Well, it’s Wednesday morning and it looks like we might soon be able to stop sheltering from the sky. With air travel still a problem as airlines attempt to return to schedule, fresh attention has been turning to the sea. The Royal Navy brought home some travellers on a warship, and demand for ferries has been high. For passengers between the UK and France or Belgium, the Eurostar rail service has been a possibility (if you can get a ticket). Back in 1936, […]
What a spectacularly unexpected week it’s been for transport. I don’t suppose many of us imagined seeing this kind of warning notice on the Underground… As I write this at the weekend, the volcano is still erupting, and pretty much all UK flights have been grounded since Thursday afternoon. It’s dangerous to attempt to fly through the ash cloud, as news reports have explained. The ash contains glass which can melt and then harden inside jet engines, causing them to shut down. […]
I talked last time about my recent trip to Southampton. While in town, I popped into the wonderful Solent Sky aviation museum. Whilst much of our aircraft collection is on show in London, and our Wroughton site houses some of the bigger craft, we also have a number of aeroplanes (and other transport artefacts) on loan to other museums. Solent Sky is home to our Short flying boat. Built in 1943 as a military-specification ‘Sunderland’, it was later converted to the civilian ‘Sandringham’ […]
David Rooney, Keeper of Technology and Engineering, celebrates the anniversary of the first Channel crossing in a balloon.
Explore the history of the Schneider Trophy, which was offered from 1913 to encourage the development of seaplanes.
David Rooney celebrates the fortieth anniversary of Concorde’s first flight.
David Rooney celebrates the 90th anniversary of the first daily scheduled airline service.
David Rooney, Transport Curator, shares an anecdote about some recent filming in Wroughton.
David Rooney, Transport Curator, explores the possibility of biofuels for jets.
Transport Curator David Rooney celebrates the anniversary of the first-ever hovercraft.
Transport Curator David Rooney considers the concept of slowing down and how this doesn’t equate to wasting time.
Transport Curator David Rooney discusses the centenary of Louis Blériot’s historic flight across the Channel.