Latinbear

Let's hope we never go to war on a hot summer's day because we'll have to count out of action the aircraft based at Brize Norton!

A very special moment nicely captured!

That looks very Old Warden and suitably relaxing. Lovely images!

Good shots! I was there too and enjoyed it. A joy to have sunny weather for the event.

Last week I flew to Marseille for the airshow at Salon de Provence commemorating the 70th anniversary of the formation of the Patrouille de France but as I had some time available before checking into my accommodation I drove the hour and a bit to this museum in Orange. The museum is open Monday - Friday from around 2.30pm (Saturday's by appointment) and entry is a bargain 3€. Parking is outside on the side on the road but there is plenty of space. There are around 50 aircraft on the site and the workshop was open to wander round and take pictures but the owner requested no images be posted on the web and I have respected his request. The aspiration is to build a hangar to house the collection and as you can see the airframes are weathering in the strong southern French sun. Incidentally, the owner is looking for a Tornado and so if you know anyone who has one available then worth giving him a nod; he speaks good English. I spent a very pleasant afternoon here and if you want the detail of a Jaguar or Vautour wheel well for that next build then this is the place to come. Once I have worked my way through the images from the airshow I'll post a few. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. 16. 17. 18. 19. 20. 21. 22. 23. 24. From outside on the road. 25. 26. Lastly, this is not part of the museum but sits in the middle of a busy roundabout in a mixed industrial and retail park by junction 22 of the A7 motorway a couple of kilometres from the museum. That's it, thanks for looking.

Wow, what a museum! I've only been to Brussels once and that was for a day trip. If I had known it existed I would have persuaded my wife that we should have paid a visit as we were on a day trip from Bruges. Thanks for sharing these.

A great set of shots! The topside of the Lancaster is superb and although parachutists don't do anything for me your shot of the three Red Devils so close together is a cracker! Thanks for sharing these.

That is a terrific set of shots! Looks like you were well placed on the crowdline too.

Lovely! Particularly like the two Spits in formation.

I've just shown my wife the pictures of your collection and her immediate reaction was not not "What a fantastic collection" but "That's a lot of a dusting to do". 🙄

Great shots! Particularly like number three.

Very nice indeed! The subtle weathering is great. I've always had a soft spot for the Wildcat as it was one of the first Airfix models I ever had way back in the 1970s. I have to confess though that the nostalgia was dented somewhat when I saw one fly at Duxford several years ago and hearing the engine was like listening to a bag of nails in a washing machine. Such a contrast to the joyous sound of the Merlin engine.

That is superb! I love the subtle weathering as well. A class piece of work.

It's "White Luftwaffe Nightfighters 1943/44?" Part 2. If you PM me your email address I'll have a go at scanning the article and email the pages to you. I say "have a go" because it's a brand new printer/scanner that I am getting to grips with.

Super photos! I have to confess I'd forgotten Canada flew the F5. These are a nice reminder.

Thanks Jay Gee, all taken with my phone. There is a board in the museum showing B-24 locations in the NT as Truscott, Fenton, Darwin, Batchelor, Long and Manbulloo with others such as Townsville to the south-east. The radius of action from Truscott was also shown which stretched out to to just north of Java, Borneo and Mindanao. It sounds like they have made a lot of progress since your visit all that time ago. I had been monitoring the expecting re-opening of the Point Cook museum and was disappointed when the website showed it would be open to visitors after I had returned home. I plan to visit it in 2025 when the next airshow takes place.

Those are really nice! I think the F1 is a lovely aircraft and these schemes really show it off well especially the FAF version.

Fantastic job! Great WIP photo line too.

Thanks very much Mark, it was a nice way to end to the trip and to see something different. A long way to go of course but the trip was worth every minute (and penny!).

After visiting the B-24 Restoration Memorial at Werribee I moved on the the Moorabbin Air Museum located next to Moorabbin Airport in Melbourne's south-eastern suburbs. The collection is comprised of a variety of civil and military aircraft, engines, cockpits and memorabilia most of which are housed indoors with the larger airframes outside. It is worth noting that not all of the aircraft shown on the museum's website are on display as several e.g. the Lincoln are undergoing restoration. The museum's highlight is a Beaufighter, apparently one of only six left in the world. As with the B-24 memorial, entry was a very reasonable A$10. There is more information on the museum's website: www.aarg.com.au 1. 2. Dauphin 2 3. Meteor T Mk7 4. Gannet AS Mk4 5. Wessex Mk 31A 6. Viscount 800 7. Bristol Freighter Mk 31M 8. Canberra Mk 20 9. 10. Mk 21 Beaufighter 11. 12. 13. CAC Wirraway 14. CAC Avon Sabre 15. Sea Venom 16. BA Swallow 17. Percival Proctor 18. GAF Mirage 111O 19. Bristol Sycamore. This was returning to the museum from Avalon where it had had been displayed at the airshow. That's it, thanks for looking.

Thank you gents for the kind words, much appreciated.

Great job! Love the weathering!

On my way back to Melbourne from the airshow at Avalon I stopped in at the B24 Restoration Memorial in Werribee a few minutes drive off the the M1 highway. Situated on a what was a wartime satellite airfield to bases at nearby Laverton and Point Cook, the original airfield comprised grass strips, five hangars and associated buildings. Today only a workshop and two hangars remain. The B-24M undergoing restoration is a composite with an Australian fuselage from an aircraft struck off charge after the war and wings from a US B-24D that crashed in Papua New Guinea. More than 90% of the airframe and 70% of its fittings have been acquired and in time it is planned to move the aircraft from its current home to a nearby hangar which is large enough to accommodate the completed aircraft. A Boomerang and an Anson are also undergoing restoration in the hangar. I confess I love places like this. Its higgledy-piggledy nature as a functioning workshop offering the wonderful smell of metal, oil, grease, leather and wood combined with enthusiastic and knowledgeable volunteers all makes for a very enjoyable visit. More information can be found here at the memorial's website: b24.australia.org.au Entry is by donation of a very reasonable A$10. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. That's it, thanks for looking.

Superb!

Fabulous! Really well photographed and as others have said, it really does look like the real thing which I guess is the ultimate accolade.