, housed in the rear. These were used to lift heavy equipment, and in deep mines, act as a relief winding engine.

 

Outdoors, next to the Heapstead, is a sinking engine, mounted on red bricks. Brought to the museum from Silksworth Colliery in 1971, it was built by Burlington's of Sunderland in 1868 and is the sole surviving example of its kind. Sinking engines were used for the construction of shafts, after which the winding engine would become the source of hoist power. It is believed the Silksworth engine was retained because it was powerful enough to serve as a backup winding engine, and could be used to lift heavy equipment (i.e. the same role as the jack engine inside the winding house).

 

Drift mine

The Mahogany Drift Mine is original to Beamish, having opened in 1855 and after closing, was brought back into use in 1921 to transport coal from Beamish Park Drift to Beamish Cophill Colliery. It opened as a museum display in 1979. Included in the display is the winding engine and a short section of trackway used to transport tubs of coal to the surface, and a mine office. Visitor access into the mine shaft is by guided tour.

 

Lamp cabin

The Lamp Cabin opened in 2009, and is a recreation of a typical design used in collieries to house safety lamps, a necessary piece of equipment for miners although were not required in the Mahogany Drift Mine, due to it being gas-free. The building is split into two main rooms; in one half, the lamp cabin interior is recreated, with a collection of lamps on shelves, and the system of safety tokens used to track which miners were underground. Included in the display is a 1927 Hailwood and Ackroyd lamp-cleaning machine sourced from Morrison Busty Colliery in Annfield Plain. In the second room is an educational display, i.e., not a period interior.

 

Colliery railways

The colliery features both a standard gauge railway, representing how coal was transported to its onward destination, and narrow-gauge typically used by Edwardian collieries for internal purposes. The standard gauge railway is laid out to serve the deep mine - wagons being loaded by dropping coal from the heapstead - and runs out of the yard to sidings laid out along the northern-edge of the Pit Village.

 

The standard gauge railway has two engine sheds in the colliery yard, the smaller brick, wood and metal structure being an operational building; the larger brick-built structure is presented as Beamish Engine Works, a reconstruction of an engine shed formerly at Beamish 2nd Pit. Used for locomotive and stock storage, it is a long, single track shed featuring a servicing pit for part of its length. Visitors can walk along the full length in a segregated corridor. A third engine shed in brick (lower half) and corrugated iron has been constructed at the southern end of the yard, on the other side of the heapstead to the other two sheds, and is used for both narrow and standard gauge vehicles (on one road), although it is not connected to either system - instead being fed by low-loaders and used for long-term storage only.

 

The narrow gauge railway is serviced by a corrugate iron engine shed, and is being expanded to eventually encompass several sidings.

 

There are a number of industrial steam locomotives (including rare examples by Stephen Lewin from Seaham and Black, Hawthorn & Co) and many chaldron wagons, the region's traditional type of colliery railway rolling stock, which became a symbol of Beamish Museum. The locomotive Coffee Pot No 1 is often in steam during the summer.

 

Other

On the south eastern corner of the colliery site is the Power House, brought to the museum from Houghton Colliery. These were used to store explosives.

 

Pit Village

Alongside the colliery is the pit village, representing life in the mining communities that grew alongside coal production sites in the North East, many having come into existence solely because of the industry, such as Seaham Harbour, West Hartlepool, Esh Winning and Bedlington.

 

Miner's Cottages

The row of six miner's cottages in Francis Street represent the tied-housing provided by colliery owners to mine workers. Relocated to the museum in 1976, they were originally built in the 1860s in Hetton-le-Hole by Hetton Coal Company. They feature the common layout of a single-storey with a kitchen to the rear, the main room of the house, and parlour to the front, rarely used (although it was common for both rooms to be used for sleeping, with disguised folding "dess" beds common), and with children sleeping in attic spaces upstairs. In front are long gardens, used for food production, with associated sheds. An outdoor toilet and coal bunker were in the rear yards, and beyond the cobbled back lane to their rear are assorted sheds used for cultivation, repairs and hobbies. Chalkboard slates attached to the rear wall were used by the occupier to tell the mine's "knocker up" when they wished to be woken for their next shift.

 

No.2 is presented as a Methodist family's home, featuring good quality "Pitman's mahogany" furniture; No.3 is presented as occupied by a second generation well off Irish Catholic immigrant family featuring many items of value (so they could be readily sold off in times of need) and an early 1890s range; No.3 is presented as more impoverished than the others with just a simple convector style Newcastle oven, being inhabited by a miner's widow allowed to remain as her son is also a miner, and supplementing her income doing laundry and making/mending for other families. All the cottages feature examples of the folk art objects typical of mining communities. Also included in the row is an office for the miner's paymaster.[11] In the rear alleyway of the cottages is a communal bread oven, which were commonplace until miner's cottages gradually obtained their own kitchen ranges. They were used to bake traditional breads such as the Stottie, as well as sweet items, such as tea cakes. With no extant examples, the museum's oven had to be created from photographs and oral history.

 

School

The school opened in 1992, and represents the typical board school in the educational system of the era (the stone built single storey structure being inscribed with the foundation date of 1891, Beamish School Board), by which time attendance at a state approved school was compulsory, but the leaving age was 12, and lessons featured learning by rote and corporal punishment. The building originally stood in East Stanley, having been set up by the local school board, and would have numbered around 150 pupils. Having been donated by Durham County Council, the museum now has a special relationship with the primary school that replaced it. With separate entrances and cloakrooms for boys and girls at either end, the main building is split into three class rooms (all accessible to visitors), connected by a corridor along the rear. To the rear is a red brick bike shed, and in the playground visitors can play traditional games of the era.

 

Chapel

Pit Hill Chapel opened in 1990, and represents the Wesleyan Methodist tradition which was growing in North East England, with the chapels used for both religious worship and as community venues, which continue in its role in the museum display. Opened in the 1850s, it originally stood not far from its present site, having been built in what would eventually become Beamish village, near the museum entrance. A stained glass window of The Light of The World by William Holman Hunt came from a chapel in Bedlington. A two handled Love Feast Mug dates from 1868, and came from a chapel in Shildon Colliery. On the eastern wall, above the elevated altar area, is an angled plain white surface used for magic lantern shows, generated using a replica of the double-lensed acetylene gas powered lanterns of the period, mounted in the aisle of the main seating area. Off the western end of the hall is the vestry, featuring a small library and communion sets from Trimdon Colliery and Catchgate.

 

Fish bar

Presented as Davey's Fried Fish & Chip Potato Restaurant, the fish and chip shop opened in 2011, and represents the typical style of shop found in the era as they were becoming rapidly popular in the region - the brick built Victorian style fryery would most often have previously been used for another trade, and the attached corrugated iron hut serves as a saloon with tables and benches, where customers would eat and socialise. Featuring coal fired ranges using beef-dripping, the shop is named in honour of the last coal fired shop in Tyneside, in Winlaton Mill, and which closed in 2007. Latterly run by brothers Brian and Ramsay Davy, it had been established by their grandfather in 1937. The serving counter and one of the shop's three fryers, a 1934 Nuttal, came from the original Davy shop. The other two fryers are a 1920s Mabbott used near Chester until the 1960s, and a GW Atkinson New Castle Range, donated from a shop in Prudhoe in 1973. The latter is one of only two known late Victorian examples to survive. The decorative wall tiles in the fryery came to the museum in 1979 from Cowes Fish and Game Shop in Berwick upon Tweed. The shop also features both an early electric and hand-powered potato rumblers (cleaners), and a gas powered chip chopper built around 1900. Built behind the chapel, the fryery is arranged so the counter faces the rear, stretching the full length of the building. Outside is a brick built row of outdoor toilets. Supplementing the fish bar is the restored Berriman's mobile chip van, used in Spennymoor until the early 1970s.

 

Band hall

The Hetton Silver Band Hall opened in 2013, and features displays reflecting the role colliery bands played in mining life. Built in 1912, it was relocated from its original location in South Market Street, Hetton-le-Hole, where it was used by the Hetton Silver Band, founded in 1887. They built the hall using prize money from a music competition, and the band decided to donate the hall to the museum after they merged with Broughtons Brass Band of South Hetton (to form the Durham Miners' Association Brass Band). It is believed to be the only purpose built band hall in the region. The structure consists of the main hall, plus a small kitchen to the rear; as part of the museum it is still used for performances.

 

Pit pony stables

The Pit Pony Stables were built in 2013/14, and house the museum's pit ponies. They replace a wooden stable a few metres away in the field opposite the school (the wooden structure remaining). It represents the sort of stables that were used in drift mines (ponies in deep mines living their whole lives underground), pit ponies having been in use in the north east as late as 1994, in Ellington Colliery. The structure is a recreation of an original building that stood at Rickless Drift Mine, between High Spen and Greenside; it was built using a yellow brick that was common across the Durham coalfield.

 

Other

Doubling as one of the museum's refreshment buildings, Sinker's Bait Cabin represents the temporary structures that would have served as living quarters, canteens and drying areas for sinkers, the itinerant workforce that would dig new vertical mine shafts.

 

Representing other traditional past-times, the village fields include a quoits pitch, with another refreshment hut alongside it, resembling a wooden clubhouse.

 

In one of the fields in the village stands the Cupola, a small round flat topped brick built tower; such structures were commonly placed on top of disused or ventilation shafts, also used as an emergency exit from the upper seams.

 

The Georgian North (1825)

A late Georgian landscape based around the original Pockerley farm represents the period of change in the region as transport links were improved and as agriculture changed as machinery and field management developed, and breeding stock was improved. It became part of the museum in 1990, having latterly been occupied by a tenant farmer, and was opened as an exhibit in 1995. The hill top position suggests the site was the location of an Iron Age fort - the first recorded mention of a dwelling is in the 1183 Buke of Boldon (the region's equivalent of the Domesday Book). The name Pockerley has Saxon origins - "Pock" or "Pokor" meaning "pimple of bag-like" hill, and "Ley" meaning woodland clearing.

 

The surrounding farmlands have been returned to a post-enclosure landscape with ridge and furrow topography, divided into smaller fields by traditional riven oak fencing. The land is worked and grazed by traditional methods and breeds.

 

Pockerley Old Hall

The estate of Pockerley Old Hall is presented as that of a well off tenant farmer, in a position to take advantage of the agricultural advances of the era. The hall itself consists of the Old House, which is adjoined (but not connected to) the New House, both south facing two storey sandstone built buildings, the Old House also having a small north–south aligned extension. Roof timbers in the sandstone built Old House have been dated to the 1440s, but the lower storey (the undercroft) may be from even earlier. The New House dates to the late 1700s, and replaced a medieval manor house to the east of the Old House as the main farm house - once replaced itself, the Old House is believed to have been let to the farm manager. Visitors can access all rooms in the New and Old House, except the north–south extension which is now a toilet block. Displays include traditional cooking, such as the drying of oatcakes over a wooden rack (flake) over the fireplace in the Old House.

 

Inside the New House the downstairs consists of a main kitchen and a secondary kitchen (scullery) with pantry. It also includes a living room, although as the main room of the house, most meals would have been eaten in the main kitchen, equipped with an early range, boiler and hot air oven. Upstairs is a main bedroom and a second bedroom for children; to the rear (i.e. the colder, north side), are bedrooms for a servant and the servant lad respectively. Above the kitchen (for transferred warmth) is a grain and fleece store, with attached bacon loft, a narrow space behind the wall where bacon or hams, usually salted first, would be hung to be smoked by the kitchen fire (entering through a small door in the chimney).

 

Presented as having sparse and more old fashioned furnishings, the Old House is presented as being occupied in the upper story only, consisting of a main room used as the kitchen, bedroom and for washing, with the only other rooms being an adjoining second bedroom and an overhanging toilet. The main bed is an oak box bed dating to 1712, obtained from Star House in Baldersdale in 1962. Originally a defensive house in its own right, the lower level of the Old House is an undercroft, or vaulted basement chamber, with 1.5 metre thick walls - in times of attack the original tenant family would have retreated here with their valuables, although in its later use as the farm managers house, it is now presented as a storage and work room, housing a large wooden cheese press.[68] More children would have slept in the attic of the Old House (not accessible as a display).

 

To the front of the hall is a terraced garden featuring an ornamental garden with herbs and flowers, a vegetable garden, and an orchard, all laid out and planted according to the designs of William Falla of Gateshead, who had the largest nursery in Britain from 1804 to 1830.

 

The buildings to the east of the hall, across a north–south track, are the original farmstead buildings dating from around 1800. These include stables and a cart shed arranged around a fold yard. The horses and carts on display are typical of North Eastern farms of the era, Fells or Dales ponies and Cleveland Bay horses, and two wheeled long carts for hilly terrain (as opposed to four wheel carts).

 

Pockerley Waggonway

The Pockerley Waggonway opened in 2001, and represents the year 1825, as the year the Stockton and Darlington Railway opened. Waggonways had appeared around 1600, and by the 1800s were common in mining areas - prior to 1800 they had been either horse or gravity powered, before the invention of steam engines (initially used as static winding engines), and later mobile steam locomotives.

 

Housing the locomotives and rolling stock is the Great Shed, which opened in 2001 and is based on Timothy Hackworth's erecting shop, Shildon railway works, and incorporating some material from Robert Stephenson and Company's Newcastle works. Visitors can walk around the locomotives in the shed, and when in steam, can take rides to the end of the track and back in the line's assorted rolling stock - situated next to the Great Shed is a single platform for passenger use. In the corner of the main shed is a corner office, presented as a locomotive designer's office (only visible to visitors through windows). Off the pedestrian entrance in the southern side is a room presented as the engine crew's break room. Atop the Great Shed is a weather vane depicting a waggonway train approaching a cow, a reference to a famous quote by George Stephenson when asked by parliament in 1825 what would happen in such an eventuality - "very awkward indeed - for the coo!".

 

At the far end of the waggonway is the (fictional) coal mine Pockerley Gin Pit, which the waggonway notionally exists to serve. The pit head features a horse powered wooden whim gin, which was the method used before steam engines for hauling men and material up and down mineshafts - coal was carried in corves (wicker baskets), while miners held onto the rope with their foot in an attached loop.

 

Wooden waggonway

Following creation of the Pockerley Waggonway, the museum went back a chapter in railway history to create a horse-worked wooden waggonway.

 

St Helen's Church

St Helen's Church represents a typical type of country church found in North Yorkshire, and was relocated from its original site in Eston, North Yorkshire. It is the oldest and most complex building moved to the museum. It opened in November 2015, but will not be consecrated as this would place restrictions on what could be done with the building under church law.

 

The church had existed on its original site since around 1100. As the congregation grew, it was replaced by two nearby churches, and latterly became a cemetery chapel. After closing in 1985, it fell into disrepair and by 1996 was burnt out and vandalised leading to the decision by the local authority in 1998 to demolish it. Working to a deadline of a threatened demolition within six months, the building was deconstructed and moved to Beamish, reconstruction being authorised in 2011, with the exterior build completed by 2012.

 

While the structure was found to contain some stones from the 1100 era, the building itself however dates from three distinct building phases - the chancel on the east end dates from around 1450, while the nave, which was built at the same time, was modernised in 1822 in the Churchwarden style, adding a vestry. The bell tower dates from the late 1600s - one of the two bells is a rare dated Tudor example. Gargoyles, originally hidden in the walls and believed to have been pranks by the original builders, have been made visible in the reconstruction.

 

Restored to its 1822 condition, the interior has been furnished with Georgian box pews sourced from a church in Somerset. Visitors can access all parts except the bell tower. The nave includes a small gallery level, at the tower end, while the chancel includes a church office.

 

Joe the Quilter's Cottage

The most recent addition to the area opened to the public in 2018 is a recreation of a heather-thatched cottage which features stones from the Georgian quilter Joseph Hedley's original home in Northumberland. It was uncovered during an archaeological dig by Beamish. His original cottage was demolished in 1872 and has been carefully recreated with the help of a drawing on a postcard. The exhibit tells the story of quilting and the growth of cottage industries in the early 1800s. Within there is often a volunteer or member of staff not only telling the story of how Joe was murdered in 1826, a crime that remains unsolved to this day, but also giving visitors the opportunity to learn more and even have a go at quilting.

 

Other

A pack pony track passes through the scene - pack horses having been the mode of transport for all manner of heavy goods where no waggonway exists, being also able to reach places where carriages and wagons could not access. Beside the waggonway is a gibbet.

 

Farm (1940s)

Presented as Home Farm, this represents the role of North East farms as part of the British Home Front during World War II, depicting life indoors, and outside on the land. Much of the farmstead is original, and opened as a museum display in 1983. The farm is laid out across a north–south public road; to the west is the farmhouse and most of the farm buildings, while on the east side are a pair of cottages, the British Kitchen, an outdoor toilet ("netty"), a bull field, duck pond and large shed.

 

The farm complex was rebuilt in the mid-19th century as a model farm incorporating a horse mill and a steam-powered threshing mill. It was not presented as a 1940s farm until early 2014.

 

The farmhouse is presented as having been modernised, following the installation of electric power and an Aga cooker in the scullery, although the main kitchen still has the typical coal-fired black range. Lino flooring allowed quicker cleaning times, while a radio set allowed the family to keep up to date with wartime news. An office next to the kitchen would have served both as the administration centre for the wartime farm, and as a local Home Guard office. Outside the farmhouse is an improvised Home Guard pillbox fashioned from half an egg-ended steam boiler, relocated from its original position near Durham.

 

The farm is equipped with three tractors which would have all seen service during the war: a Case, a Fordson N and a 1924 Fordson F. The farm also features horse-drawn traps, reflecting the effect wartime rationing of petrol would have had on car use. The farming equipment in the cart and machinery sheds reflects the transition of the time from horse-drawn to tractor-pulled implements, with some older equipment put back into use due to the war, as well as a large Foster thresher, vital for cereal crops, and built specifically for the war effort, sold at the Newcastle Show. Although the wartime focus was on crops, the farm also features breeds of sheep, cattle, pigs and poultry that would have been typical for the time. The farm also has a portable steam engine, not in use, but presented as having been left out for collection as part of a wartime scrap metal drive.

 

The cottages would have housed farm labourers, but are presented as having new uses for the war: Orchard Cottage housing a family of evacuees, and Garden Cottage serving as a billet for members of the Women's Land Army (Land Girls). Orchard Cottage is named for an orchard next to it, which also contains an Anderson shelter, reconstructed from partial pieces of ones recovered from around the region. Orchard Cottage, which has both front and back kitchens, is presented as having an up to date blue enameled kitchen range, with hot water supplied from a coke stove, as well as a modern accessible bathroom. Orchard Cottage is also used to stage recreations of wartime activities for schools, elderly groups and those living with dementia. Garden Cottage is sparsely furnished with a mix of items, reflecting the few possessions Land Girls were able to take with them, although unusually the cottage is depicted with a bathroom, and electricity (due to proximity to a colliery).

 

The British Kitchen is both a display and one of the museum's catering facilities; it represents an installation of one of the wartime British Restaurants, complete with propaganda posters and a suitably patriotic menu.

 

Town (1950s)

As part of the Remaking Beamish project, with significant funding from the National Lottery Heritage Fund, the museum is creating a 1950s town. Opened in July 2019, the Welfare Hall is an exact replica of the Leasingthorne Colliery Welfare Hall and Community Centre which was built in 1957 near Bishop Auckland. Visitors can 'take part in activities including dancing, crafts, Meccano, beetle drive, keep fit and amateur dramatics' while also taking a look at the National Health Service exhibition on display, recreating the environment of an NHS clinic. A recreation and play park, named Coronation Park was opened in May 2022 to coincide with the celebrations around the Platinum Jubilee of Elizabeth II.

 

The museum's first 1950s terrace opened in February 2022. This included a fish and chip shop from Middleton St George, a cafe, a replica of Norman Cornish's home, and a hairdressers. Future developments opposite the existing 1950s terrace will see a recreation of The Grand Cinema, from Ryhope, in Sunderland, and toy and electricians shops. Also underdevelopment are a 1950s bowling green and pavilion, police houses and aged miner's cottages. Also under construction are semi-detached houses; for this exhibit, a competition was held to recreate a particular home at Beamish, which was won by a family from Sunderland.

 

As well as the town, a 1950s Northern bus depot has been opened on the western side of the museum – the purpose of this is to provide additional capacity for bus, trolleybus and tram storage once the planned trolleybus extension and the new area are completed, providing extra capacity and meeting the need for modified routing.

 

Spain's Field Farm

In March 2022, the museum opened Spain's Field Farm. It had stood for centuries at Eastgate in Weardale, and was moved to Beamish stone-by-stone. It is exhibited as it would have been in the 1950s.

 

1820s Expansion

In the area surrounding the current Pockerley Old Hall and Steam Wagon Way more development is on the way. The first of these was planned to be a Georgian Coaching Inn that would be the museum's first venture into overnight accommodation. However following the COVID-19 pandemic this was abandoned, in favour of self-catering accommodation in existing cottages.

 

There are also plans for 1820s industries including a blacksmith's forge and a pottery.

 

Museum stores

There are two stores on the museum site, used to house donated objects. In contrast to the traditional rotation practice used in museums where items are exchanged regularly between store and display, it is Beamish policy that most of their exhibits are to be in use and on display - those items that must be stored are to be used in the museum's future developments.

 

Open Store

Housed in the Regional Resource Centre, the Open Store is accessible to visitors. Objects are housed on racks along one wall, while the bulk of items are in a rolling archive, with one set of shelves opened, with perspex across their fronts to permit viewing without touching.

 

Regional Museums Store

The real purposes of the building presented as Beamish Waggon and Iron Works next to Rowley Station is as the Regional Museums Store, completed in 2002, which Beamish shares with Tyne and Wear Museums. This houses, amongst other things, a large marine diesel engine by William Doxford & Sons of Pallion, Sunderland (1977); and several boats including the Tyne wherry (a traditional local type of lighter) Elswick No. 2 (1930). The store is only open at selected times, and for special tours which can be arranged through the museum; however, a number of viewing windows have been provided for use at other times.

 

Transport collection

Main article: Beamish Museum transport collection

The museum contains much of transport interest, and the size of its site makes good internal transportation for visitors and staff purposes a necessity.

 

The collection contains a variety of historical vehicles for road, rail and tramways. In addition there are some modern working replicas to enhance the various scenes in the museum.

 

Agriculture

The museum's two farms help to preserve traditional northcountry and in some cases rare livestock breeds such as Durham Shorthorn Cattle; Clydesdale and Cleveland Bay working horses; Dales ponies; Teeswater sheep; Saddleback pigs; and poultry.

 

Regional heritage

Other large exhibits collected by the museum include a tracked steam shovel, and a coal drop from Seaham Harbour.

 

In 2001 a new-build Regional Resource Centre (accessible to visitors by appointment) opened on the site to provide accommodation for the museum's core collections of smaller items. These include over 300,000 historic photographs, printed books and ephemera, and oral history recordings. The object collections cover the museum's specialities. These include quilts; "clippy mats" (rag rugs); Trade union banners; floor cloth; advertising (including archives from United Biscuits and Rowntree's); locally made pottery; folk art; and occupational costume. Much of the collection is viewable online and the arts of quilting, rug making and cookery in the local traditions are demonstrated at the museum.

 

Filming location

The site has been used as the backdrop for many film and television productions, particularly Catherine Cookson dramas, produced by Tyne Tees Television, and the final episode and the feature film version of Downton Abbey. Some of the children's television series Supergran was shot here.

 

Visitor numbers

On its opening day the museum set a record by attracting a two-hour queue. Visitor numbers rose rapidly to around 450,000 p.a. during the first decade of opening to the public, with the millionth visitor arriving in 1978.

 

Awards

Museum of the Year1986

European Museum of the Year Award1987

Living Museum of the Year2002

Large Visitor Attraction of the YearNorth East England Tourism awards2014 & 2015

Large Visitor Attraction of the Year (bronze)VisitEngland awards2016

It was designated by the Museums, Libraries and Archives Council in 1997 as a museum with outstanding collections.

 

Critical responses

In responding to criticism that it trades on nostalgia the museum is unapologetic. A former director has written: "As individuals and communities we have a deep need and desire to understand ourselves in time."

 

According to the BBC writing in its 40th anniversary year, Beamish was a mould-breaking museum that became a great success due to its collection policy, and what sets it apart from other museums is the use of costumed people to impart knowledge to visitors, rather than labels or interpretive panels (although some such panels do exist on the site), which means it "engages the visitor with history in a unique way".

 

Legacy

Beamish was influential on the Black Country Living Museum, Blists Hill Victorian Town and, in the view of museologist Kenneth Hudson, more widely in the museum community and is a significant educational resource locally. It can also demonstrate its benefit to the contemporary local economy.

 

The unselective collecting policy has created a lasting bond between museum and community.

Photo credited to strumdogg at forum.blu-ray.com. As one of my collaborations, Nickelodeon will release Blue's Clues Handy Dandy notebook prop replicas to stores everywhere replacing DVDs and Walmart will replace the DVD isle with expanded teacher supply isle with extra more teacher supply stuff like Green Chalkboards and electric mechanical wall bells and extra Disney Snow White and Pinocchio stuff and extra more new modern environmental friendly 1997 Crayola Crayon boxes for all elementary schools and daycare centers to replace all Bogen Muticom 2000 systems and having Corbeil School buses and all other school buses with an electric stop arm and my new safety updated ice cream trucks with the current yellow trapezoid children slow crossing warning blades that word CHILDREN SLOW CROSSING and school bus stop signs replacing all of the last remaining ice cream trucks that still have the bad old outdated red trapezoid children slow crossing warning blades that word IF-SAFE STOP THEN-GO and for all schools to get rid of that mean scary looking grumpy face with the freaky spikey eyelashes and triangular eyes and razor blade forehead wrinkles they used to have on Gordon in the old live action model version of Thomas and Friends and mean-spirited angers like mean teachers, Frankie Foster getting mad by yelling, screaming, and making freaky spikey eyelashes and triangular eyes in Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends, and Chief Wiggums meanly aiming his gun in modern Simpsons forever. And also with this collaborations Walmart will also have Blue's Clues Handy Dandy Notebook prop replicas and Little Golden Books replace all of the DVDs in the bargain bins since that many people including me love prop accurate Blue's Clues Handy Dandy Notebooks and Little Golden Books and that we also need to get rid of the bad old school junk like that Walmart and other stores need to get rid of 1992's Tom and Jerry: The Movie due to that 1992's Tom and Jerry: The Movie is extremely upsetting to Blue's Clues Steve fans because of the mean-spirited fake exaggerated house demolition with a pear-shaped wrecking ball at the beginning and the house at the beginning of 1992's Tom and Jerry: The Movie does resemble the Blue's Clues house and that 1992's Tom and Jerry: The Movie is also a huge plagiarism from Disney too because 1992's Tom and Jerry: The Movie is an extremely huge rip-off of The Rescuers which is a Disney Movie and Walmart and other stores also need to get rid of that mean scary looking grumpy face with the freaky spikey eyelashes and triangular eyes and razor blade forehead wrinkles they used to have on Gordon in the old live action model version of Thomas and Friends and mean-spirited anger images because they make little kids cry extremely bad and remind them of mean teachers at school. And these new changes I am making for Walmart and other stores and all other of my collaborations, Corduroy episodes at Nelvana, restoring all of the good things from my past, safety improvements, and Friendly rebrands will make a better economy and an all-inclusive future together. In the 2000s, Warner Bros reviving 1992's Tom and Jerry the movie and and selling too many DVD copies of that movie surpassing Corduroy the Bear and his buttons was all McDonald's corporation and Bogen Communication's fault because the super size at McDonald's was brainwashing many people by reviving the bad old 1992 Tom and Jerry movie and popularizing Bogen Multicom 2000 and their mean spirited bell tones that are haunted chimes that don't sound like a bell at all scaring off kids especially kids with autism and making them not want to go to school and abandoning my golden toddler stuff like Corduroy the Bear with two buttons on his green corduroy overalls but good thing I am undoing all of the bad influence the super size gave us by restoring my golden toddlerhood, safety improvements, kindness improvements, reviving Nelvana's version of Corduroy the Bear with the premiere of Two Buttons again and Forever fixing Betty Quan's upsetting mistake for good by showing that they did get Corduroy's button out of the storm drain and put Corduroy's button back on Corduroy the Bear's green corduroy overalls and that corduroy the bear does have two buttons on his green corduroy overalls forever and bringing back all nostalgic inducing stuff like green chalkboards and electric mechanical wall bells etc and create a nostalgic inducing future. So this is why all broadcasts of The Simpsons MUST BE BY LAW MANDATED to be ONLY reruns of classic Simpsons (first 18 seasons of The Simpsons). This is why all schools MUST BE BY LAW MANDATED to be set up like Middleborough, Hilltop School from Timothy Goes to School, and or my DeVry building in North Brunswick, NJ and all with green chalkboards, electric mechanical wall bells, and Corbeil school buses and other school buses with electric stop arms, and only kind-spirited stuff like Disney Snow White and Pinocchio stuff and Corduroy the Bear with two buttons on his green corduroy overalls and Steve Notebooks etc, and no mean-spirited stuff like Bogen Multicom 2000 and that mean scary looking grumpy face with the freaky spikey eyelashes and triangular eyes and razor blade forehead wrinkles they used to have on Gordon in the old live action model version of Thomas and Friends and no processed foods in the school lunches. This is why McDonald's restaurants MUST BE BY LAW MANDATED to be McEyebrows with the yellow and orange striped awnings, arch wedge the new aluminum exterior I have created, or the original 1970s version of the iconic double sloped mansard roof and better and safe updated indoor PlayPlaces with low and safe steps and slides and green chalkboards and or just the dining room option (no playplace), This is why all ice cream trucks MUST BE BY LAW MANDATED to be all updated to the current updated yellow trapezoid children slow crossing warning blades that word CHILDREN SLOW CROSSING and or school bus stop signs and that all ice cream trucks MUST BE BY LAW MANDEDTED TO GET RID of the bad old outdated red trapezoid children slow crossing warning blades that word IF-SAFE STOP THEN-GO for good, This is why Crayola Crayon boxes MUST BE BY LAW MANDATED to be new modern 1997 boxes. This is why school PA systems MUST BE BY LAW MANDATED to be Rauland Telecenter or PA systems with no bell tones. And this is why Nelvana and Hanna-Barbera MUST TAKE OVER Warner Bros. Animation. That mean scary looking grumpy face with the freaky spikey eyelashes, triangular eyes, and razor blade forehead wrinkles they used to have on Gordon in the old live action model version of Thomas and Friends is the worst mean spirited anger imagery because the way how that face is modeled was depicting Gordon the Big engine about to kill people by running over them and about to come out of the TV and kill the viewers of the show by running over them which is very bad and murding is the worst crime. Mean teachers getting students arrested for having autism or other disabilities MUST BE BANNED because that is very mean and hurtful and causes trauma to students with autism and other disabilities especially in modern Simpsons (The Simpsons seasons 19 and later) Chief Wiggums was getting people arrested for having autism and other disabilities is why modern Simpsons MUST END IMMEDIATELLY and that Nelvana's version of Corduroy the Bear MUST BE REVIVED with the premiere of Two Buttons again and Forever IMMEDIATELY and a lot of big schools with Bogen Multicom 2000 also have mean teachers getting students arrested for having autism or other disabilities is another reason why Bogen Multicom 2000 is a very mean-spirited PA System along their bell tones not sounding like a bell at all especially the in this picture of a mean teacher getting a boy arrested for having autism is in a school with a Bogen Multicom 2000 and allowing mean spirited stuff and allowing an ice cream truck to keep the bad old outdated red trapezoid children slow crossing warning blades that word IF-SAFE STOP THEN-GO is why I am dead furious with Bogen Communications and Fox Broadcasting and getting students arrested for having autism or other disabilities is one of the extremely bad impact modern Simpsons (The Simpsons seasons 19 and later) has gave us along with reusing bad things they used to make in the past and how to be mean and scary which are extremely bad. So this is why all broadcasts of The Simpsons MUST BE BY LAW MANDATED to be ONLY reruns of classic Simpsons (first 18 seasons of The Simpsons). This is why all schools MUST BE BY LAW MANDATED to be set up like Middleborough, Hilltop School from Timothy Goes to School, and or my DeVry building in North Brunswick, NJ and all with green chalkboards, electric mechanical wall bells, and Corbeil school buses and other school buses with electric stop arms, and only kind-spirited stuff like Disney Snow White and Pinocchio stuff and Corduroy the Bear with two buttons on his green corduroy overalls and Steve Notebooks etc, and no mean-spirited stuff like Bogen Multicom 2000 and that mean scary looking grumpy face with the freaky spikey eyelashes and triangular eyes and razor blade forehead wrinkles they used to have on Gordon in the old live action model version of Thomas and Friends and no processed foods in the school lunches. This is why McDonald's restaurants MUST BE BY LAW MANDATED to be McEyebrows with the yellow and orange striped awnings, arch wedge the new aluminum exterior I have created, or the original 1970s version of the iconic double sloped mansard roof and better and safe updated indoor PlayPlaces with low and safe steps and slides and green chalkboards and or just the dining room option (no playplace), This is why all ice cream trucks MUST BE BY LAW MANDATED to be all updated to the current updated yellow trapezoid children slow crossing warning blades that word CHILDREN SLOW CROSSING and or school bus stop signs and that all ice cream trucks MUST BE BY LAW MANDEDTED TO GET RID of the bad old outdated red trapezoid children slow crossing warning blades that word IF-SAFE STOP THEN-GO for good, This is why Crayola Crayon boxes MUST BE BY LAW MANDATED to be new modern 1997 boxes. This is why school PA systems MUST BE BY LAW MANDATED to be Rauland Telecenter or PA systems with no bell tones. And this is why Nelvana and Hanna-Barbera MUST TAKE OVER Warner Bros. Animation and Fuzzy Door Productions. And from now on the only childrens' books from the McDonald's double-sloped mansard era people MUST reuse in schools, republish, restore, reprint, and re-create are ONLY little golden books with the classic character train back cover template with Tootle pulling the long train of characters and Donald duck waving the flag saying "The World of Little Golden Books" not any of those old Thomas books with pictures from the old live action model version of Thomas and Friends so we will never ever have to deal with that mean scary looking grumpy face with the freaky spikey eyelashes and triangular eyes and razor blade forehead wrinkles they used to have on Gordon in the old live action model version of Thomas and Friends ever again. That mean scary looking grumpy face with the freaky spikey eyelashes, triangular eyes, and razor blade forehead wrinkles they used to have on Gordon in the old live action model version of Thomas and Friends is the worst mean spirited anger imagery because the way how that face is modeled was depicting Gordon the Big engine about to kill people by running over them and about to come out of the TV and kill the viewers of the show by running over them which is very bad and murding is the worst crime. Original photo credited to TrustaMann on Deviantart.com. Parents and Teachers being mean to them and destroying their kid's toys and belongings and yelling "GOD DAM HELL" and "GOD IN HELL" as a punishments MUST BE BANNED AND ILLEGAL EVERYWHERE FOREVER!!!!!!!! because Parents and Teachers taking away and destroying kid's toys and stuff as a punishment is being mean to kids and hurts their feelings real bad and cry which is extremely bad and parents and teachers use scary inappropriate behaviors like yelling "GOD DAM HELL" and meanly yell I'm so god dam cross with you whey they take away kid's toys and stuff needs to stop forever. And at Holly Springs school in my 5th grade school year there were mean teachers that got mean and super mad at me and took away my Steve notebook and forced me to see the freaky spikey eyelashes, razor blade forehead wrinkles, and triangular eyes they used to had on Gordon's grumpy face in the old model version of Thomas and Friends which scared me and other kids real bad when they meanly called me bad just because I made one bad choice and I am a good boy and always try to be kind and respectful. And in the old model version of Thomas and Friends, Gordon looked like an evil man with a gun when he gets grumpy is why I hate the old model version of Thomas and Friends and say that the old model version of Thomas and Friends MUST BE BANNED and good thing I the kind and respectful teachers gave me back my Steve Notebook. Also in my 5th grade year at Holly Springs there was a preschool class with a secondary teachers being mean and got super mad at the little kid and took away his toys and stuff and destroyed them and made the little kid sit in the hallway and and forced and made the little kid to see the freaky spikey eyelashes, razor blade forehead wrinkles, and triangular eyes they used to had on Gordon's grumpy face in the old model version of Thomas and Friends and the little kid cried real hard and I felt bad for the little kid but at least Santa mended the little kids destroyed toys back together at his workshop and gave the toys back to the little kid and at also it is a good thing Thomas and Friends moved to from live action models to CGI animations which is better and friendlier and made Gordon have a more accurate grumpy face similar to Homer Simpson in classic Simpsons episodes. This is why Bogen Multicom 2000 systems MUST BE BANNED from schools and that Bogen Communications MUST SHUT DOWN FOREVER. Especially, that mean scary looking grumpy face with the freaky spikey eyelashes, triangular eyes, and razor blade forehead wrinkles they used to have on Gordon in the old live action model version of Thomas and Friends is the worst mean spirited anger imagery because the way how that face is modeled was depicting Gordon the Big engine about to kill people by running over them and about to come out of the TV and kill the viewers of the show by running over them which is very bad and murding is the worst crime. Eventhough I am not worried about the mean teachers at Holly Springs school anymore, I still occasionally have nightmares about the mean teachers at Holly Springs school, one night I had 2 nightmares of the mean teachers at Holly Springs school and the first nightmare was in Mrs. Monic's room with the mean teachers at Holly Springs threatening to give me a punishment day by destroying my Steve notebook and forcing me to see that mean scary looking grumpy face with the freaky spikey eyelashes and triangular eyes and razor blade forehead wrinkles they used to have on Gordon in the old live action model version of Thomas and Friends and the mean then the mean teachers told me to shut up in a slow monster voice with teeth sticking together and then I woke up and realized it was only a dream and the second nightmare with the mean teachers at Holly Springs school the mean teachers were forbidding me to revive Nelvana's version of Corduroy the Bear with the premiere of Two Buttons again and Forever fixing Betty Quan's upsetting mistake for good and the mean teachers then were calling me a bad boy and then destroyed my Steve notebook and had Gordon in the old live action model version of Thomas and Friends kill me by running me over with that mean scary looking grumpy face with the freaky spikey eyelashes and triangular eyes and razor blade forehead wrinkles they used to have on Gordon in the old live action model version of Thomas and Friends and sending my soul to where the devil lives but good thing God came and angrily confronted the mean teachers at Holly Springs school and angrily destroyed that mean scary looking grumpy face with the freaky spikey eyelashes and triangular eyes and razor blade forehead wrinkles they used to have on Gordon in the old live action model version of Thomas and Friends and angrily put a grinning smile face on the live action model version of Gordon the Big engine and made the live action model version of Gordon the Big engine inanimate forever as his punishment and revived me and mended my Steve notebook back together and God told me that I am not a bad boy and then allowed me to revive Nelvana's version of Corduroy the Bear with the premiere of Two Buttons again and Forever fixing Betty Quan's upsetting mistake showing that they did get Corduroy's button out of the storm drain and put Corduroy's button back on Corduroy the Bear's green corduroy overalls and Corduroy the Bear does have two buttons on his green corduroy overalls forever. Especially when I was in 5th grade at Holly Springs, my anxiety had in my head of the mean teachers making evil magic giant steel crates to lock kids in with slamming lift doors forcing kids to see that mean scary looking grumpy face with the freaky spikey eyelashes and triangular eyes and razor blade forehead wrinkles they used to have on Gordon in the old live action model version of Thomas and Friends and the mean teachers having live action model version of Gordon the Big engine shoot a gun at the kids in the steel crate with that mean scary looking grumpy face with the freaky spikey eyelashes and triangular eyes they used to have on Gordon in the old live action model version of Thomas and Friends and the mean teachers having the live action model version of Gordon the Big engine kill the kids in the steel crate by running them over with that mean scary looking grumpy face with the freaky spikey eyelashes and triangular eyes and razor blade forehead wrinkles they used to have on Gordon in the old live action model version of Thomas and Friends and I had been having this scary thought since 5th grade at Holly Springs when the mean secondary teachers from Mrs. Monic's room was giving a little kid a punishment day in the hall and was giving me the idea of killing myself by setting my own body on fire I had this bottled up since 5th grade at Holly Springs school. This is why I am collaborating to make everything great again as when I revive Nelvana's version of Corduroy the Bear with the premiere of Two Buttons again and Forever fixing Betty Quan's upsetting mistake for good by showing that they did get Corduroy's button out of the storm drain and put Corduroy's button back on Corduroy the Bear's green corduroy overalls and Corduroy the Bear does have two buttons on his green corduroy overalls forever. This is why Bogen Multicom 2000 systems MUST BE BANNED from schools and that Bogen Communications MUST SHUT DOWN FOREVER. Especially, that mean scary looking grumpy face with the freaky spikey eyelashes, triangular eyes, and razor blade forehead wrinkles they used to have on Gordon in the old live action model version of Thomas and Friends is the worst mean spirited anger imagery because the way how that face is modeled was depicting Gordon the Big engine about to kill people by running over them and about to come out of the TV and kill the viewers of the show by running over them which is very bad and murding is the worst crime. And parents and teachers being mean to kids and destroying their kid's toys and belongings as punishments was giving me the idea of killing myself by setting my own body on fire.

many many years ago sewerage pipes of houses were made of metal. using a metal grinder we slowly cut off the old rusted pipes in preparation for the new installation of the modern plastic pipes . here are some images of this moment

Replacing an earlier scanned photo with a better version 07-Sep-22 (DeNoise AI).

 

In Khalifa Airways basic livery with Corsair titles.…

 

First flown with the Airbus test registration F-WWKM, this aircraft was delivered to LTU International Airways as D-AERS in Apr-97. It was sold to a lessor in Jun-00 and leased back to LTU until it was returned to the lessor in May-01.

 

The aircraft was leased to Skyservice Canada as C-FRAV the following month. Skyservice had a problem with licensing and the aircraft was wet-leased to new Algerian airline Khalifa Airways later in Jun-01 for a joint service with Air Algerie from Paris-Orly / Oran. It was sub-leased to Air Algerie in Jul-02.

 

In Feb-03 Khalifa ceased trading and the aircraft was repossessed by Skyservice. It was stored at Zurich, Switzerland in Mar-03 and returned to the lessor in Jun-03 when it was leased to Corsair as F-GJSV.

 

In Apr-04 it was returned to the lessor and leased to Skyservice Airlines, again as C-FRAV. The aircraft was wet-leased to MyTravel Airways (UK) in Nov-04 for the winter season, returning to Skyservice in Mar-05 when it was wet-leased to LTU International.

 

In May-05 Skyservice returned the aircraft to the lessor. The lease was transferred direct to LTU and the aircraft was re-registered D-AERS again. LTU was taken over by Air Berlin in Mar-07 although the two airlines operated independently until LTU was fully integrated into Air Berlin in Feb-08.

 

The aircraft continued in service with Air Berlin until it was returned to the lessor in Oct-11 and stored at Abu Dhabi (UAE). In Dec-11 it was re-registered EI-ETI and ferried to Chateauroux, France for repaint into I-Fly livery.

 

It was stored at Chateauroux until it was delivered to I-Fly Airlines (Russia) in Apr-12. It was withdrawn from service in Nov-15 and stored at Perpignan (France). At the end of Feb-16 it ferried to St. Athan (Wales, UK) and was permanently retired. The registration was cancelled in Mar-11. Updated 01-Jan-23.

Replaced by a larger building in the 1930's. Now a museum.

Now replaced by James Finnie with a Foden 6x4 formerly owned by showman Richard Wilkinson the ex Downses/Cashes Foden 4000 Waltzer car lorry which came with the waltzer he acquired earlier this year.

Replaced my vehicle, so I thought it would be appropriate to take the new one up to the same place I went and took photos of my old car the day I got my license.