A forum for discussing all things related to MILITARY AVIATION including Military Aviation news. No off-topic discussions here please.
-
Agent K
- Posts: 1355
- Joined: Tue Jan 18, 2011 7:50 am
- Location: Nearby RAF Henlow, Bedfordshire
Post
by Agent K » Thu Jun 18, 2020 1:59 pm
somerset wrote: ↑Thu Jun 18, 2020 1:52 pm
Was just spitballing an idea , the current climate as it is he won't be flying huge distances , cut away the lackys and leech's , could be perfect haha . Realistically though with BA laying up so many aircraft would renting one to the government be an option , remove the titles and fly as a painted aircraft ? Maybe my stupid mind thinking randomly
No that's a valid point, and of course over the past number of years a BA airplane either as is or with a VIP config has been used, which will, of course, take longer planning and is less of a reactive option. My belief is that this (vanity?) project has come from government to give an aircraft solely for use by governmental and royal officials.
Also, can a BA aircraft be guaranteed whenever required, certainly not in the normal world and even the post pandemic world aircraft not used will be retired and therefore not guaranteed. BA is, of course, a private and commercial business.
Last edited by
Agent K on Thu Jun 18, 2020 2:35 pm, edited 1 time in total.
-
Pune
- Posts: 4482
- Joined: Wed Mar 17, 2010 9:47 am
- Location: Midlands
Post
by Pune » Thu Jun 18, 2020 2:29 pm
Agent K wrote: ↑Thu Jun 18, 2020 7:22 am
Pune wrote: ↑Thu Jun 18, 2020 7:20 am
Summed up very well Snoop, he is getting bad advice I think!!
Agreed, and given he gets his advice from and reports to one DC, then that explains all...…....
Absolutely

If you can keep your head whilst all around are losing theirs, you have probably completely misread the situation!!
-
Eladkram
- Posts: 11
- Joined: Wed Oct 09, 2019 3:53 pm
Post
by Eladkram » Thu Jun 18, 2020 2:40 pm
The government could buy back a VC10 put it back in the sky as an advert of great British engineering and design, surly the most graceful airliner ever to have flown.

-
Thunder
- Posts: 5296
- Joined: Sat Jan 02, 2010 10:24 pm
Post
by Thunder » Thu Jun 18, 2020 3:00 pm
Reading some of the replies on here is what I imagine a Labour conference to be like, all doom and gloom. Get it painted with the biggest Union flag on it possible and start flying it all round the World making a statement, we're here and open for business(well will be soon).
How much is BA going to charge the Government for each use of a B747(I've seen mention of £25k per hour), also civil airliners don't have mil/secure commc or ECM/RWR systems fitted.
Put it into perspective £100K(not £900K) is pocket change when you compare it to the £42m that the Scottish Government wasted on converting the SECC in Glasgow into a makeshift hospital, that has never had one patient cross it's threshold and was never needed in the first.
-
gamecock
- Posts: 730
- Joined: Thu Oct 08, 2009 5:27 pm
- Location: Scotland
Post
by gamecock » Thu Jun 18, 2020 3:14 pm
I suspect the AirTanker contract will make the leasing of any other aircraft prohibitively expensive.
-
Agent K
- Posts: 1355
- Joined: Tue Jan 18, 2011 7:50 am
- Location: Nearby RAF Henlow, Bedfordshire
Post
by Agent K » Thu Jun 18, 2020 3:18 pm
Thunder wrote: ↑Thu Jun 18, 2020 3:00 pm
Reading some of the replies on here is what I imagine a Labour conference to be like, all doom and gloom. Get it painted with the biggest Union flag on it possible and start flying it all round the World making a statement, we're here and open for business(well will be soon).
Thing is, to business leaders and countries, a freshly painted airplane doesn't state "we're open for business"; mutually beneficial trade deals (like we had in the EU), non-hostile environments, experienced focused government and well managed strategies do this. Sadly these are sorely missing.
-
Pune
- Posts: 4482
- Joined: Wed Mar 17, 2010 9:47 am
- Location: Midlands
Post
by Pune » Thu Jun 18, 2020 3:29 pm
Thunder wrote: ↑Thu Jun 18, 2020 3:00 pm
Reading some of the replies on here is what I imagine a Labour conference to be like, all doom and gloom. Get it painted with the biggest Union flag on it possible and start flying it all round the World making a statement, we're here and open for business(well will be soon).
How much is BA going to charge the Government for each use of a B747(I've seen mention of £25k per hour), also civil airliners don't have mil/secure commc or ECM/RWR systems fitted.
Put it into perspective £100K(not £900K) is pocket change when you compare it to the £42m that the Scottish Government wasted on converting the SECC in Glasgow into a makeshift hospital, that has never had one patient cross it's threshold and was never needed in the first.
Similar to The Excel arena being converted into a hospital by The Tories then

If you can keep your head whilst all around are losing theirs, you have probably completely misread the situation!!
-
tm74sqn
- Posts: 1605
- Joined: Sun Jun 05, 2011 3:27 pm
- Location: Oxfordshire
Post
by tm74sqn » Thu Jun 18, 2020 4:10 pm
But at least the Excel did receive some patients - fortunately not as many as had been feared - and it is still available if the dreaded second wave does happen. Presumably the Scottish SECC in Glasgow is also still available if the worst happens.
-
Pune
- Posts: 4482
- Joined: Wed Mar 17, 2010 9:47 am
- Location: Midlands
Post
by Pune » Thu Jun 18, 2020 4:22 pm
tm74sqn wrote: ↑Thu Jun 18, 2020 4:10 pm
But at least the Excel did receive some patients - fortunately not as many as had been feared - and it is still available if the dreaded second wave does happen. Presumably the Scottish SECC in Glasgow is also still available if the worst happens.
Valid point..I couldn't see how the Scottish Government got into this thread anyway to be honest, lets get back to the aircraft painting issue

If you can keep your head whilst all around are losing theirs, you have probably completely misread the situation!!
-
Dan214sqn
- Posts: 993
- Joined: Sun Mar 25, 2012 5:21 pm
- Location: Derbyshire
Post
by Dan214sqn » Thu Jun 18, 2020 4:24 pm
Thunder wrote: ↑Thu Jun 18, 2020 3:00 pm
Reading some of the replies on here is what I imagine a Labour conference to be like, all doom and gloom.
That made me chuckle ! I'm with you on that one
-
plmc135
- Posts: 3489
- Joined: Wed Oct 07, 2009 1:32 pm
- Location: South Holland
Post
by plmc135 » Thu Jun 18, 2020 5:48 pm
I believe B&Q have sent out a request for everyone to go and check at their local store to see whether they have any red paint left

-
Thunder
- Posts: 5296
- Joined: Sat Jan 02, 2010 10:24 pm
Post
by Thunder » Thu Jun 18, 2020 6:53 pm
Pune wrote: ↑Thu Jun 18, 2020 4:22 pm
tm74sqn wrote: ↑Thu Jun 18, 2020 4:10 pm
But at least the Excel did receive some patients - fortunately not as many as had been feared - and it is still available if the dreaded second wave does happen. Presumably the Scottish SECC in Glasgow is also still available if the worst happens.
Valid point..I couldn't see how the Scottish Government got into this thread anyway to be honest, lets get back to the aircraft painting issue
It was just one example to highlight that money is wasted in other areas to a far greater degree than £100k on a paint scheme for a jet that was probably going into the paintshop anyway.
-
Pune
- Posts: 4482
- Joined: Wed Mar 17, 2010 9:47 am
- Location: Midlands
Post
by Pune » Thu Jun 18, 2020 7:20 pm
Thunder wrote: ↑Thu Jun 18, 2020 6:53 pm
Pune wrote: ↑Thu Jun 18, 2020 4:22 pm
tm74sqn wrote: ↑Thu Jun 18, 2020 4:10 pm
But at least the Excel did receive some patients - fortunately not as many as had been feared - and it is still available if the dreaded second wave does happen. Presumably the Scottish SECC in Glasgow is also still available if the worst happens.
Valid point..I couldn't see how the Scottish Government got into this thread anyway to be honest, lets get back to the aircraft painting issue
It was just one example to highlight that money is wasted in other areas to a far greater degree than £100k on a paint scheme for a jet that was probably going into the paintshop anyway.
Absolutely no doubt about that.
If you can keep your head whilst all around are losing theirs, you have probably completely misread the situation!!
-
somerset
- Posts: 709
- Joined: Thu Aug 12, 2010 8:56 pm
- Location: yeovil, somerset
Post
by somerset » Fri Jun 19, 2020 8:35 am
Sky news now running a Photoshop image as news
-
big john
- Posts: 7960
- Joined: Mon Mar 21, 2011 9:53 am
- Location: EGLL
Post
by big john » Fri Jun 19, 2020 10:32 am
London Metro now saying it will cost a Million Pounds.
Journalists if you are looking! that's a nought short.

rgds
BJ
Always Watching: Always Listening
Time flies like an arrow. Fruit flies like a banana.
-
DevelopedBug
- Posts: 53
- Joined: Tue Sep 23, 2014 9:35 am
- Location: Norfolk - Attleborough
Post
by DevelopedBug » Fri Jun 19, 2020 1:00 pm
I can exclusively reveal that an anonymous source tells me that this aircraft is actually being painted in a special bullet-proof paint!
The paint contains a finely ground powder mostly containing depleted Uranium, that has been developed in a highly secretive lab at Boscombe Down. The paint will increase the aircraft's resistance to small arms fire - should it be forced to divert from it's usual flight path over the home counties and overfly British inner-city areas. Additionally there is an operational requirement to convert one of the toilet cubicles into a protected compartment. Work is underway to clad it in the same invincible material as black boxes, and should the aircraft get into difficulties the Prime Minister and his close team will occupy the room to ensure their survival. US President Donald Trump has already had one fitted to Air Force One. His is the best.
Furthermore, my source goes on to tell me that this paint and DCP (Dunny Conversion Process) is adding so much extra weight to the aircraft that it is going to be too heavy to fly long distances. Should Boris/questionable members of the Royal family be required to travel further than 273 miles (a private island in the Virgin Islands for example), the Government will charter an aircraft at a cost of £3.2 million to the British tax payer.
Currently the project is a year late, and 7.8 million pounds over budget. When questioned about it BoJo looked puzzled about the concern for such a measly sum, and toff-waffled "It's chicken feed". In response the French farmers have started burning tyres outside the port of Le Havre.
-
TeeJay
- Posts: 3336
- Joined: Thu Jun 21, 2012 6:43 pm
- Location: Mid Suffolk
-
Contact:
Post
by TeeJay » Fri Jun 19, 2020 1:21 pm
DanBeeden wrote: ↑Thu Jun 18, 2020 12:40 pm
Hopefully it will be named 'Spirit of Barnard Castle'.
“Dame Vera Lynn” would be nicer name

-
Snoop 95
- Posts: 2058
- Joined: Mon Oct 05, 2009 4:17 pm
- Location: West Suffolk
Post
by Snoop 95 » Fri Jun 19, 2020 3:10 pm
Dan214sqn wrote: ↑Thu Jun 18, 2020 4:24 pm
Thunder wrote: ↑Thu Jun 18, 2020 3:00 pm
Reading some of the replies on here is what I imagine a Labour conference to be like, all doom and gloom.
That made me chuckle ! I'm with you on that one
I think you'll find that, as I have already said above, it was Tony Blair (Lab) who initiated the idea of a ' prestige' aircraft, but who was rebuked by the then opposition and Tory press, who dubbed it 'Blairforce one'.
Who is online
Users browsing this forum: Agent K, binbrook32, Captain Haddock, Cessna954, Col Nago, Dave934, eagle112, FFDspotter, JB87, Macc, Macclad51, Malcolm, MRTT, razzer56, Rivet Chegg, RubyRoo, STN RAMP RAT, The Apprentice, tilpol, Typeflyer, Unknown74 and 101 guests