As the Newark Air Museum celebrates its 50th anniversary, one exhibit stands out as a feat of restoration: the General Aircraft Monospar. The story of how it came back to the UK is an epic, too
Sometimes an important, rare aircraft simply slips through the preservation net. It could easily have been the case with the UK’s sole surviving General Aircraft Monospar ST-12, had it not been for certain interventions. VH‑UTH was one of the first airframes acquired for the fledgling Newark Air Museum by Mike Hutchinson and Doug Revell in 1967. For many years it languished in deep store at various locations, including the museum’s former RAF Winthorpe home. This rare, 1930s-vintage aeroplane saw its restoration slowed by a lack of drawings, parts availability and, in the early days, a dearth of enthusiasm for light civil aircraft. But the dedication and determination displayed by a host of individuals caused all that to change.
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