Lyneham Comet C2

[Jon Porter]

The sorry looking gate guardian Comet C2 XK699 at Lyneham has gone. At least I think it has. Last passed by 3 weeks ago and it was there, today the gate has been obscured from view by large plastic sheets.

According to locals the Comet has been cut for scrap with the nose section saved for a museum.

This was the last surviving Comet C2.


Update

Confirmed, it's gone! Cockpit survives.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-wiltshire-24940615

[Craig]

The sorry looking gate guardian Comet C2 XK699 at Lyneham has gone. At least I think it has. Last passed by 3 weeks ago and it was there, today the gate has been obscured from view by large plastic sheets.

According to locals the Comet has been cut for scrap with the nose section saved for a museum.

This was the last surviving Comet C2.

Sadly correct, the nose has gone to Farnborough. A shame the last surviving MkII couldn't have been saved

[ACLVC10]

Again probably all comes down to costs sadly

Would of been great to save her to....

Andy

[Jon Porter]

Boscombe Down according to the BBC.

[ACLVC10]

Boscombe down sounds more realistic...... aslong it hasn't gone to the fire section

Andy

[Thumper]

It was knackered and vandalised to the point of no return. As for being dismantled, no, it was ripped apart by a digger or two.

I believe the rest of it was scrapped to pay for transport costs of the nose to Boscombe Down, so quite where the wings and back end are I don't know!

But for the "job to be done" Mr Sharpe said part of the plane has "had to be recycled" to pay for the cost of taking it apart and transporting it to Old Sarum.

[Jazz707]

The relief of at least getting some shots of Sagittarius recently, is tempered by the loss of another classic.

I presume the plaque that was next to the aircraft has gone with the nose section? It read...
"Comet C Mk2 XK699 'Sagittarius', Gate Guardian Of RAF Lyneham, Unveiled On The 22nd June 1987 By The Honorary Air Commodore, Her Royal Highness, The Princess Anne"

A sad day, seeing gloomy pictures and bits of VC-10's, as well as this news.

[Thumper]

Not a nice day no, I mentioned on a post earlier tonight about XV108's forward section being saved I am not so sure if I am happy about parts of aircraft being saved. I once went to cockpit fest at the Newark Air Museum and it felt like a House of Horrors, taxidermy of the aircraft world, head after head of aircraft mounted on a trolley with it's guts hanging out the back.

I would hope that the plaque has gone with the aircraft and mounted in a suitable place.

[Jazz707]

.

[Craig]

Boscombe Down according to the BBC.

Indeed so, sorry, was thinking FAST!

[EGDGZTCW]

What a shame...never did see it

[vololiberista]

It's really incredible that no-one spared the time to at least give the fuselage a wash from time to time? That photo shows willfull neglect. Keeping aircraft clean is part of the general maintenance process so they could have used the Comet to practise on!

Displaying a dilapidated aircraft like that at the main gate doesn't give people a good impression of the base!

vololiberista

[petet16]

It's really incredible that no-one spared the time to at least give the fuselage a wash from time to time? That photo shows willfull neglect. Keeping aircraft clean is part of the general maintenance process so they could have used the Comet to practise on!

Displaying a dilapidated aircraft like that at the main gate doesn't give people a good impression of the base!

vololiberista

I was thinking the same, hardly a very good advert for RAF Lyneham.

[Thumper]

I do agree but it's a very large aircraft to keep clean. Cleaning it would require several thousand pages of health and safety notes and in the region of a 5,000 page risk assessment being done. They then need several people willing to do it and then equipment like a cherry picker to get up there to wash it, it would take a long time as well. It's not a Spitfire or Sabre that you can simply climb aboard to scrub, it's bloody enormous.

Bletchley Park did have a Harrier GR.3 that was in a cosmetically challenged condition. I emailed them several times offering to clean her free of charge. Eventually they got back to me stating due to reasons listed above (health and safety, insurance, risk assessments, supervisors required etc) they did not have the money or time to allow me to do it and it's not simply a case of letting a random person in with a bucket and sponge. Such a damn shame and utter stupidity to be honest, health and safety has a lot to answer for these days.

[Jazz707]

It's really incredible that no-one spared the time to at least give the fuselage a wash from time to time? That photo shows willfull neglect. Keeping aircraft clean is part of the general maintenance process so they could have used the Comet to practise on!

Displaying a dilapidated aircraft like that at the main gate doesn't give people a good impression of the base!

vololiberista

I was thinking the same, hardly a very good advert for RAF Lyneham.

Maybe a bit unfair on the RAF? Sounds pedantic, but isn't it MOD Lyneham now?

The reason i mention this, as looking at pictures of the aircraft over recent years, it certainly appears to have been cleaned up until the around the time the RAF were vacating the station. After this, the aircraft was never cleaned? Plausible?