Super Guppy Restoration Project

Super Guppy Restoration Project We were the project to, cosmetically, restore Super Guppy F-BTGV. We're not any more

Permanently closed.
18/02/2021

Whilst I get that bits of the guppy being turned in to trinkets is appealing to some, constantly messaging them to us and tagging us in adverts for them is actually a bit sick. It’s like showing us photos of a dismembered relative.

Spend your hard earned however you will, but we are really not interested.

Thanks

There we are. All that's left, safe in her new home. A bittersweet end. We're glad the guys at SWAM will be taking care ...
04/02/2021

There we are. All that's left, safe in her new home. A bittersweet end. We're glad the guys at SWAM will be taking care of her

26/11/2020

Evening all.

I have an update and I'm afraid it is not good news.

She has been moved to the disposal pan, prior to being cut up. I don't know when it's going to happen, but it is inevitable. At the end of the day, it's not our aircraft and she's on somebody elses land. We had zero say in any of this and everything we've heard has been third hand. Nobody in any position of authority has even picked up the phone to talk to us. It's a very sad end to 11 years of work and a complete waste of thousands of pounds.

We'll keep this page up, for posterity if nothing else, but we are actively looking for a new project. We've gathered a lot of kit and knowledge over the years and it'd be a shame to let that go to waste.

Any money we have left in the coffers, which isn't a great deal, will go to another restoration project, most likely the Typhoon restoration, but no decisions have been made yet.

We're really very sorry and we thank you for supporting us over the years.

29/05/2020

Hello everyone.

Emma and I had a socially distant trip to the airfield today, with the sole intention of getting some answers. It didn't take long! We got a few minutes with the owner and, really, we're none the wiser about the Guppy's future.

Her fate is, more or less, in the hands of the new tenants. If they need the space, she'll most likely be cut up. The one thing in our favour, though, is that the Gup is parked a LONG way from the current storage facility. There would need to be an awful lot of cars arrive before we were in immediate danger. For all the complaints we have made about her being left down there, it's that that is preserving her!

We were told to hold off doing any major work as there is still a chance that it would be a waste of time and money. If the August open day goes ahead, though, we'll be around on the run up to tidy her up.

She's not out of the woods. Her future is far from certain, but, I'm feeling the most positive I have since February.

Many thanks to Dave Thomas for getting us in, today.

Gaz

07/02/2020

Evening all.

I was holding off saying anything until I knew for certain, but a few of you have asked.

I’m not going to comment on any rumours or things that I’ve heard. This is what I know, as of right now.

YES, planning permission has been accepted for a massive increase in car storage at Bruntingthorpe.

That’s it. That’s all I KNOW.

I’ve heard some other things as well, but I’m waiting for an official word on what that means for all of the groups at the airfield.

I will let you know as soon as I know.

Gaz

29/11/2019

We went past 1500 likes, today! Thank you everyone!

I promise we'll have some news soon, but for now, she's still sitting on the grass, which is absolutely saturated, at the very far end of the airfield, which is not always accessible.

We desperately want to get on with work, but it's too damp to do much of anything, even if we could get to her.

We haven't forgotten though and we certainly haven't abandoned her

Come one, come all
24/08/2019

Come one, come all

Thanks to Keith Powell, for this brilliant photo of #1 from the VC10 flight deck, at the open day.
27/05/2019

Thanks to Keith Powell, for this brilliant photo of #1 from the VC10 flight deck, at the open day.

Another great open day weekend!We couldn’t get as much done on Saturday, as we would have liked, as we’d already been mo...
27/05/2019

Another great open day weekend!

We couldn’t get as much done on Saturday, as we would have liked, as we’d already been moved on to the grass when we arrived. Most of the jobs are at height, which we can’t get at when we’re on the grass. We persevered though. Me, Emma and Ben refitted the tail jack. There’s more work to be done on it as the recent spin and sudden stop has twisted things a bit. Nothing that a ratchet strap can’t untwist though. Oliver went above and beyond with some prop tips. Far more than was necessary, really, but it’ll be worth it. Then it was a team effort to patch up and paint the skin damage from the spin.

The open day was as full-on as usual. A steady stream of people all day. It really is the best part of the job. Lots of people in the hold, literally in awe. It’s great!

I didn’t get many photos yesterday. I think Neil did though. Hopefully some will appear.

Thank you all for coming to see us. We genuinely couldn’t do it without you!

Thanks also to my wife, Clare. Who kept us in coffee all day 🙂

Emma, Neil, Gaz, Ben and Oliver

25/05/2019

So starts a busy weekend. The tail jack will be refitted today. The loose(ish) nose wheel will be sorted. Some skin repair will be done. Some paint applied. Some pressure washing will be done. Some barbecue eaten. A small quantity of alcohol consumed. Then it’s open day on Sunday!

Hope to see you all there!

Come out and see us, why don’t you? 😊And also feel the power of out jets, at close range, as they roar along our 2 mile ...
21/05/2019

Come out and see us, why don’t you? 😊

And also feel the power of out jets, at close range, as they roar along our 2 mile runway

Productive morning. Arrived to find the site compressor under a wing. Time to inflate everything. Took a while. A couple...
12/05/2019

Productive morning.
Arrived to find the site compressor under a wing. Time to inflate everything. Took a while. A couple of the MLG tyres were very flat, but it’s done and she’ll roll down for the open day at the end of the month.

We did identify a leak in an MLG wheel, though. It’s coming from the rim, so a bead needs looking at. As we don’t have jacks, that’ll have to wait.

Also, we’ve had a hubcap either stolen, or fallen off during a move, from the NLG. The wheel that it was from has worked it’s way loose. I drifted the nut tight (we don’t have the right C spanner) and packed it with grease. Hopefully enough to stop the bearings falling out!

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