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Cold War plane moved piece by piece to heritage museum

Josh Sandiford,in Cosfordand
Charlie Stubbs,West Midlands
Robert Hodgson There is a big plane which is white on top, got a red stripe through the middle and a dark blue bottom. It has two four-prong propellers that are red and white striped, and a black nose.Robert Hodgson
The Vickers Varsity WL679 was the last of its kind in the world to fly

A historic Cold War aircraft is in the process of being moved to a heritage museum in Shropshire.

Built in 1953, the Vickers Varsity WL679 was the last of its kind in the world to fly, making its final journey to RAF Cosford in July 1992.

Across two days, it'll be taken apart and moved in stages to the Chetton Heritage Museum, near Bridgnorth, to then be put back together again "like a huge airfix kit."

Chairman of the museum, Julian Millington, said it was a huge honour.

Supplied The aircraft is to the left and is blue. There is a crane holding part of the aircraft which is orange and white. There are several people with their backs to the camera wearing yellow and orange hi-vis jackets, looking at the aircraft Supplied
The team are working to take the aircraft apart, before it is transported to the museum

Affectionately known as the 'flying pig' because of it wide, round shape, the plane was one of 163 built in Bournemouth/Hurn by Vickers-Armstrongs Ltd.

It flew all across the UK and was retired, and then put on display at the RAF Museum Midlands, in Cosford.

"We have been very lucky to be gifted it so we have got an obligation to keep to keep it in good condition," Millington said.

"We are going to restore it to the best of our ability."

There is a man with short, brown messy hair. He is wearing a camo coat and is stood infront of an airfield.
Julian Millington is the chairman of the Chetton Heritage Museum

Once both sections have been delivered, Millington added that the museum and volunteers had to "rush against the clock" to get it back in one piece.

"We were told that we can have it on the condition that it is taken away [from RAF Museum Midlands] by the middle of December," he said.

"We have got a great group of volunteers and friends who have come from all over the country, some of them are serving RAF guys."

A group of people are smiling, wearing yellow hi-vis jackets and hard hats. In the background there is a yellow JCB digger and part of the aircraft
The team will work across two days to take the plane apart and move it in stages to the Chetton Heritage Museum

The Chetton Heritage museum said it would mark a "significant step forward" in the museum's development and "safeguarding an important research heritage."

"It was this Vasti they retired all those years ago, but this one they kept flying for research and development and was retired in 1992," Millington said.

"It is a very historic aircraft and did a lot of firsts. It did some of the first infrared research, did a lot of strange spying and things that we'll never know.

"It is a much well-known aircraft so we're very lucky to get it. The idea is that future generations will learn more about British aviation history."

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