Name: Museum of Berkshire Aviation
Rating: 5.0

Museum of Berkshire Aviation

Museum of Berkshire Aviation, Mohawk Way, Woodley, Reading, UK

1-99 Years

Paid

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Description

Welcome to the Museum of Berkshire Aviation, Berkshire's dynamic contribution to aviation history is graphically recaptured at the museum. Run as a charitable trust, the museum is at the historic site of Woodley Airfield, near Reading, U.K. - once the centre of a thriving aircraft industry.

Miles and Handley Page aircraft built at Woodley are being re-constructed and exhibited along with fascinating pictorial records and priceless archives. The museum welcomes group visits and runs an active educational programme for schools, linked to National Curriculum requirements, demonstrating the development of aviation techniques.

Price starts from £6.00 for Adults, £5.00 for Children and £16.00 for Family(2 Adults and up to 2 Children). If you are looking for Best place for day out with kids and families then this is the perfect destination offering fun, adventure, and unforgettable memories for everyone.

Features

Paid
Host birthday parties: No

Features

Broburn Wanderlust: In 1946 a new aircraft was designed and built at Woodley Airfield - not by Miles Aircraft but by two young employees of the company, K.W. Radburn and T.E. Brown. It was the Wanderlust high performance sailplane and it made its first flight, in the hands of Miles Aircraft's Chief Test Pilot, Hugh Rendall, in 1947. The article below came from The Aeroplane Spotter April 19, 1947.
Fairey Gannet: Pilot and armament conversion trainer Engine:1 x Armstrong Siddeley Double Mamba Span: 54' 4"Length: 43' 0" Maximum speed: 360 knots Crew: Pilot, Instructor and Student Armament:Large bomb bay capable of carrying variations of 81 gallon fuel tanks, 2 x Mk10 homing torpedoes, 1 x 2000lb, 2 x 100lb or 4 x 500lb bombs, 6 depth charges, mines, flares or markers. Underwing provision for 16 x 3" rockets with either 25lb or illuminant warheads.
Fairey Jet Gyrodyne: Fairey Jet Gyrodyne (Prototype) Serial No. XJ389 c/n F9420. This helicopter is a conversion of Gyrodyne G-AJJP and first flew at White Waltham in its new configuration in January 1954. Initially allocated Serial XD759 it was changed to XJ389 due to duplication.
Handley Page HPR.7 Dart Herald 100: Development: The first "Herald" prototype with four piston engines flew on August 25, 1955. The first "Dart Herald" prototype with two turboprops flew on March 11, 1958. The second prototype flew on December 17, 1958. G-APWA, the first production version, first flew on October 30, 1959. By the end of production in 1965 a total of 48 Heralds were built.
Miles M.25 Martinet TT.1: Target-tug monoplane. 1793 built. Later 67 Queen Martinet unmanned target aircraft were built; 11 new ones and 54 conversions. Type: Martinet Function: target tug Year: 1942 Crew: 2 Engines: 1 * 650kW Bristol Mercury 30 Wing Span: 11.89m Length: 9.42m Height: 3.53m Wing Area: Empty Weight: 2105kg Max.Weight: 3062kg Speed: 386km/h Ceiling: Range: 1120km Armament: None.
Miles M.60 Marathon (H.P.R.1): Registered to Derby Airways in 1955 and cut up at Burnaston on 17th Feb 1965. One passenger of note was "Cliff Richard" whose car was stolen during a show in Derby in May 1960. He then chartered G-AMGW to take him to his next show in Carlisle.
Miles M.100 Student: In 1953 the Miles brothers decided to design and build a prototype jet trainer which would be much less costly to buy and operate than the Jet Provost, then being prepared for the RAF.
The M.52 Story: In 1942 the Air Ministry and the Ministry of Aviation approached Miles Aircraft with a top-secret contract for a turbojet research plane designed to reach supersonic speeds. The Miles M.52 was designed for a speed of 1000mph at 36,000 feet to be reached in 1.5 minutes.
The Sprite System: Surveillance Patrol Reconnaissance Intelligence Target Designation Electronic Warfare.
Chevaline: Used on Resolution Class submarines. Each Resolution Class submarine could carry 16 A3 Polaris missiles. A Polaris missile measured 31 feet long and had a range of 2,500 nautical miles. In 1980 the Conservative Government announced the intention to replace Polaris with the American Trident missile. In the meantime the existing Polaris system was upgraded with a new warhead codenamed Chevaline.
German 1,000 kg Bomb: In 1941 I lived in Duffield Road, Woodley, next door to Bill Skinner, Miles Chief Test Pilot; his son, Tony who was then about 8 years old was in the garden with me, I was then 13.
EON Primary Mk.1: The C of A was issued on the 19th May 1948 and it last flew on the 7th May 1950. It was in storage at Farnborough for many years before being donated to the Museum.
Olympia 465: Built for the 1965 World Championships, one of only two produced. This machine has been retired for technical reasons and was donated by the owners, Mark Wills and the late Keith Green. It has beautifully restored by Mark and Keith over the last few years.

Facilities

Parking: How to Validate Your Free Parking: Get a 15-Minute Buffer: When you arrive, go to the parking machine and select the "15 minutes free" ticket. Place this in your car so you are covered while you head inside.
Refreshments: Refreshments available.

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Price

Price: Paid

Price Details

Adult: £6.00
Children: £5.00
Family Ticket: £16.00 (2 Adults and up to 2 Children)
Group visits: £5.00 per head

Pricing URL: https://museumofberkshireaviation.co.uk/html/directions/admissions.htm

Birthday Parties

Offer Birthday Parties: No

Summer (April to end of October): Wednesday, Saturday, Sunday and Bank Holidays 10.30am to 5pm.
Winter (First Sunday in November to last Sunday in March): Sundays noon-4pm & Wednesdays 10.30am-4pm.

Address: Museum of Berkshire Aviation, Mohawk Way, Woodley, Reading, UK

Post Code: RG5 4UE

Council: Wokingham

County: Berkshire

By car: Off Woodley Junction of the A329(M).
By public transport: Please check Google Maps for directions. Typically use Reading Train Station, http://www.networkrail.co.uk/ and Reading Buses - Route 13 Reading Station to Woodley Airfield.
By air: White Waltham to Woodley: 7.5 miles & London Heathrow to Woodley: 25 miles.