Note:

Further down the sections contain 'Snipits' from Yateley u3a Aviation Section and other occasional items:

• NEW From April '26 - A brief resumee of recent meetings and trips or visits
• Snipits July 2026 - Historical ones available on request
• June 2026 update on 'The People's Mosquito' - Replacing RIAT Income
• Events for the next few months:
  • September 14th: TRRL Talk by Kit Mitchell
  • October 12th: Route 66 talk by members Michael Drayton and John Lymer
  • November 9th: Talk - Tale of 2 Comets - Tim Frawley of B'stoke u3a.
  • December 7th: Christmas quiz and refreshments - PLEASE NOTE DATE CHANGE

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Wings and Wheels' gallery

Classic Motor Hub at Bibury

Atwell Museum at Calne

Tangmere Museum

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Visit to De Havilland Museum - July 15th 2026

• U3a Wings & Wheels group visit – the De-Havilland Museum.
• On July 15^th a group from W&W visited the De-Havilland museum at London Colney, nr St Albans. Please have a look at the photographs, and this quick synopsis.
• After engineering training Geoffrey De-Havilland pursued a career in automotive engineering, building both cars and motorcycles. It wasn’t long though before he caught the “new” aviation bug and immediately embarked on a career of designing, building and flying aircraft; to which he devoted the rest of his life.
• His first prototypes (1909/10) bore close resemblance to those of Cody and the Wright brothers, but maybe not surprising when designing something hardly anybody has done before influence may come from an odd photograph or drawing. In 1910 he joined the Balloon Factory (Farnborough) which then became the Royal Aircraft Factory where he progressed his design work, even selling them his second aeroplane (he’d crashed the first one!).
• Many subsequent designs and production aircraft followed. The museum holds many examples, including some stand-outs such as the DH60 Moth trainer of 1925 (in the 20’s easily the most prolific aeroplane seen at flyting clubs) and a replica DH88 Comet racer of 1934; actually 3 were built and raced, see the original red one still flying at the Shuttleworth Collection. Arguably most famous of all is the DH98 Mosquito, the museum has three; one of which being the actual prototype. The story of how this came to survive is fascinating in itself, as so many similar aircraft suffered being broken up or otherwise destroyed. Worth going just to see that aircraft to be honest.
• Various fighters such as the Vampire, Venom and Sea Vixen are also in the collection. A fuselage of the DH106 Comet is on display (you can walk through) as well as information about the investigation into metal fatigue which followed early crashes. There are many more exhibits too numerous to list here, and the volunteer staff are second-to-none in their knowledge and helpfulness.
• Considering all sequential DH numbers were actual designs (although many never built) indicates what a prolific designer Geoffrey was.
• The museum is based at Salisbury Hall, a country house near London Colney. Although the De-Havilland factory was established at Hatfield, his key designers and technical people were moved to Salisbury Hall during the war for safety as the factory would have been an obvious target; hence the connection. One of the pictures shows an explanation of the repatriation of the Mosquito prototype.
• A great museum, the above hardly scratches the surface. A visit is highly recommended!
• Pete le GrosA large group travelled to the de Havilland Museum at London Colney near Hatfield

Photos

Recent Trips Summary

Visit to Fleet Car Show at the Elvetham Hotel. (Non u3a visit but of interest)

Photos

Visit to Tangmere Military Aviation Museum - May 12th 2026.

The Museum was opened by a group of aviation enthusiasts in 1982 to promote public awareness of the United Kingdom’s military aviation heritage, to educate present and future generations in military aviation and to serve as a memorial to airmen and airwomen who gave their lives in the service of this country. Since that time it has been managed and run mainly by volunteers and in 2017 was awarded the Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service.

Our visit to Tangmere started with a welcome briefing from two of the volunteers at this wonderful small museum; Trevor (ex Lightning pilot) and Ian (retired airline pilot). The talks covered the fascinating history of Tangmere from 1918, its part in the Battle of Britain and D-Day plus various roles post-war up until Fighter Command left in 1958. Trevor also gave us some interesting insights into his career and what it was like to fly the Lightning. We then had a tour of the museum including their Lightning; much bigger than you imagine when you’re standing next to it!

There are aircraft on display associated with Tangmere’s history plus several comprehensive rooms with displays and memorabilia stretching from the First World War to the Cold War.

The actual Meteor F4 that set a new world speed record of over 615mph in 1946 is on display. Post war a small team was based at Tangmere solely to develop aircraft for speed record attempts – must have been fun! A replica Westland Lysander is also on display along with detailed information illustrating Tangmere’s role supporting the Special Operations Executive (SOE); many night-time ‘pick-up’ operations being conducted from Tangmere into occupied France.

The museum also has a (volunteer) Special Projects Team. These clever people have built, among other things, several flight simulators. A couple of us tried out their Lightning simulator; great fun whizzing around the South coast and the IOW. My colleague managed to land back at Tangmere, although yours truly arrived in a field just short of the runway. Slow speed handling of a Lightning is not easy – that’s my excuse and I’m sticking to it!

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9th Sept 2025. Our group visited 'The Classic Motor Hub', Bibury Gloucestershire, and later on to The Atwell-Wilson Museum at Calne, Wiltshire.

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• Recent Meetings
  • May 2026. A fascinating talk by Ian Whittle, pilot and raconteur, son of Sir Frank Whittle, credited with inventing the jet engine and pioneering its development as a pilot. A superb talk greatly enjoyed by all

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Snipits

These are courtesy of our friends at Yately u3a, Aviation Group

Snipits can be downloaded as a PDF but please do not distribute without agreement by the Aviation Group of Yateley u3a.

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Snipits for May 2026

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The People's Mosquito:

• There is a very informative website for the charity restoring 'The People's Mosquito'
  • www.thepeoplesmosquito.org.uk
• Any one with a special interest can register for newsletters and information, and give support as appropriate

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Mosquito Update May 2026

• Mosquito Update 26th June 2026

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• Mosquito Update July 2026

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