Gatwick Aviation Museum Open Day

We got to Gatwick Aviation Museum, and had a pleasant day looking round.

Not only do they have one of the only live Shackletons in the world, but their Buccaneer is now runnable. Sadly no Shackleton engine runs are currently planned because of the cost - starting at £600-£800 and going up depending on maintenance requirements.

Several of the aircraft are newly painted, but the weather is slowly taking its toll on them. News from the Museum is that they are putting in for planning permission to replace the temporary buildings and grass site with a hanger, which would provide the aircraft being restored (and the people working on them) with some protection from the elements.

Another notable addition was some of the owner's photographs. He had some beautiful photographs of the Gatwick Airport frozen while the volcanic ash limited flights, with row upon row of stationery planes.

A small and unadvertised gem, this museum really is a must-see for anyone really interested in classic aircraft or aircraft restoration.

Museum Links

• Gatwick Aviation Museum
• On GoogleMaps

Suggestion: zoom in three times and let the image clear:

View Larger Map

Themes and websites

I've spent the day doing a bit of research on Arts Council Grants, just in case I can get some help with researching my next book.

I've also got a theme for the actual website, since the google site I am using at the moment is not particularly attractive. Ironically, the URL is also not exactly search engine friendly. There's now a news list set up, so if you are interested in the book, you can sign up to get press releases, updates and more. Hopefully the full website will be up by the end of the week.

Unfortunately there is no word on preorders, although I have asked if Bewrite can clarify the launch date. Also, one of my old distributors from self-publishing may be interested in taking a few copies, which is always good news.

There's an Open Day at Gatwick Aviation Museum tomorrow, which I might attend. Due to an accident however it will depend on whether hobbling or walking is the order of the day...