Filton Airfield/Airport/RAF Filton

[jonbru1]

Having been brought up near Filton airfield, I have set myself the task of building as many aircraft associated with Filton over the years, to a greater or lesser extent. This will be done in 1/144 due to limited storage space. I have started with VC10 RB211 testbed G-AXLR, VFW614 D-BABC and DC-3 G-AMPO. If anyone has photos/slides ets of aircraft at Filton and would be willing to share tham with me, please let me know.

[andy wood]

Can you get 1/144 scale Bulldogs and Chippies?

[Flankerman]

I belong to the Avon Scale Model Society - and as we are based in Bristol, we had a club project to build as many Bristol-built aitcraft as possible.

We displayed the results at a families day in Filton in 2004.....

Might give you some inspiration - or frighten you off???

Ken

[jonbru1]

A bit of both, Ken. Thanks!

[bzn20]

Can you show off your VC-10 RB211 test kite XLR please?

[jonbru1]

Can you show off your VC-10 RB211 test kite XLR please?

Hi, I've posted pic of the first four of the Filton collection, a few more of the VC10 will follow.

http://www.britmodeller.com/forums/index.php?/topic/234970076-aircraft-associated-with-filton-airfield-from-the-1960s/

Jon

[phildagreek]

Is that the Brabazon dominating those photos?

[garryrussell]

I sertainly is

Nice start to the project. Unusual to see a VFW-614 model

[jonbru1]

I sertainly is

Nice start to the project. Unusual to see a VFW-614 model

It's the F-RSIN kit, a real pain to build. Still, it looks OK from a distance.

[Graham Boak]

RR operated a number of Harriers at different times, and also a Fiat G-91.

[Cheshiretaurus]

Very interesting thread, for me Filton has been a big part of my life between 2003 & 2009 as I was one of the ones who brought the Jetstream in on a daily basis from Hawarden for Airbus. From my log book I made some 664 landing at Filton during that time and flew my last trip there on the 30th June 2009 in G-MAJY. A very enjoyable time. Runway was rather bumpy. On very turbulent days the runway was still rougher than the air.

A Bristol 173 would be a nice conversion from an Airfix Belvedere. Have plans to one day build one

CT

[Flying Badger]

Ah gotta love the Bristol Brabazon Mk 1 prototype... a gleaming shiny metal piece of elegant cutting edge technology (for her time).

The Mk.2 would have been great if they hadn't scrapped it before it had chance to fly (Mk 1 was powered by 8 radial engines, the Mk2 would have had 8 Turboprop engines so would have been lighter, faster and more reliable).

But then I have a bit of a soft spot for the Brabazon.

She was a different class of airliner - she had a foyer, pantry and galley, 2 decks of sleeping berths, a dinning room and a cinema as well as male and female dressing rooms (presumable so you could change to suitable attire for dinner!) all on board an aircraft nearly as long and with a wingspan of a 747!

I think the original spec was to carry 26 passengers transatlantic.... which might explain why the airlines didn't sign up to a vision of international travel based on a flying version of first class ocean liners.

[garryrussell]

The Brabazon wasn't really cutting edge for her time, just big

There was no practical use for it

Airports and hangars couldn't take it and there was not enough traffic to make it pay.

The wingspan was enormous for 100 seats.

It's main sucess was as a feel good post war project. It diverted the attention from a country on it's knees from oustretching resources and in the midst of trying to stand up and rebuild.

It showed everyone that the country was still as strong as ever in thought, techology and abilty, it was just badly shaken up and all it would take was time for it to get back together.

The country did recover well just after only for all the efort to be thrown away.

The Brabazon gave people pride and hope, they clapped when it flew over at Farnborough.

The felt proud to be British. The Brab can always be remembered for that.

[Cheshiretaurus]

Brought my camera to work on the 27th March 2007 as Airbus was bringing an A380 to Filton for some trials, snapped a few more visitors too.

Although Filton is a big airfield, manoeuvring space is limited, after landing F-WWDD is too big to taxi so had to be towed to its parking are on the North side.

Did get to go inside it the following day brought my camera but had left the memory card at home....duh

Regular visitor was A319 D-APAA 'The air bridge' a daily weekday shuttle service for Airbus to Toulouse.

Another regular visitor was my bit the Jetstream that went back n forth to Hawarden 3 times a day.

As well as the manufacturing operation Filton was home to quite a few light aircraft, in the North side hangers was a P51 Mustang and a spitfire being rebuilt (Crashed at Woodford) and also had the police helicopter based there.

Hope you find these interesting

CT

[Flying Badger]

The Brabazon wasn't really cutting edge for her time, just big

not sure that completely true...

the Brab was a test bed for the development of lots of new techniques in aeronautical engineering.....

The metalwork skin wasn't a fixed grade but varied according to stress which was a new idea, and saved a lot of weight.... that doesn't sound much but it requires a whole new area of stress analysis and more refined skin loading calculations with all the science that entails, and that methodology to save weight through good stress/load analysis at the initial design stage is still an essential prerequisite for aircraft design now.

The brab had lots of engineering firsts e.g. the first to use fully powered controls as the control surfaces were so big.

It also had an artificial stabilisation system that automatically counteracted gusts on those big wings..... way before other aircraft and also before the computer systems used to achieve that nowadays.

Yes it was a bit of a white elephant, and the design/market concept was way off, but the engineering to achieve that result was still highly significant to the development of aviation.

And don't forget that the strategic planning that led to the design spec for a large airliner that became the brab, was actually a larger plan than just this aircraft and included 3 other type specifications to be developed at the same time. Those others were the Vickers Viscount and Airspeed ambassador (both meeting type II spec), Type III: Avro Tudor (admittedly a middling design) and the Type IV a jet airliner that was met by de havilland's Comet the worls first jetliner and an aircraft design that was still in commercial service 40 years later and whose military variant was in service until recently in the form of the Nimrod. So 3 successful designs out of 5 isn't bad for spreading the risk of guessing the future aviation needs and meeting them. The brab was too ambitious but by trying we learnt a lot. Concorde wouldnt have been achievable without the Brabazon.

[jonbru1]

Brought my camera to work on the 27th March 2007 as Airbus was bringing an A380 to Filton for some trials, snapped a few more visitors too.

Although Filton is a big airfield, manoeuvring space is limited, after landing F-WWDD is too big to taxi so had to be towed to its parking are on the North side.

Did get to go inside it the following day brought my camera but had left the memory card at home....duh

Regular visitor was A319 D-APAA 'The air bridge' a daily weekday shuttle service for Airbus to Toulouse.

Another regular visitor was my bit the Jetstream that went back n forth to Hawarden 3 times a day.

As well as the manufacturing operation Filton was home to quite a few light aircraft, in the North side hangers was a P51 Mustang and a spitfire being rebuilt (Crashed at Woodford) and also had the police helicopter based there.

Hope you find these interesting

CT

Thanks