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Classic jet could come to Wearside bit by bit
A throwback to the glamour days of air travel may be making its way to Sunderland – piece by piece.
Back in the 1960s when travelling by plane was a distant dream for most people, the Trident jet was the last word in airline travel.
Built in Britain to meet the requirements of British European Airways, the forerunner to British Airways, the airliner featured a distinctive T-tail and three rear-mounted engines.
They would regularly fly up and down the country en route from Heathrow to Newcastle Airport, but by the 1980s they were overtaken by Boeing 737s as the modern way to see the world.
Only 117 Hawker Siddeley HS 121s were built. Most were scrapped and today only three remain, housed at Durham Tees Valley Airport.
Now, Trident enthusiast Matt Falcus wants to give one of the jets a new home at the North East Aircraft Museum on Wearside.
Two things are standing in the way of the big move: sponsorship to pay for the plane's transportation north, and the painstaking job of dismantling the plane bit by bit for the move and then an arduous two-year reassembly at its new home.
Matt and a group of six friends on Internet forum Classic British Aviation heard there was a chance to save the plane and immediately drew up plans for its future.
"We received a very generous offer of a new home from the museum in Sunderland," said Matt, 29, who lives within sight of the plane at the airport in Darlington.
"We need 14,000 to pay for the dismantling and transportation and a further 14,000 to pay for its restoration.
"It has been at Durham Tees Valley for the past 23 years and used for evacuation training. Fortunately, it was never burned, just filled with smoke.
"All the original seats are still in it which helps a lot."
The aim is to raise the money for the plane to be dismantled and moved in October this year, with the two-year restoration then being undertaken at the museum.
"It's a very exciting project and I'm looking forward to seeing the plane restored to its former glory," said Matt.
Keith Davison, manager at the aircraft museum, has his fingers crossed that Matt can raise the money for the plane to come north.
"If he can do that, then we will certainly give the Trident a good home," he said.
For details of how to help Matt visit www.savethetrident.org
Trident factfile:
The Trident was a jet airliner made by Hawker Siddeley.
Its first flight was on January 9, 1962, and it was introduced into service in 1964.
The main users were British European Airways, British Airways, CAAC and Cyprus Airways.
British Airways replaced Trident with the Boeing 737 and Boeing 757 in the early-1980s.
Trident remained active in Air China's service until the mid-1990s.
The Trident is notable for being the first commercial airliner to make a fully automatic approach and landing for commercial flights.
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Saturday 04 February 2012
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