Sunday 18 August saw the museum hold the first model show in 10 years, with the 'Museum in Minature Scale Model Show', with a superb turnout making the day a huge success. With 15 plastic scale model groups, both local and further afield, displaying a fantastic array of superb models & dioramas across 64 tables. Featuring all aspects of aviation, military vehicles, figures and fantasy/sci-fi, the impressive display was enjoyed by all, a huge thank you to everyone involved, and next year's event is already pencilled in for Sunday 17th August 2025. The day was also about remembering Thursday, 15 August 1940 - Black Thursday - and the Luftwaffe raids on Northern England from the Borders down to the Humber, where the German bomber force expected an easy day out but got a very bloody nose thanks to 13 Group of Fighter Command, of which RAF Usworth - our museum site, played its part.

The museum's latest exhibit, a Hawk T1 XX265 was unveiled to the public in a ceremony on 13th May, with representatives from 607 Squadron amongst those in attendance. This was a significant day in what is the museum's 50th year.
Several representatives from the media attended the ceremony, with the local news covering the unveiling - see below video courtesy of the BBC:

The museum hosted it's first photo event organised by COAP Wings, a specialist photographic company. This involved a mix of re-enactors and photographers, and went down well with all involved, with some 40 photographers on site. Here's just a couple of photographs taken of the Vulcan.

Photo credit: Michael Frodsham and MF Aviation Photography.

The museum's latest exhibit arrived in January, a replica de Havilland DH60 Moth. Obtained as a mutual swap with the Kent Battle of Britain Museum based at Hawkinge who took NELSAM's Austin K2 fire engine in exchange , the Moth represents the first aircraft taken on charge by the fledgling 607 (County Of Durham) Squadron on the 25 October 1932. Our Moth is a replica of 'Jason', G-AAAH, the aircraft flown by Amy Johnson on her historic flight to Australia in 1930 with the original machine on display in the Flight Gallery of the Science Museum in London. Our replica is also registered as BAPC 168 and was built by Shaw craft Models Limited for display in The Gatwick Hilton Hotel were it was installed there on the 15 November 1981, hanging from the lobby ceiling before moving to the Croydon Aerodrome Hotel were it appeared in their Gallery of Memories on the 1 May 2003 and when the memories eventually faded it moved to Hawkinge in 2005 and was put into store were it remained until NELSAM took delivery.

Photos courtesy of David Thomson

Sunday 13th November 2022 saw NELSAM host a small remembrance ceremony, with wreath laying, with representatives from 607 squadron present.

Sunday 7th August saw NELSAM welcome a wide variety of classic and vintage vehicles on site, some from as early as the 1930s, with the good weather ensuring an estimated turnout of over a thousand four the day. With everything from a classic Rolls Royce to a Clan Crusader, built at the factor next to the museum in the 1960s, there was something for everyone, and NELSAM hope to make this a regular event. You can read more in the Sunderland Echo Write-up.

Photos courtesy of Daniel Lines

This Sunday 1st of May the City of Sunderland and the museum paid tribute to our Armed Forces veterans who served in the Falklands conflict, which took place 40 years ago. Joining the museum for the day were members of Forces 80 who will be dressed in period uniform and displaying equipment from the period, as well as a fantastic display of period memorabelia from local exhibitor Chris Sanderson. Museum chair David Charles held a short ceremony, with His Worship Cllr Trueman laying the first of several wreaths, followed by wreaths from all the branches of our armed forces as well as local veterans organisations. A number of veterans also attended the ceremony, as well as sea cadets from TS Tenacity based in Ashington. A huge thank you to the museum volunteers for ensuring the day ran smoothly, and to all who attended to show their support.
Local media were also in attendance, and the Sunderland Echo produced the video below to capture the day;

Credit: Sunderland Echo Full Article here.

The museum's latest exhibit, Sea Harrier ZD582/002 loaned by a Northamptonshire businessman, arrived to take centre stage in the museum's Falklands War 40th Anniversary display, alongside our Pucara.
Delivered to 800 Squadron in October 1985 as an FRS Mk1, she was upgraded to F/A2 standard between 1991 and 1993 before retirment and being auctioned off in 2005. The Pegasus engine is still in place, making her possibly the most complete SHAR in private ownership.
Excellent work from GJD at St Athan for planning and executing the move, and to from all the volunteers involved in offloading, then moving into the Hangar to sit next to the Pucara.
NELSAM chair David Charles said: “I am particularly pleased that we have been able to secure this aircraft for display as part of the Falklands anniversary. The aircraft type played a major role in returning order to the Falklands. The campaign involved many people from the region and used equipment manufactured in the region. I hope it will encourage people from the region to come along and visit and reflect on the sacrifices made. It is sad that once again 40 years on we are seeing suffering in another country brought on by hostile actions of a near neighbour."

Last Tuesday Ian McLaren signed the Armed Forces Covent on the Museum's behalf.

The Armed Forces Covenant is a formal agreement by organisations that those who serve or have served in Britain's armed forces and their families will be treated with fairness and respect. They should not be disadvantaged or prevented from access to services or products because of their service.

Examples of discrimination might include access to education and healthcare, financial help and job opportunities.

It was a real pleasure to sign the Covenant on behalf of NELSAM at a small ceremony last Tuesday. Other organisations were in attendance including the North of Tyne Mayor Jamie Driscoll, and representatives of the Army and Royal Navy. A real honour for me which I was pleased to undertake on the Museums behalf. - Ian Mclaren, NELSAM volunteer

The gifting of the Tornado F3 ZE204 started back in June 2018 at the RAF 100 Celebrations in Durham. With the support of the Lord Lieutenants office from Tyne and Wear and the Reserve and Cadets Forces Association. The museum made an approach to Wing Commander Erica Ferguson the head of RAF Heritage to secure ZE204 for the North East of England. In order to achieve the gifting, space had to be made inside for the aircraft and the volunteers, without knowing the reason, set about re-arranging the main display and workshop areas over the next two years.
Confirmation was finally received in December 2020 that the gift had been agreed by the RAF, the Ministry of Defence and the Secretary of State.
The Joint Aircraft Recovery and Transportation Squadron of the Royal Air Force were tasked with moving the aircraft from RAF Manston in Kent to Sunderland. To prepare for it’s arrival and assembly the museum closed for a week at the end of June 2021, and on a sunny evening at the end of June 2021 a fleet of low loaders arrived at the museum carrying ZE204.
On the Tuesday morning the 29th of June a crane from Bray Cranes arrived and the aircraft was assembled by 3:30 in the afternoon.
Further preparation was carried out by the small museum team throughout the rest of the week. On the Friday evening the aircraft was slowly pushed back into the newly refurbished hangar no 1; There the aircraft remained until Monday the 13th of September 2021.
On the afternoon of the 13th of September 2021 a distinguished list of guests headed by Mrs Susan Winfield OBE arrived to accept the aircraft on behalf of the North East of England.
Air Vice Marshall Colin Da’ Silva the Assistant Chief of the Air Staff, and a former Tornado F3 navigator, carried out the gifting to Mrs Winfield who then passed the aircraft to museum chair David Charles for care and display.
With the support of Flight Lieutenant Greg Pocock from RAF Boulmer and Squadron Leader James Porteus the audience were appraised of the role and importance of the Tornado F3 to the region.
AVM Da’ Silva and Sqn Leader Porteus as Navigator and pilot have both flown ZE204 on a number of occasions during their time at RAF Leeming. This includes combat operations over the former Yugoslavia.
The aircraft now stands on display at the museum and will be a central part of celebrating the RAF legacy in the region.
The aircraft will also be used with schools, colleges and the Air Training Corps through Science Technology and Maths initiatives to inspire our future aerospace aerospace engineers.
The museum trustees wish to thank the Reserve and Cadets Forces Association, the Lord Lieutenants Offices of the four regions and the Royal Air Force for the work over the last three years to make this gift possible.
As Chair of the Volunteer managed and run museum my final thanks go to the dedicated volunteers who give up much time and worked tirelessly to prepare for the Tornado gifting. The dedicated bunch make me proud of what has been, and can be, achieved; I hope the North of England can be proud of our museum and show support by visiting. --David Charles

NELSAM is now fully open to all visitors; there is no need to pre-book for your visit. Usual opening times apply - Tues-Sun 10:00-16:00.

With the latest announcement regarding the North East entering Tier 3 restrictions, NELSAM will remain closed for the duration of these restrictions. Please check back for updates, or follow our Facebook Page for the latest updates.

Please note that the museum has terminated its agreement with Groupon and no groupon vouchers will be accepted after Sunday the 30th of August. Groupon decided not to pay the museum for over 400 vouchers. Groupon have chosen to keep the full amounts as they say there is no proof of the customer visiting. The value of the unpaid vouchers is in excess of £1,200. If you have purchased a voucher and did not redeem it the museum does not receive any of your payment. Groupon have been requested to notify all remaining voucher holders and refund the payments taken. A full list of vouchers have been supplied to Groupon

NELSAM officially reopened to the public on Tuesday the 21st July, however a local teen and his family got a private tour the Monday to be the first guest back at the museum since March. Jack Berry, who attends the Barbra Priestman Academy in Sunderland, was diagnosed with autism at two years old and is selectively mute but loves anything to do with history and became fascinated with planes after hearing stories from his Grandad, who worked on concorde aircraft. Jack was extremely excited to visit, and enjoyed his day at the museum with his family. You can read more in the article from the Sunderland Echo.

With the original Abarth Club North East event in March cancelled due to COVID-19 closures, the museum agreed to host the meet as a private event for the car club only, prior to opening to the public the following week. The weather held and on the day nearly 30 Abarths from the North East arrived. The memebrs were the first to go trial our new measures for COVID safety, ahead of reopening, and the weather held for the full day to allow them to enjoy their time on site, and get plenty of fantastic photos of their cars and our exhibits!
You can read more about the day in their full write up on the Abarth Club North East Website, here's a few photos from the day courtesy of Lee Hastings;

Whilst the Museum has been closed for COVID-19 we have taken receipt of some special vehicles from the Britvic drinks company, who held these in their collection for some years before kindly donating these to NELSAM.
These are:

• A 1927 Morris Commercial Type Z delivery lorry, now in Robinson's Barley Water livery and previously taken to Wimbledon for the annual tennis tournament as part of the Robinson's sponsorship.
• A 1934 Morris Commercial CS11/30 delivery Lorry, in original Corona Drinks Livery.
• A 1920s Horse-drawn Dray in original Corona Drinks livery, used for delivering their soft drinks.
• A 1954 Albion FT3A delivery lorry in original R. White Soft drinks livery.

Whilst the museum has been closed to visitors, we've taken the opportunity to make lots of changes and improvements, where it's been safe to do so.
The biggest changes have been to our main aircraft hangar - where the exhibits have been rearranged, the Lightning brought inside, put the wings back on the Pucara and much more. Now that everything is in position, we've painted floor markings for visitors too, ready to safely welcome people in from Tuesday 21st July. Thanks to all the volunteers who were on site to make this happen.

After reviewing the latest Government guidelines, and assessing the safety of the site, the Museum plans to re-open on Tuesday 21st July. There will be new COVID-19 measures in place including the need to take temperatures on entrance with a hand scanner, please be patient when visiting and work with the staff to ensure safety of both visitors and volunteers can be maintained. We may also need to take contact details for the NHS track and trace system. Contactless payment will be encouraged for all transactions no matter how small. We appreciate your cooperation and hope you have a safe and enjoyable visit.

We've launched a crowd funding campaign to help preserve our iconic Avro Vulcan B.2. XL319, which flew into the then Sunderland Airport in January 1983.
This airframe started service in October 1961, seeing service with the famous 617 (A.K.A. Dambusters) Squadron, and then Sqns 44 an 83 at Waddington and Scampton.
2019 saw most of the airframe repainted, and one of the engines started for the first time for 36 years. The volunteers here at the museum open the cockpit for the public as much as possible, however we want to give a greater number of visitors the chance to learn about XL319 and its history by establishing an information centre next to the aircraft to explain not only XL319s story, but the history of the V-Bomber force as well.
Our crowd funding campaign is looking to raise £5,000, all of which will go towards preserving the aircraft and the creation of this new information centre and display.

Our campaign is live on Crowdfunder now, and runs until the 26th July - any donation towards the cause will be put to good use and greatly appreciated!

NELSAM regularly works with local Schools and Universities to educate and engage the next generation in our past. Recently, the museum was involved with the 'Pattinson Project'. The Patterson Project was a schools WW1 aviation project run through Newcastle University Library, where classes from two schools researched the life of a real local WW1 RFC pilot Sir Lawrence Pattinson using his documents as held in the University library and other sources. The project then came to NELSAM for a half day to look at the Morane replica and John Stelling and Michael Leonard gave them a talk on how the airframe was constructed and on North East pilots. Later the schools went on to the Rolls Royce factory at Washington to see how modern-day aircraft engines were made. Subsequently the schools went back to the classroom, divided into teams and made their own versions of a WW1 model aircraft based on what they'd seen and learnt. As you'll see from the photos in the blog, the children's efforts were judged by the STEM Team at the University and they received a CREST Discovery Award for their efforts. This was a good project for NELSAM to get involved in and thanks to John & Michael for their hard work. You can read more on the Library's blog post about the project.

Following the latest health advice the trustees have taken decision to close the museum to visitors and volunteers with effect from 4pm Wednesday 18th March. The situation will remain under review but we must act to protect the well being of employees, volunteers and visitors. This will be difficult financially for a small volunteer run museum but the trustees believe that the health and well being of everybody is of utmost importance.

Whist the museum is going through its transformation, particularly in the main hangar, the trustees would like to thank and reward our loyal visitors. Keep your entrance ticket from your visit between now and the end of April and you can come back for free in the school summer holidays when all the exhibits should be back in place

The next stage of the aircraft moves has taken place - some rearranging with the help of the new tug, next stage is to bring the lighting inside. Thanks to all the volunteers who were on site to make this happen.

To Facilitate the moving around of exhibits over the course of 2020, the museum has acquired a Flight Deck Aircraft Tractor, which previously served on HMS Ark Royal. With all-wheel steering and all-wheel drive, this will make a very useful addition to the collection!

Following the departure of the Mystere and the T33 the main Hangar is looking a bit empty, however plans are in hand for the movement of the exhibits back to display;

• The Anson will be moving back in before the end of February. To position it at the far end of the hangar will see the F84, Hunter, Meteor, Sycamore and Jetstream being moved out of the way. Once the Anson is in place the Shorts SD3-30 and Comet will move to the far end of the building to establish the Civil Aviation display
• At the end of March the Post War Jets will be positioned and subject to weather the Lightning will move inside the main hangar
• End of April will see the positioning of the Morane and Spitfire in the space currently occupied by the Shorts

Keep checking for updates and the opportunity to see some exhibits making a rare appearance outside.

The long-term residents, Lockheed T-33A 'Shooting Star' and Dassault Mystere were moved from site after being dismantled by specialist firm GJD Services. Loaned from the USAF in 1979 and 1982 respectively, these exhibits are moving in line with the major plans for the museum, which will see a priotiy to owned rather than Loaned exhibits. The removal of these two, plus the F-100 Super Sabre (for which a home is being sought) will allow the EE Lightning to be moved inside, as well as making access to other exhibits easier for visitors, and the re-assembling of the Short 330-100.
The Mystere is heading to the Polish Aviation Museum in Krakow, with the T-33 moving to St. Athan. Thanks to GJD, Kyles Transport Services and all voluntees involved for making this happen on schedule.

Thanks to Interlink Scaffolding Ltd. , the past two days has seen the rear of the Vulcan decked out for the forthcoming paint job to the tail, rudder and elevons of XL319. Won’t be too long before it’s complete up top then the underside to follow. Two of the crew from ISL at work in blistering heat, well done guys!

The Bluebird restoration team have been hard at work in the good weather, completing a range of tasks from painting the remaining external surfaces to completing the turning over of an engine using compressed air, potentially allowing for an engine run at some point in the future.
See the images below for comparisons of the before/after paint job.

With the museum’s grass mower out of action at the moment, this weekend we had some help from local company Elders Plant Hire and Garden Services . The company came along and cut all of the main areas of grass at the museum, including that outside the Trident. NELSAM are incredibly grateful to Elders for this sponsorship and the help they gave in making the site presentable to visitors. Thank you! Elders are based in Washington, near the museum. Check out their website or give them a call if you have any garden, landscaping or tree surgeon needs!

The latest addition to the collection arrived this month, a mock-up of a Virgin Trains 390 - more commonly known as the Pendolino.
These trains were made in Birminham, and later Italy, and are mostly thought of as running on the west coast mainline, however on the 12th March 2012 Virgin ran a brand new Pendolino unit (390055) on the East Coast line for trials, most notably stopping at Newcastle Central Station on a night run down from Edinburgh (some photos of the trial run. ) This is a great addition to the museum and has inside set out the same as the real driver's cab, seats and all, this will ultimately be displayed in the tram shed

The museum's WW1 Morane fighter replica on display at the Washington Galleries to commentate Armistice day on Sunday.

Last weekend, 7th October, a new exhibit arrived at the museum - Our new 15/19 Hussars Scorpion tank has been delivered and is now safely in position in the military Romney. It was a great team effort moving vehicles about, thanks to all involved in the day.

Some of the team set up at the Sunderland International Airshow with the Morane Saulnier Type N "Bullet" adjacent to Wing Commander Ridley's childhood home. Despite the thunder and heavy rain, they are in high spirits and looking forward to the rest of the weekend.

Work has been undertaken to put down hard standing and a new footpath down the side is some of the buildings. It's all looking good now, thanks to all the hard work of all those involved! The Hard standing area will be used for the F100 once it is moved out of Hangar 1, allowing for a re-structure of the exhibits and workshop areas.

Another new exhibit has now arrived on site! This is an Abbot self propelled gun, and is a significant addition to our collection, as it was manufactured up the road at the Vickers plant in Elswick, Newcastle.

A new exhibit arrived late this month - a replica Hawker Hurricane which we hope to finish off as an ongoing project for the museum

Filmed on our very own Trident "Aircrew Interview" speak to Chelsey Filby about her life as a cabin crew member, discussing a day in a life scenario, training, passengers and the type of aircraft she works on.

YouTube full video.

NORTH EAST LAND SEA AND AIR MUSEUM TO RECEIVE SKEETER HELCOPTER FROM RAF MUSEUM

After careful consideration by its Collections Review and Disposals Recipient Selection Committees, the RAF Museum is pleased to announce the transfer of Saro Skeeter AOP.12 XM555 to North East Land Sea and Air Museum (NELSAM)..

The Skeeter is a two-seat training and scout helicopter which was produced by Saunders-Roe ("Saro") of Cowes and Southampton. It has the distinction of being the first helicopter to be used by the British Army Air Corps (AAC) and several Skeeter AOP.12s were operated by the Central Flying School of the Royal Air Force. This particular example was ordered in 1957 and its service history was primarily with the AAC. After being declared non-effective in the late 1960’s it was allocated to various RAF stations across the country for training or display purposes before finding a home in the early 1980’s at the Aerospace Museum RAF Cosford – now RAF Museum Cosford. In 2003 it was transported to the Museum’s London site for display before entering storage in 2010.

Ian Thirsk, Head of Collections RAF Museum: "We are delighted to have found such a worthy home for the Skeeter in NELSAM and look forward to building our relationship with them. The Museum’s disposal policy reflects our on-going commitment to carry out disposals in a responsible and ethical manner and after due consideration on a variety of bids we deemed NELSAM to be well suited. We wish them the very best of luck and look forward to seeing the Skeeter on public display soon."

Dr Hugh Newell Chairman NELSAM: "The recent expansion of the museum is designed to explain the extreme changes in the armed forces and the general population during the 20th Century by presenting as complete a range of artifacts both civil and military as we can display. The Saro Skeeter represents the introduction of the helicopter into the air observation role of the British Army and the acquisition of the helicopter greatly enhances our ability to describe the fusion of land and aviation assets to our visitors. We are extremely grateful to the RAF Museum for this gift to enhance our displays."

3rd December - Work is well underway on the latest museum extension, our tram shed. The tracks have already been set successfully with the steel framework structure going up very quickly indeed



©Kevin Betts


©Kevin Betts

On 9th November, a fitting weekend saw 15 Veterans from 607 (County of Durham) Squadron turn out to witness the official opening of the museum’s display room dedicated to their Squadron. They mounted a guard of honour while the Mayor and Mayoress of the City of Sunderland and local MP Sharon Hodgson cut the ribbon. An ex-RAF Bulldog courtesy of Steve Warren made a number of impressive flypasts, the squadron association Chairman, Dr John Arris presented the museum with a squadron trophy.



©Dave Gregg


©Brian Dixon

May 11th was another significant milestone in the project to save Trident G-ARPO.
After arriving at the museum in the summer of 2011, the aircraft has sat in the car park whilst we awaited a space to put the aircraft on display. This was fine, as we were able to get on with interior restoration work. However, today we arranged to have the aircraft moved to its new position. Starting early, our team gathered and MSD Cranes came along to begin the procedure of lifting the aircraft.
Since there was a telephone wire running across the car park, it took three lifts from MSD’s two cranes to inch G-ARPO along and clear of obstruction. Then it was a final lift to position it in clear view inside the museum’s entrance, alongside their other key exhibits – the Lightning and Vulcan. The move takes us a step closer to allowing the public on board the aircraft once we have completed the interior. We will also begin to focus on the exterior as we aim to rub down, prepare, and paint the fuselage (volunteers needed!)

Over a year after it departed Blackpool for a new life in preservation and having been stored in the interim in temporary outside accommodation, Balloon 721 has now made a further journey to the site of its permanent home in Sunderland.
Owned by the North East Electric Traction Trust, 721 is one of several trams destined, ultimately, to be displayed in a brand new museum created on the same site as the North East Aircraft Museum. With finance having been secured for the construction of a depot and materials, such as track, now acquired ready for construction to begin, the work of bringing the collection, currently housed in several locations, together in one place has now begun. 721 has been stored in a secure warehouse yard in Scotch Corner since leaving Blackpool but, on the morning of May 7th, it was loaded by the hauliers who own the yard and made the relatively short journey north to Sunderland.
After an uneventful journey it was safely unloaded and placed on the site of the new depot, which will now be constructed around it, finally providing undercover accommodation for the tram. The tram will then be repainted, losing its current faded black and gold Pleasure Beach advert, which will disappear under a coat of red and white, applied in the Routemaster style carried in Blackpool by sister car 701 between 1991 and 1993.
Of the four major preservation groups which currently have a selection of former Blackpool trams stored outside, the North East Electric Traction Trust are the first group to make tangible progress towards creating a permanent and secure home for their valuable assets, a credible achievement for a relatively new organisation. The remainder of the trams owned by the group, Centenary Car 647, Twin Set 674+684, Budapest 2576 and 2577 and Graz 210 are likely to remain in their current locations for a few more months but, once the depot is completed, a task expected to be completed by the end of the summer, they too will join 721 in Sunderland. Negotiations are also continuing with other preservation groups, which could see the collection expanded as well as the possibility remaining that 721 could run at Heaton Park when work on its transformation is completed.
After suffering several delays in their plans, the North East Electric Traction Trust are now firmly back on track and the move of 721 is the most tangible piece of evidence that their ambitions will shortly reach fruition and a valuable new tourist attraction will be created, providing a safe haven for some important trams and allowing them to be appreciated to the public once more.

The museum recently welcomed two new vehicles into their collection. The first a a 1942 Austin K2 Heavy Pump unit ex Stockton Fire Service. The K2 was chosen as a standard type appliance for the new National Fire Service as a result of the problems caused by the different fittings used by local authority brigades. After a little effort the engine was made to run.

The second is a unique Dennis F12 based fire tender made by special order for Middlesbrough Fire Service to cope with the low bridges around the docks. Originally built with an open top it was modified by fitting a removable fibreglass top a few year later, this was removable by four firemen and at a low bridge it was removed left under guard whilst the engine proceeded to the fire!

We are grateful to the 124 REME TA for the transportation

The museum has embarked on a very ambitious project to document as many biographies as possible in honour of those airmen and women from the North East of England who served their country during the two World Wars, many of them making the ultimate sacrifice.

An index of over 2,000 names has already been uploaded to our research pages. The individual history will be added as information becomes available & would certainly appreciate any information you may have to help complete their story.

To advertize the upcoming Sunderland airshow as well as NELSAM, the museum sent their Flying Flea for display at The Bridge's Shopping Centre, Sunderland. The Flea will be joined by large scale Mosquito and Spitfire models


©Kevin Betts

Over the weekend of 16th/17th June the museum was transformed into a Roswell style crash site. See our events page to read how those for all ages enjoyed this 'out of this world' experience.


©Kevin Betts

To mark the 30-year anniversary of the Falklands conflict the museum held a ceremonial weekend over the weekend of 2nd-3rd June. More photos can be found on our events page


©Paul Hughes

To celebrate Her Majesty the Queen’s 86th birthday the museum planned a 21-gun salute in her honour. Although the weather wasn’t favourable and prevented the firing of all 21 rounds, fifteen shots were fired from our 25 pounder gun. Overall the day was a big success with a good number of visitors turning out for our first event of the year.
Big Bang! (©Kevin Betts)

Our walk through display to portrait a street scene during World War Two is nearing completion. The blitz-era display which taken over 14 months to complete is aimed at giving visitors an insight into what life was like during this period. Included is a general store and wreckage from a real Luftwaffe Heinkel He111 bomber which crashed in the area.


©Kevin Betts

The first three vehicles for the relocated Military Vehicle Museum have arrived at their new home. The museum wishes to acknowledge and thank 124[TEE] Recovery Company and 102 Battalion REME [V] for their generous assistance with the move

On Sunday 31st July 2011 the big day finally arrived when Trident 1C G-ARPO 'touched down' at the museum. After a huge effort including significant fund raising, the 'Save the Trident' group reached a major milestone in their quest to save and preserve the airframe when it was delivered to the museum from Durham Tees-Valley airport. Although the airframe has been saved the hard work isn't over and a major task to re-assemble and preserve to display conditions will need to be resourced and paid for. If you can help in anyway, please contact the 'Save the Trident' group

©Neil Lomax