Worth more than just a flying visit

HOW’S this for a list of superlatives? The best preserved wartime control tower in Britain, home to the only French heavy bomber base, site of the last Luftwaffe crash on British soil and a runway long enough for the space shuttle to land on.

But it’s the little things that make the Yorkshire Air Museum (YAM) so special. The sepia faces of seven decades ago, their potted history and medals peering from inside a glass case. A tiny Eastchurch Kitten, designed to shoot down Zeppelins and the only one you’ll ever see. A Book of Remembrance with too many names in it.

And on Sunday, at the annual Allied Air Forces Memorial Day, veterans, families and international members of armed forces will gather to remember them.

This summer staff have also been paying their respects to those who lost their lives in the First World War. Gary Hancock is just back from France where he took part in the 100th anniversary commemorations of the Somme with the museum's Avro 504K.

Avro 504K. Picture: Matt Clark.

"It was quite emotional, the memorial at Thiepval is huge, with thousands of names on it," he says. "You put a face to the name and that makes the hairs on the back of your neck stand up. It was very moving to be there."

Gary Hancock working on an Avro Anson. Picture: Matt Clark.

As well as being home to the only Allied Air Forces Memorial in Europe, YAM is the largest independent aviation museum in the UK, showcasing flight from the earliest to the latest technology.

Yes there is a replica Wright Flyer from 1903, but the brothers weren’t the first to take off. Scarborough’s George Cayley takes that accolade and a wing tip away from Orville and Wilbur’s plane is a replica Cayley Glider, the world’s first ‘aircraft’ which flew 50 years earlier. It may have a boat for a cockpit, but the wing’s aerodynamics are spot on.

Cayley Glider. Picture: Matt Clark.

You might be surprised at the number of Yorkshire aviation pioneers, from Leeds born Robert Blackburn and Hull’s Amy Johnson, to Barnes Wallis’s airship works at Howden and Neville Shute’s aircraft factory in Piccadilly. All have their stories told here.

During the Second World War, the Vale of York was almost one vast RAF airfield, but Elvington became unique as home to the only French flying units in the country. Number 346 and 347 Squadrons equipped with Halifaxes flew 2,634 sorties, but paid a heavy price. They lost 41 aircraft and 216 men were killed.

In their memory, the museum’s own Halifax, the only one in Britain, carries French Air Force markings along her starboard side.

The aircraft bears an unusual name – Friday 13th. When it arrived at RAF Lisset the code name was F for Freddie, an unlucky letter for 158 Squadron which had lost seven Halifaxes with that registration in succession. LV907 was given to Pilot Officer Cliff Smith, who in his characteristic ‘stuff and nonsense’ attitude decided to break the jinx, by giving his charge its unlucky title, along with the decals of the Grim Reaper and an upside down horseshoe, which he painted on.

It went on to complete 128 missions, the highest tally of any Halifax and one of Bomber Command’s most successful aircraft.

It's hard to believe but YAM gets by without any government funding. Director Ian Reed says that also baffles staff at museums which do.

Against All Odds exhibition room. Picture: Matt Clark.

"A lot of politicians say to me you're part of the national collection with the same responsibilities as national museums and we pay them millions," says Mr Reed. "You're surviving, they need subsidies. How do you do it?"

Perhaps it's because everyone has experience in a wide range of businesses, but no one has a museum background.

"That's allowed us to stand outside the circle and say in order to survive we need to have a broad appeal," says Mr Reed. "When I took over in 1999, I thought come the year 2000 nobody would be interested in a war from the previous century. I was wrong, in fact it's grown exponentially."

That broad appeal now includes a four acre wildlife walk, featuring other flying experts such as butterflies and moths. Then there are fascinating rooms containing unique displays, such as a collections office holding one of the largest archives of its kind in Europe, and a library with more than 6,000 specialist books.

Another don't miss is the Astra cinema. Every RAF base had one, YAM's is laid out with original Edwardian theatre seats and shows evocative films throughout the day, including footage about the French airmen at Elvington.

Many of the exhibits are far from museum pieces. A number of Thunder Days are held each year, where Cold War jets and big piston aircraft engines can be heard running once again. On the other hand quiet contemplation can be had in the serene and poignant chapel with standards laid up by the altar.

Harrier and Nimrod. Picture: Matt Clark.

The Yorkshire Air Museum is quite simply unique.

"For me this is a memorial first and a museum second," says Mr Reed. "For some it's a museum first and memorial second. I don't really mind how it's seen, as long as people come."