All aboard as museum visitors given the chance of see inside famous RAF Nimrod
AVIATION fans are being given the chance to clamber aboard an RAF Nimrod which patrolled the skies during the 197576 Cod War with Iceland.
The retired Hawker Siddeley Nimrod R1 was stationed at RAF Machrihanish near Campbeltown during Third Cod War sorties in March and May 1976.
It entered service in 1971 and also helped to enforce the 2011 no-flyzone over Libya. It has been on display at RAF Cosford in Shropshire since 2012.
Visitors to Cosford’s RAF Museum have previously only been able to view the outside of the veteran aircraft, but a series of guided tours kicked off this weekend.
After its assembly in Woodford, Gr e at er Manchester, the surveillance plane was given the serial XV249.
The Cod War between Britain and Iceland was the final in a series of naval skirmishes over fishing rights in the north Atlantic dating back to 1958. During its 40-year tour of duty, XV249 was also stationed at RAF Kinloss, RAF Luqa in Malta, RAF St Mawgan in Cornwall and RAF Waddington, near Lincoln.
Tours of the intelligence-gathering aircraft, lasting 15 minutes and costing £5, are being conducted on selected dates until July 31 and take in details of its history, high-tech equipment and crews.
When one of the original R1 Nimrods was lost following an accident in 1997, XV249 was selected as a replacement and converted to serve with No 51 Squadron at RAF Waddington.
It amassed more than 18,000 flying hours during its service life, which ended on June 28, 2011. During its earlier duties, the aircraft was piloted by RAF Museum curator Al McLean.
“I flew on Nimrods for five years and have several memories of patrols in the Mediterranean, north Atlantic and North Sea,” he said.
“Given the importance of the aircraft and its unrivalled contribution to the front-line, the RAF Museum is pleased to be opening up the doors to this aircraft allowing our visitors to learn more about its long and faithful career.” During the Cold War, Machrihanish was a strategically important Nato airfield.