558 Funding Update

[Stigish]

has anyone got some good news?

Its not snowing anymore

[Dougs]

lovin your work!

[Nickolas]

I ask anyone to consider this example:
In your job you have a target. If you hit that target you get paid 100% of your salary = You are doing your job properly.
If you continually fail to hit your target, Should you still be paid 100% of your salary?
Following that. Do you still deserve to have the job if you can't do it properly?

If the Trust are not doing their job properly, why should they deserve praise?
They are being re-active in a world were only pro-active people get the best results.

The above never bothered the bloody bankers did it???????????
Those greedy bastards still get their huge bonuses..........
And the peasants pay for it.............

Sounds sort of familiar??????

[P.eames]

The end of the trust would not mean the end of the aircraft. Marshall's are the engineering honchos and it is they who hold the authorities to carry out maintenance ? Assuming they are then surely it is possible for the club to pay Marshalls to carry out anti det runs/ servicing etc until a new trust or whatever is formed. Chin up boys and girls! The end of XH558 is not nigh.

A REALIST has posted!

Sounds more like a view through those rose tinted glasses that you speak of.

Seems a bit odd to me that the club would be withholding funds from the Vulcan appeal.
Unless of course the club want the trust to go into administration so they can take over perhaps.

Very curious.

Not in the slightest, i am a natural born pessimist.

The trust unlike marshalls etc can be replaced.

At what point did i say or even suggest that the club were withholding funds?

[Saracenman]

And what makes you think people will be queuing up with £10 million to buy the aircraft?
........
And suppose the club did keep things ticking over. Would they have a say in who could buy the aircraft?
The club could potentially spend a lot of money keeping the aircraft going, only for a new buyer (if one ever came along) to come and take it away from the UK.

Air - you've missed a VITAL part of what i said - 558 has been valued at £10m as a FLYING AEROPLANE - something which she isn't right now. with no engineering support, or approved administration, she ain't officially an aeroplane at all - therefore worth only what someone else is prepared to pay for her - even SCRAP value

as 558 stands, she is NOT worth the quoted £10m

overall, the way i see 558's SUCCESSFUL future is this...

VTST folds, the VTS Club are able to become 558's official financial owners (be that by buying her, or by donation), along with all her spares etc etc, and then put her display operation OUT TO TENDER!

if you understand the concept of that, i needn't go on!

sm

[Panel 10]

I am no legal beagle but I would have to look closely at the Clubs Constitution before I could accept this scenario. As far as I can see the Club was created to fundraise and support the Trust. For the Club seen to not financially support the Trust if it has a residue when it is badly needed and then, after a bankruptcy scenario, come forward with offers to buy the aircraft is a can of worms. As I read it, if the Trust goes so does the Club.

[Bovril]

i think the club was around long before tvoc

I am no legal beagle but I would have to look closely at the Clubs Constitution before I could accept this scenario. As far as I can see the Club was created to fundraise and support the Trust. For the Club seen to not financially support the Trust if it has a residue when it is badly needed and then, after a bankruptcy scenario, come forward with offers to buy the aircraft is a can of worms. As I read it, if the Trust goes so does the Club.

[Dan4th]

Of course, I wasn't around at the time, but
I believe the Club existed well before the
Trust, and the Trust was originally an
outgrowth of the Club....

Danf.

[Saracenman]

indeed - the original 558 Club was there to support David Walton's initial attempts to return 558 to the skies. The Vulcan Operating Company (TVOC) was a company formed by David Walton, before the creation of the VTST.

VTST absorbed TVOC in the process of becoming the owners of 558, and the 558 Club was renamed VTSC to continue their support of 558, through VTST

Panel 10 - be in no doubt that the Club DOES hold cash back on a regular basis, for one simple reason - INVESTMENT!

rather than simply handing over all cash to the Trust, the Club are well experienced in turning £1 into £5 - all the VTSC merchandise, books, and general stuff sold within the Vulcan Village has to come from SOMEWHERE.

both CG and Gully's photobook, and Vulcan Ventures are superb examples - had the Club merely handed over the £X,000 it cost to publish and print the books, the Trust would've had an extra £X,000 in 'the pot'. instead, they were wise enough to INVEST in something which would then give the Trust a donation many MANY times larger

it's a very old and simple concept which is called PROFIT, and the Club are the only part of VTS that is capable of making one!

both "Retained Profit" and "Contingency" are both recognised and legal accounting terms

personally, as a Club member, I'd be VERY concerned if the Club DIDN'T have contingency funds - it is EVERY business's only safety net!

sm

[MrTim]

... whilst the World only contains a finite number of people LEGALLY qualified to tighten Vulcan nuts

And there's me thinking 558 was a 'she'

[Xplumberlives]

Topical quip!

[Mags]

... whilst the World only contains a finite number of people LEGALLY qualified to tighten Vulcan nuts

And there's me thinking 558 was a 'she'

Hmmm - cartoon opportunity?

[RLN]

Go for it, Mags

[PiperArrow28]

An article of some type is expected within the Mail on Sunday tomorrow.

Hopefully, that will help the cause.

Regards,
Ian.

[MadNaddy]

... whilst the World only contains a finite number of people LEGALLY qualified to tighten Vulcan nuts

And there's me thinking 558 was a 'she'

I think SM just called Smiler a woman!!

[Hungry Haggis]

Not to sure if this could be the right place for this .It looks like th Mail on Sunday has said sod off almost I just read this on the public viewed Ways to raise funding Article in tomorows paper somehow that answer does not look to good for the hoped for level of suport maybe Dr Plemings apeal to spam them was not such a great call.

Thank you very much for your email about the plight of the Vulcan.
I am well aware that this aircraft enjoys passionate support - we have received many similar emails in the last few days.
We will be running a story this weekend about the latest financial problems of the Vulcan To The Sky Trust.
However, I expect you know that the Trust has been supported by Mail on Sunday readers twice before - most recently in March last year - and once again a very large sum of money needs to be raised. I would also expect most readers to give priority to contributing to the effort in Haiti.
Maybe it is worth asking whether a more permanent form of funding can be established.

Yours sincerely,

Peter Wright
Editor
The Mail on Sunday

[Pujgnie]

Anyone else noticed a pattern...

There is ALWAYS something that impedes any inclusion of 558 in the media

Earthquakes, Volcanic eruptions, Flooding etc... talk about bad timing.

[Spitfire]

Anyone else noticed a pattern...

There is ALWAYS something that impedes any inclusion of 558 in the media

Earthquakes, Volcanic eruptions, Flooding etc... talk about bad timing.

No -IMHO it's all about the last line ....

Maybe it is worth asking whether a more permanent form of funding can be established.

i.e. we're fed up with you constantly asking to be baled out - get a grip and leave us out of it

[Pujgnie]

No -IMHO it's all about the last line ....

Maybe it is worth asking whether a more permanent form of funding can be established.

i.e. we're fed up with you constantly asking to be baled out - get a grip and leave us out of it

... and that too possibly

[Mayfly]

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1243857/Worlds-flying-Vulcan-bomber-faces-600k-repairs--scrap-heap.html

have I missed something whilst away or has this servicing always been quoted as £600k?

[Dlwbrunty]

Why expect the Trust to change the habits of a lifetime? Or certain members of the fulltime staff. Certainly the last year saw some very important changes within the organisation and the improvement in quality of mushroom food given to us; of that I must applaud them.
I think that the rot set in in the run up to Waddington and the events that took place there. We lost so much good will that has been virtually impossible to regain. The club spent alot of time I know over the summer rebuilding bridges, its a shame that the destroyers of same did not have the bottle to resign IMMEDIATELY!!
From a project management point of view why was there no forward planning to ensure the finances where going to be available and systems in place to be able to say "We may have to pull certain things forward so as a precaution lets do xyz"? If things had not needed doing, at least we would be in a position to have 2 seasons to raise the capital:- Thats me using commonsense.............
It may just be Messers Ostrich,Ostrich and Company prefer the comfort zone of sand around their ears and hope miracles can be worked as in the past: for the sake of the entire future of the aircraft I fervently hope they can.

[Sploosher]

Go for it, Mags

I dare her to resist the temptation.......................

[Hungry Haggis]

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1243857/Worlds-flying-Vulcan-bomber-faces-600k-repairs--scrap-heap.html

have I missed something whilst away or has this servicing always been quoted as £600k?

Could that be the balance of what they say they have and the £800k needed by end march .I still think asking the members etc to basically spam the Mail on Sunday was a very bad call as reading that it it is straight to the point , as in stop harassing people and get your act together or go bust/change the management /get stuffed any or all of the fore mentioned choices.Like Sky they will/have run out of patience with an organization that seems to leave everything to the last minute ,when they had to know at least soon after the start of the season that more than usual would be needed to reach 2010.Have also said it before they should now be looking at getting funds for at least 2011 not next week .

[PhantomAviator]

Extract:

Trust chief executive Dr Robert Pleming said the money was needed within two months if the aircraft was to be ready for shows in the spring - or the alternative could be the ‘scrap heap’.

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article ... z0csrbnRv8


Now that does help any prospective sponsor a lot does it not?

[Spitfire]

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1243857/Worlds-flying-Vulcan-bomber-faces-600k-repairs--scrap-heap.html

have I missed something whilst away or has this servicing always been quoted as £600k?

Could that be the balance of what they say they have and the £800k needed by end march .I still think asking the members etc to basically spam the Mail on Sunday was a very bad call as reading that it it is straight to the point , as in stop harassing people and get your act together or go bust/change the management /get stuffed any or all of the fore mentioned choices.Like Sky they will/have run out of patience with an organization that seems to leave everything to the last minute ,when they had to know at least soon after the start of the season that more than usual would be needed to reach 2010.Have also said it before they should now be looking at getting funds for at least 2011 not next week .

Hear hear