United Kingdom: Warplanes of the Second World War preserved: Airspeed Oxford, Armstrong Whitworth Whitley, Avro Lincoln, Avro York, Cierva C.30 Autogyro, Blackburn Skua, Percival

Warplanes of the Second World War preserved in the United Kingdom

The aim of this website is to locate, identify and document Warplanes from the Second World War preserved in the United Kingdom.  Many contributors have assisted in the hunt for these aircraft to provide and update the data on this website.  Photos are by the author unless otherwise credited.  Any errors found here are by the author, and any additions, corrections or amendments to this list of Warplane Survivors of the Second World War in the United Kingdom would be most welcome and may be e-mailed to the author at hskaarup@rogers.com.

A number of warplanes of the Second World War preserved in the UK, including captured German and Japanese aircraft, are listed on separate pages on this web site.

Warplanes of the Second World War preserved in the United Kingdom by aircraft type, serial number, registration number and location:

Airspeed Oxford

(RuthAS Photo)

(Alan Wilson Photo)

(David Merritt Photo)

(Tony Hisgett Photo)

Airspeed AS.10 Oxford (Serial No. V3388), Reg. No. G-AITB.   Imperial War Museum, Duxford, Cambridgeshire.

Airspeed Oxford Mk. V (Serial No. EB518), being restored to static condition at Hangar 42, Blackpool Airport, Lancashire.  It will be painted to represent an Oxford Mk. II (Serial No. V3540) as flown by Amy Johnson when she was lost on 4 Jan 1941.

Armstrong Whitworth Whitley

(RAF Photos)

Armstrong Whitworth A.W.38 Whitley Mk. V, ca 1943.

Armstrong Whitworth A.W.38 Whitley Mk. V (Serial No. N1498).  No complete aircraft of the 1,814 Whitleys produced remains but the Whitley Project is rebuilding an example from salvaged remains and a fuselage section is displayed at the Midland Air Museum, Coventry Airport, Baginton, Warwickshire, whose site is adjacent to the airfield from where the Whitley's maiden flight took place.

Avro Lincoln

(Allen Watkin Photo)

(Mike Freer - Touchdown-aviation Photo)

(Rept0n1x Photo)

Avro Lincoln B Mk. 2 (Serial No. RF398), Royal Air Force Museum Cosford, Shifnal, Shropshire.

Avro York

(Mike Freer - Touchdown-aviation Photo)

(Alan D R  Brown Photo)

Avro York C1 (Serial No. MW100), ex Skyways & BOAC G-AGNV, and ex RAF (Serial No. TS798), Royal Air Force Museum Cosford, Shifnal, Shropshire.

Avro York (Serial No.), G-ANTK.  IWM Duxford.

Cierva C.30 Autogyro

(IWM Photo CH 5324)

Cierva C.30 Autogyro used for Army co-operation work, being examined by Coastal Command aircrew officers at Wick, Caithness.

(Alan Wilson Photo)

(Roland Turner Photo)

Avro 671 Rota Mk. I (Cierva C.30 Autogyro), (Serial No. HM580), KX-K, Imperial War Museum, Duxford, Cambridgeshire.

(Alan Wilson Photos)

Avro 671 Tota Mk. I (Serial No. AP507), KX-P, Reg. No. G-ACWP, Science Museum, South Kensington, London.

Blackburn Skua

(SDA&SM Photo)

(Alan Wilson Photo)

Blackburn Skua Mk. II (Serial No. L2940), wreckage, consisting of fuselage from the firewall forwards, both wings and rear fuselage with tail. Recovered from Norway in 1974. This 800 Squadron Skua was shot down in 1940 by a Heinkel He111.   Displayed in "as found" condition at the Fleet Air Arm Museum, Yeovilton, Ilchester, Somerset.

(Alan Wilson Photos)

de Havilland DH.100 Sea Vampire (Serial No. LZ551 G), On 3rd December 1945, pilotted by Lt/Cmdr EM Brown RNVR, this aircraft carried out the first jet landing on a ship at sea, the ship being HMS Ocean.

Hafner Rotachute

(Happy Days Photo)

Hafner Rotachute III (Serial No. P-5), Museum of Army Flying, Middle Wallop, Hampshire.

The rotorcraft team of the Airborne Forces Experimental Establishment (AFEE), handed by Raoul Hafner, had enjoyed some success in developing the so-called Rotachute (the idea of using a rotor rather than a parachute as a means of pinpoint landing troops in enemy territory), and this led to the suggestion that the principle could be applied to larger loads. This prompted Hafner to propose the Rotabuggy, a rotor-equipped Jeep, and the Rotatank, a similarly-equipped Valentine tank.  A contract to develop the former was placed with the ML Aviation Company at White Waltham in 1942, this being covered by specification 10/42.

(Happy Days Photos)

Hafner Rotabuggy (Serial No. B415), Museum of Army Flying, Middle Wallop, Hampshire.  This is a replica based on an original Jeep (not a Willy’s MB like the original) and the rest is new build other than the rotors which possibly came from a Bristol Sycamore.

Designed by Austrian Raoul Hafner of the British Airborne Forces Experimental Establishment (AFEE), the Rotabuggy was essentially a jeep converted into an autogiro as a way of giving airborne forces some ground ttansport. Initial flight trials, with the Rotabuggy towed behind a Whitley bomber, proved exhausting to the pilot who had to hang on to the control column which thrashed continuously around the cockpit. On flights where the tow cable remained attached there were some scary moments as the Rotabuggy, on the edge of a stall, touched down after the tow plane left and the driver took over.  Development of vehicle-carrying gliders provided a safer and more efficient way of getting jeeps with more equipment (such as towed light guns) to the battlefield and the Rotabuggy never saw service.  Another of Hafner's ideas was the Rotatank, a modified Valentine tank, which fortunately never left the drawing board.

(IWM Photo CH 775A)

Percival Q.6 (Serial No. P5634), RAF Northolt Station Flight, parked alongside Bristol Blenheims at Wyton, Huntingdonshire, ca 1940.

Percival Q.6, Reg. No. G-AFFD, built in 1938.  Seething, Norfolk.