Where planes go to die.... Mail online

[cyprusmax47]

Was just watching the new video clip from Louisa Johnson https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1sA7Ojgzzus showing a airplane graveyard which led me to google a bit. What I found there I must say I could not believe my eyes....and the article was from 2010!

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article ... Earth.html

[PaphosAL]

Nice one, Max, thanks for sharing! A glorious testament to a shocking WASTE of US Taxpayer's hard-earned $$$$ don't you think?

Meanwhile, at PFO by the NW extremity of the main runway, do we still have the RAF 'bone yard' equivalent? The two Avro Shackletons (heavily modded Lancasters for anti-submarine) and a third (smaller) aircraft, whose name I can't remember, cargo plane, maybe?

These three were always parked diametrically opposite the other side of PFO, where the new Terminal now sits. Any news or updates- very much appreciated, folks!

Cheers- AL

[Steve Matthews]

The two Shackletons are certainly still there. I walked along the coast path, by the airport perimeter, only recently. Don't know about the third plane though.

[aphrodite]

I've seen this graveyard of military aircraft. An English friend married a US Airforce pilot who flew F16's and they lived in Tucson, Arizona. He took us around the perimeter on one of our trips. A sight to behold. What totally blew me away was seeing the Grand Canyon from the air. Truly Amazing. Those were the days! X

[Shogun]

The guy who owns the Paphos Shackleton’s is called Savros Constaninedes, and was active with the Cyprus aviation scene, operating a couple of Bell 206's. He ran a company called Genair a few years back.




The third aircraft is a Dassault Flamant.
The Dassault Flamant was a French short-range utility light transport aircraft first flown in 1947 as the MD303 prototype, with production aircraft flown in 1949, being in military service from 1950 until 1982. Various models were produced, a MD312 six-passenger liason and communications model, the MD315 a ten-passenger utility transport model and the MD315R which was a radar interception trainer model. The Dassault Flamant was powered by two SNECMA 12S.02-201 Vee piston engines providing a top speed of 380 kmh and a range of 1215 km. The Dassault Flamant carried a pilot and co-pilot and up to six or ten passengers depending upon model.

[PaphosAL]

Thanks for a very illuminating update, Shogun, on the current status of the two poor Shackletons, now re-parked at PFO (with assistance from RAF Akrotiri, by all accounts)

Wikipedia reckons that the Avro Shackleton evolved from the Avro Lincoln, which was a civilian version of the Avro Lancaster built after WW2, to help keep the British Empire 'connected' with RAF personnel still kept on (rather than de-mobbed) and staffing vital servicing and re-fuelling points around the globe...

I know from my searches recently that both Shackletons @ PFO have bomb bay doors. Did the Lincoln have these? No. Did the Lancaster? YES! I'm going to stick my neck out here and suggest that the Shackleton evolved from the Lancaster (with gun turrets removed) rather than Lincoln (with bomb bays added back in).

One thing we do know is that those wonderful Rolls Royce Merlin (V12 27,000cc 1500hp) engines in both Lancaster and Lincoln variants were replaced for the Shackleton with the later Rolls Royce development of their Merlin engine, the Griffon 130...

Another V12, but now 37,000cc and over 2,000hp, with contra-rotating propellors (which the Fleet Air Arm liked too, for the Fairey Gannet, if I recall correctly, as it neutralized torque effects?)

Another titbit of info to add to your Avro Lincoln file, Shogun. As a teenager in the mid-sixties, I lived a mile away from Luton Airport and was a plane spotter and aero modeller. We had English Electric with a large office base there then. They had an Avro Lincoln that took off regularly (the sound of those FOUR Merlin engines being a joy to hear!!!)

Each time, there were different configurations of weird and wonderful arrays attached to the wings of this Lincoln. They were actually developing de-icing solutions for modern airliners back then in the early 60's, when DC3's were flying package holidays to Spain!

Another anecdote revealed from my web searches on the PFO Shackletons: Their are a few restoration societies in the UK and around the world who would dearly love to buy these two old gals for either parts, or to get a restored ground-taxiing example going. But nobody appears to be able to contact the current owner (Savros Constaninedes) in order to be able to negotiate a sensible deal..

What a shame that they are both sitting there slowly decaying like that, eh?

Cheers- AL

[Shogun]

According to one of the aviation forums, Mr Constantinides was approached a couple of years after both aircraft went derelict. After meeting and surveying them he wanted well over £500,000 for each aircraft; which made any hope of recovering them then a non-starter. The South Africans also tried approaching him for parts and initial attempts were encouraging - but when they arrived in Cyprus suddenly the price went through the roof again. The owner hasn’t been around since he was taken to court over unpaid parking fees for the aircraft

[PaphosAL]

Thanks Lloyd and Shogun! We now know these beautiful old gals are WL747 and WL757 identities, respectively, thanks to one of your links, Lloyd (which confirms the same info I found on another aviation site).

... Considered opinion is that they would have suffered so much corrosion over the years (esp. with the sea air) that most major components would be unusable. PS: I learnt to fly at Luton Airport in the late 70's.

Reading backwards, Lloyd, would that have been at Luton Flying Club, perchance? In the early 60's (when I was in the Air Scouts), LFC had a DH Dragon Rapide fuselage parked outside, that my mates and I could climb into and be pretend pilots, LOL!

As regards corrosion on the two Shacks over the years, having been 250m away from the Med, I strongly believe that the aviation boards and their experts have a totally wrong take on this!!! Perhaps Max and Devil can lend a helping hand on this one, climate-wise, please?

I've always understood that the Cyprus climate is the perfect place to keep any man-made form of transport, be it a 1975 Vauxhall Viva, or a 1951 (retired 1991) Avro Shackleton. Which is why we still see old British classic cars from the 50's through to the 80's traversing the roads of Cyprus to this day, with not a spot of corrosion on them anywhere! Back in the UK, 99% of these cars long since became rust buckets and were consigned to the crusher, sadly...

Either because of the amount of gritted salt laid on UK roads through a hard winter, and/or parking in the open too close to the sea. (The 2006 Astra my Grandson bought that had one previous owner, an old lady who lived in Dundee, on the Firth of Tay, had been parked in the open there for its first 8 years of life. Never seen so much corrosion under a car in all my life!!!)

I reckon the two Shacks at PFO are NOT in the dire straits that people think they are, to be honest... Where they were originally parked, they had TWO lines of defences from the sea. First, a tall stand of trees that collects most of the salt-laden sea spray (then deposits it on the cars parked below when it next rains, LOL!)- and second, some large hangars affording the parked aircraft some shelter from the incoming salt-laden moisture...

If they were in such bad condition, then HOW on earth did they manage to move them both diametrically opposite to the other corner of the airport? Wouldn't it be nice if RAF Akrotiri sent a team out every couple of months to at least fire up the four RR Griffon engines in each Shackleton, to keep them in fine fettle, at least?

@Lloyd: One of your links mentions a Jet Provost parked at LCA. That was another frequent take-off from LTN in the 60's, as Hunting Aviation was also based there. I think the RAF used to use it as a jet trainer, before the Hawk was introduced?

Happy memories! Cheers- AL (in anorak mode)

[PaphosAL]

BTW- grovelling apologies to cyprusmax47 for totally hi-jacking his OP.

Got a bit carried away there... Cheers- AL

[Pafos]

@Lloyd: One of your links mentions a Jet Provost parked at LCA. That was another frequent take-off from LTN in the 60's, as Hunting Aviation was also based there. I think the RAF used to use it as a jet trainer, before the Hawk was introduced?

There is a Jet Provost (G-JETP) and a third Shackleton (in bits) on the south side of the airport here at Paphos. Never seen one at LCA.

Corrosion is a massive problem for Paphos based aircraft.

[cyprusmax47]

BTW- grovelling apologies to cyprusmax47 for totally hi-jacking his OP.

Got a bit carried away there... Cheers- AL

Don't worry Alan, it is not off topic at all, little Paphos has got it;s little airplain graveyard....

[PaphosAL]

Thank you guys, for persevering with this geriatric old twit! Just trying to share old memories and modern thoughts, that's all... Cheers- AL