VIMY RUNS AT BROOKLANDS EVENT

Vickers Vimy replica NX71MY engine-running on the recently reopened pre-war motor circuit finishing straight at Brooklands on 15 October

The Brooklands Museum Aviation Day on 15 October saw what is thought to be the largest gathering of de Havilland Moths to have visited since the aerodrome closed for domestic and commercial use in 1939, with six Tiger Moths and a Moth Major from the Tiger Nine display team alighting on the 230m-long grass strip during the morning. This runway hasn’t seen much activity over the past few years, but, with the help of the adjacent Mercedes-Benz World, it is now hoped to make more use of it. The museum is looking to carry out various improvements including some ground works to extend it, as and when funds permit. Plans are already being made for another Brooklands Aviation Day in September 2018.

The newly re-opened Brooklands motor circuit finishing straight was also used for aeronautical purposes for the first time, with several of the museum aircraft being rolled out for engine runs. Most impressive was Vickers Vimy replica NX71MY, which hadn’t had its 600hp Orenda OE600 V8 engines powered up since the late summer of 2015. Also engine-running was the museum’s Sopwith Camel replica. Visitors could take the first preview tours of the new Flight Shed and Aircraft Factory, as final preparations were progressing towards the official opening of these impressive buildings in mid-November.