Tag Archives: comet

Boscombe Down Aviation Collection

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Middle Wallop was my first aviation museum of our vacation but there was a second.  I didn’t have a lot of time but, with a small gap in the schedule and a very accommodating wife, we headed to Old Sarum, home of the Boscombe Down Aviation Collection.  For those not familiar with UK military aviation, Boscombe Down is the center of military test in the UK and has a variety of unusual aircraft that are used for test duties and test pilot training.

The weather was dismal but the vintage hangars meant I could stay dry (although there were a couple of exhibits outside including a Hunter and the nose of a Comet).  The collection is full of interesting items.  There are whole airframes and cockpit sections from others.  The cockpits are all accessible and, if I had been there longer, I would probably have got in to some of them.  However, time was tight and hopping in wasn’t that important to me.  There were a variety of Canberra front fuselages and a Sea Vixen.  Some of the exhibits are special enough to justify their own posts so those will come in due course.  The stories of restoration of the airframes were pretty interesting too and a lot of good work had been done to preserve them.  (As an aside, the one thing I was a little disappointed in was the painting of the aircraft.  The colors and markings seemed inaccurate which seemed at odds with the great efforts made in to earth respects.)

A Sea Harrier was on display as was a Jaguar.  One of the highlights for me was Hawk XX154.  This is the first Hawk built and one that had a full career in test duties ending up at Boscombe.  It was moved to Old Sarum by the RAF with a Chinook lifting it across as a training exercise.  It is displayed in its final gloss black finish but I will always think of it in red and white.  There is also a front fuselage from one of the ETPS Hawks that was written off in an accident.

So much variety of exhibits and definitely a top place to visit if you like military aviation.  The nice thing is that the airframes are unusual in their configuration and history.  They tend not to be regular squadron jets so give extra to learn about.  I would love to go back again some time.

Of Course I Had a Go – Comet Neowise

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With the limited options to go anywhere, you would think that any photo opportunity would immediately pique my interest.  The arrival of a comet in the night sky would seem to be just the sort of thing I would have a go at.  However, it took me a little while to get tuned in to the idea of seeing this comet.  I had been out of the house one evening and, when I got back, I saw a video about the comet on YouTube.  With it getting dark, I figured I would try and check it out.  We had a run of very clear skies so this seemed like the ideal opportunity.

The problem was where to see it.  The comet was relatively low in the sky and I needed to get a bit higher up.  Plenty of hills around here so I headed out in the car.  However, we also have a lot of trees and I failed to find a good spot.  I also think I hadn’t let it get dark enough in hindsight.  It did get me thinking about it a bit more though and I decided I should go to the shore since the view would not be obstructed.  Mukilteo seemed like a good option.  Apparently, I was not the only one to think so!

I got to Mukilteo at about 10pm to give my self time to get sorted out.  The parking lot was surprisingly full.  It certainly wasn’t crowded but there were a lot of people there.  I got set up once the comet started to be visible.  There is a path along the shore with some grass behind it and I set up on the grass.  What I didn’t know about was the night sprinkler system.  I found out when it switched on!  I only had to move a short distance to stay dry, though.  Then I was free to shoot the comet.  I did try a shot with the ferry crossing underneath but the ferry moves a surprisingly long way in a short exposure time.

Comet Cockpit and Cabin

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The Comet may have been the first British jet airliner and the first in commercial service but it is not too well served by Museums.  I guess the stragglers got chopped up when they had served their purpose.  Everett is home to a Comet 4 though with the Museum of Flight’s restoration facility being home to one.  Progress on it has been slow but steady.  I have seen it a few times over the years.  You used to be able to walk outside and see the bits stuck outdoors but now there is commercial service at Paine Field, the ramp is a bit more secure.

On my most recent visit, I wandered through the cabin and had a look in the cockpit.  The cockpit did result in some HDR shots and I wrote a post about that here that discussed the different results Adobe software provides for HDR.  These shots just give you an idea of what the early days of jet aviation brought to the flying public.