Can 007 help save Vulcan?
He helped save the world from criminal masterminds, nuclear annihilation and chemical warfare.
Now, James Bond's legions of fans around the world are being called on to help save Vulcan bomber XH558, based in Bruntingthorpe, near Lutterworth.
Supporters of the Cold War bomber have until March 6 to raise £1 million, or the restored Vulcan – the only one still capable of flight – will be grounded.
It flew for the first time in 15 years last summer after painstaking restoration work costing £7 million.
More than 20,000 people donated towards the restoration fund, which also won £2.7 million of Heritage Lottery cash.
Supporters now hope Bond fans will back their fund-raising campaign because of the pivotal role the Vulcan had in the 1965 Bond film Thunderball.
Richard Clarke, spokesman of the Vulcan to the Sky trust, which is campaigning to save the plane, said: "We are calling on all James Bond aficionados to help us out. We need to keep this going."
Bond websites have been contacted and fans are being urged to visit the Vulcan to the Sky website to pledge their support.
In Thunderball, a criminal organisation called Spectre hijacks a RAF Vulcan bomber and holds the world to ransom with its cargo of atomic bombs.
The scale model of the Vulcan – seen crashing into the sea in the film – is kept in the aircraft's hangar in Bruntingthorpe.
It was donated to the campaign 15 years ago by someone who had worked on the set of the film and had it repainted to look like the XH558.
Richard said: "The Vulcan had an important role in the film.
"They used archive RAF shots of the Vulcan landing and taking off. We still have the actual model that they used for the scene where it crashed into the sea. It's on a scale of 10 per cent, so it's about 20ft wide. They must have done that into a water tank, but watching the film, it still looks real even now."
James Bond expert Dave Worrall, who co-wrote the Essential James Bond book, said: "It's not so much an iconic plane as an iconic sequence for Bond fans.
"They used some stock footage of the Vulcan, but most of it was done by model work, including the scene of the plane crashing into the water and what happened when it sank to the ocean bed.
"They sank a full-scale model of the Vulcan in the Bahamas. It's still there. Dive groups take expeditions out there."
Unless £1 million is raised by March 6, the organisation will go into administration and the aircraft will be sold to a wealthy American.
The team needs the money to meet hefty maintenance and running costs for the new season of shows. It also owes its landlord, C Walton Ltd, and Marshall of Cambridge Aerospace, more than £1.4 million. So far, less than half of £1 million needed has been received in pledges or donations.
To support the Vulcan, call 0116 247 8145.
10 Comments
by Suricate, Kettering
Tuesday, March 03 2009, 9:32AM
“The Vulcan is just as important to British History and our freedom as the Spitfire and Hurricanes of WW2. People all too easily forget it is solely due to the courage of our fore-fathers that we have freedom of speach and live in a democracy.
The Vulcan is a part of our heritage and needs to be keep flying to honour those that gave so much.
£1 million is not even a 6th of what the failed banker will get from his obscence unjustified pension.”
by PX Programmer, Worcestershire
Monday, March 02 2009, 3:40PM
“The engineering and production of the United Kingdom is dropping at an alarming rate, this projects intention is to inspire the next generation of engineers, as well as educating about the ¿Cold war¿
The benefits of this inspiration and education will far outweigh the costs involved.”
by Byron Getwunfrei, Leicester
Monday, March 02 2009, 1:56PM
“The average cost of an intensive care bed is £1000-£1500 per day.
How many lives might be saved if the money wasted on this overgrown toy was directed to a much worthier cause?
Perhaps those trying to get this monstrosity in the air would be better off buying Airfix kits”
by W.C.Godwin, South Wales
Monday, March 02 2009, 12:00PM
“If you check out the website { http://www.vulcantothesky.org } you will find it's NOT £1 million in 4 days.....the campaign has been running since the end of November.
To date , almost £550,000 has been pledged........with around £55,000 being pledged yesterday & a further £20,000 pledged so far today !!
The pledge scheme is just that -- no money is collected until the target is met , so you have nothing to lose by pledging.”
by Dave B, Lincoln, UK
Monday, March 02 2009, 11:52AM
“Without getting into a debate about which charity is more deserving than another all I would say is - if you DO care about seeing this aircraft fly again then please pledge your support NOW! The total sum may seem daunting but if everyone who saw the Vulcan fly last year gave just £1 then she'd be fully funded. Thank you for your support.”
by Roger H. Pilkington, Forest of Dean
Monday, March 02 2009, 11:44AM
“The last flying Vulcan is more than a relic of our past. It is symbolic of, and a very loud, powerful reminder of the excellence of British ingenuity and engineering skills. XH558 seeks to inspire a new generation to achieve even greater feats of technical excellence. If we can only safeguard the immediate flying future of the aircraft, the education aspects of this project will have an opportunity to flourish - hence the project strapline of "HONOURING THE PAST, INSPIRING THE FUTURE". Only the immediate generosity of like minded people to those commenting here will secure the future. The Lottery fund cannot help. It is mandated to support capital projects, hence the initial grant that helped restore the Vulcan to flight. It cannot support running costs. Large philanthropic donations are now all too rare due to the economic downturn, so only a multitude of small individual pledges, only called in if the target is reached, are likely to save the Vulcan and its unique band of supporting engineers.
At time of writing nearly £549K has been pledged, so the task is not impossible, but every single contribution counts. There will be no second chances. If the project can survive then the aircraft will advertise itself over the coming year at many airshows all over the country. The education project can be expanded and a breathing space gained to establish a firm financial footing to go forward without having any more crisis situations.
Please help if you can.”
by Dave Mowsley, Leicester
Monday, March 02 2009, 11:34AM
“On a number of occassions this year and last we have emailed the website to find out when the plane was taking off or how we could visit to view it.
We have recieved no replies - it is no wonder people show a lack of interest if there is no courtesy to questions to them.”
by woody, hinckley
Monday, March 02 2009, 11:24AM
“a million pounds in 4 days
during a recession ?
i don't think so.”
by Rachel Checksfield, England
Monday, March 02 2009, 11:08AM
“In response to Byron's comment: personally I disagree. Whilst all charities are important, there are not many charities that can inspire our younger generations to study engineering, aircraft design, or to serve in the RAF and keep our country safe. All of the above are crying out for children to take an interest as the numbers are falling so rapidly; the Vulcan is the best way to inspire them! Even the RAF used XH558 as a recruitment tool last year!
Life can't be all about the past, or even the present - at some point we need to think about the future; and this Vulcan does exactly: "honour the past and INSPIRE THE FUTURE".
This aircraft swells airshow audiences immensely - these spectators in turn get to browse the various stands on display, most of which are charities!”
by Byron Getwunfrei, Leicester
Monday, March 02 2009, 10:54AM
“What a colossal waste of time and money.
Surely it¿s best if this relic from the cold war be allowed to rust into pieces, and spend the money usefully as there are many *proper8 charities in Leicestershire crying out for cash.”