558 Funding Update

[Wedgy]

Early Next Week.

Monday come and gone.

Not that early then.

Gave me a morning chuckle

PA28 indicated (on the other side) that it is likely to be late Tuesday or early Wednesday when the announcement is made.

mid·week (mdwk) n. 1. The middle of the week. 2. Midweek - the fourth day of the week; the third working day 3. Midweek Wednesday. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- midweekly adj. & adv.

[Yorkie]

[PhantomAviator]

PA28 indicated (on the other side) that it is likely to be late Tuesday or early Wednesday when the announcement is made.

On the other side?

Where pray is, On the other side?

I looked at the back which is On the other side of my monitor but it just has a label with the serial number etc.

Or would that be the Devine Intervention On The Other Side?


Sorry forgot to add, Tuesday morning now almost gone also, so we are no longer in Early this week.

[RLN]

It's an affectionate (?) name for a certain forum that is attached to a certain club, that is attached to a certain trust, that is concerned with a triangular aircraft. Compared with TV "What's on the other side?" which was easy when there were only 3 channels.

[PhantomAviator]

It's an affectionate (?) name for a certain forum that is attached to a certain club, that is attached to a certain trust, that is concerned with a triangular aircraft. Compared with TV "What's on the other side?" which was easy when there were only 3 channels.

Thanks for that.

I do not frequent the luxury of membership to 'The Other Side', ever since they deleted myself and various others who were told we would be classed as 'Friends Of The Vulcan' as we were ex employees of TVOC. We went after first flight.

[RLN]

That was nice of them

[Yorkie]

How rude

[Gaz]

How unsurprising!!

[Xplumberlives]

I still feel that Dr Bob is looking for inspiration and possibly dutch courage!

[Phantom2]

I do not frequent the luxury of membership to 'The Other Side', ever since they deleted myself and various others who were told we would be classed as 'Friends Of The Vulcan' as we were ex employees of TVOC. We went after first flight.

PhantomAviator..
Excuse me?, Who told you were deleted? certainly not me....as club membership sect..... I did not delete anyone who worked on the return to flight and was a club member, to the best of my knowledge all ex-staff members who were club members still are for instance Flip-Flop Man for one...... if you care to PM me with your name, address & membership number..... I will investigate the database to find what has gone wrong and also anyone else who can not access the VTS Forum please do the same...

Denis Parker
VTSC Membership Sect

[Code monkey]

Update (such as it is!) is now on "the other side"!

[Gaz]

To save time:

Dear Supporter,



XH558’s Future Now at Risk.



I imagine that you were as pleased as I was to see the excellent coverage that XH558 and her 50th Birthday Appeal gained in the Mail on Sunday on 17th January. We all need to thank those responsible for making this happen: the supporters who wrote letters to the Mail on Sunday Editor, asking him to publicise our campaign. But the situation remains dire.


The Extent of the Problem



Having already funded Marshall Aerospace to commence the most urgent “critical path” tasks needed for the Winter Engineering Programme, we now have just sufficient funds in our bank account to pay our overhead costs from today until the end of February – slightly less than five weeks. As the result, at the end of this week, I may need to recommend to the Board of Trustees that we give one month’s notice to all VTST employees with effect from 1st February.



The implications for XH558 are extremely grave: if we don’t find the money to keep going and finish the engineering programme, we may well lose all control over her destiny. We have already launched the plea for funds in a national newspaper, unfortunately apparently to little effect. We have raised just over £180,000, but we still need a total of £800,000 to get XH558 to the 2010 display season.



Because of the amount of work needed to be done this Winter, and the lead time associated with some of the items, there is real urgency in raising the sum needed – a further £620,000. As is the nature of engineering work on aircraft, not only is it surprisingly expensive but it’s “all or nothing”, which is why we now should not proceed further until we have confidence of reaching the full amount.



Including the necessary test flight, the whole engineering programme should last no longer than four months. But the longer we have to wait before reaching our £800,000 target, the more we delay XH558’s appearance her 50th Birthday air display season, and the more funds we would have used on unproductive overheads.



For XH558, the only way is forward through to completion of the whole engineering programme.



If there’s one positive thing we can say, it is that, barring mishaps, this is by far the most expensive Winter Service that XH558 will have to undergo for the foreseeable future. It will put in place the fatigue life extension modifications necessary for the remainder of her flying life.



Action Plan



So where to from here?



First, and most important, we are not giving up. We have to turn XH558’s 50th Birthday Appeal into nothing less than her 2010 Survival Appeal.



Recognising that supporters do not want to risk any of their donations not achieving tangible success, we are re-launching and re-driving our Pledge scheme.



Shortly, our website pages will change to reflect the new Appeal. We will be launching a Vulcan viral video, containing an attempt at a new world record, which we hope, with your help, will capture the attention of many.



The nature of the tasks and lead times of the Winter Engineering Programme means that it may be possible to move forward having raised only part of the funds, as long as there is confidence that the remaining funds will be forthcoming.



So when new pledges reach the half-way point of £310,000 (a total raised of £490,000), we will review the progress of the Appeal. If we are confident the whole amount will be raised, we will call in the pledges to date to allow work on XH558 to continue.



To set a deadline, we need to see £310,000 in new pledges by the end of February at the latest, if we are not to miss the main airshows this summer



As part of this new Campaign, I would like to offer an incentive: those who honour a pledge of £1,000 or more will receive an invitation for a personal visit to XH558 at RAF Lyneham during the Winter Service, to see her close-up and talk to the engineers who are working on her.



Please now would you help XH558 by making a Pledge if you can, but just as importantly, by spreading the word about this revised and renewed Pledge Campaign?



http://www.site.vulcantothesky.org/pledge.asp



We will continue to publicise XH558’s current plight and your help in doing this is so very valuable. So far we have not been successful in gaining the attention of very many of the 2.5million who saw her last summer – we need to radically improve this performance.



Assuming that we are successful in returning XH558 to flight, we have decided that we need to run a funding campaign spanning the whole year, aimed at avoiding getting in to a similar situation again. This Annual campaign will be launched formally on XH558’s Birthday, 25th May, and will run from this date every year. We are also closely examining our costs again, in order to reach a sustainable balance of income and expenditure in coming years.



These are desperate times and we recognise that with the shocking disaster in Haiti lest week, this is not a good time to prevail upon anyone’s generosity. However, from the above I hope you will understand that for XH558 it is now or never. We have no choice but to come back to you.



Very many thanks for any assistance you may be able to give.



Robert Pleming

[Code monkey]

Thanks Gaz - beat me to it!!

Is it just me or is this simply more of the same old, same old?

[Gaz]

Yeah, heard it all before and, I think, we'll be hearing it again.

I do sympathise with those that work hard for 558, but, I, for one, can't give any more to an administration I have lost faith in.

Sorry and all that

[Za150]

This is very sad news.

It may be the same old but the fact of life is the trust needs money to keep 558 in the air, its an expensive project to run, an one of a kind aircraft thats 50 years old is never going to be cheap.

I really do feel for the guys who may end up being put on to a months notice, these guys have put there entire sole into keeping this aircraft in the air and now they face a future of uncertenty. We may forget but these guys also have a life outside 558, they have familys to feed and morgages to pay like the rest of us.

[Mayfly]

Well I think it's one of the best & most humble emails I have read from RP...

saying that it is very much what we have read before because I don't think there's much more to say....

[Hungry Haggis]

Not the same old Same old this time i think it's gone to far or could well do by friday or is it Monday .the workers deserve more than every year at least they are stuck on redundency .What a reward for their long hard hours .To me they seem to have paid for the wing mod or part of it what about the gear leg has that been paid for ,will 558 be able to move anytime soon ,Will she survive .Finally This farce has benn comming for some time they should have been looking for funds for 2012/13 by now not sitting picking their nose.I did think of the cancled stuff but reading the notice again just made me shiver and think it's all been said before .

[Sploosher]

Well I think it's one of the best & most humble emails I have read from RP...

saying that it is very much what we have read before because I don't think there's much more to say....

There is nothing in that update that we have not heard before, if we are successful in getting 558 in the air this year, I think we will hear this message annually........

More fundraising should have been done before the start of last years display season, and carried on ad infinitum..........

Lets hope that this is not a case of closing the stable door after the horse has bolted.

[Nickolas]

Well I think it's one of the best & most humble emails I have read from RP...

saying that it is very much what we have read before because I don't think there's much more to say....

There is nothing in that update that we have not heard before, if we are successful in getting 558 in the air this year, I think we will hear this message annually........

More fundraising should have been done before the start of last years display season, and carried on ad infinitum..........

Lets hope that this is not a case of closing the stable door after the horse has bolted.

It can only limp.

Remember it has a limb missing.......

[Mayfly]

Well I think it's one of the best & most humble emails I have read from RP...

saying that it is very much what we have read before because I don't think there's much more to say....

There is nothing in that update that we have not heard before, if we are successful in getting 558 in the air this year, I think we will hear this message annually........

More fundraising should have been done before the start of last years display season, and carried on ad infinitum..........

Lets hope that this is not a case of closing the stable door after the horse has bolted.

Gosh Sploosh thats very emotive for you...

[Sploosher]

Well I think it's one of the best & most humble emails I have read from RP...

saying that it is very much what we have read before because I don't think there's much more to say....

There is nothing in that update that we have not heard before, if we are successful in getting 558 in the air this year, I think we will hear this message annually........

More fundraising should have been done before the start of last years display season, and carried on ad infinitum..........

Lets hope that this is not a case of closing the stable door after the horse has bolted.

Gosh Sploosh thats very emotive for you...

Deep down I am really an emotional sensitive type person..................

[Ducati Boy]

Now I know what it was like to be a Welsh bowman at Azincourt with Henry V, listening to the chants of the French and the gathering crowds watching like vultures, so certain we were defeated.

For all the defeatists who said we would never even get the Vulcan to fly at all, the "told you so" brigade, the gloaters, wise guys who of course would have done it better and the sheer vindictive types who actually want to see the Vulcan fail to gratify their personal vendettas, heres a little message my ancestors gave the French!




We ain't given up!

[Xplumberlives]

I admire you spirit D.B.

[Mayfly]

I do not frequent the luxury of membership to 'The Other Side', ever since they deleted myself and various others who were told we would be classed as 'Friends Of The Vulcan' as we were ex employees of TVOC. We went after first flight.

PhantomAviator..
Excuse me?, Who told you were deleted? certainly not me....as club membership sect..... I did not delete anyone who worked on the return to flight and was a club member, to the best of my knowledge all ex-staff members who were club members still are for instance Flip-Flop Man for one...... if you care to PM me with your name, address & membership number..... I will investigate the database to find what has gone wrong and also anyone else who can not access the VTS Forum please do the same...

Denis Parker
VTSC Membership Sect

If I remember correctly, almost 2 years ago to the day, when the Club forum became members only, the ex employees [mainly engineers] who were not club members were refused access.
After a large backlash on the forum due to inappropriate comments made by an ex-manager, I thought all ex-employees were given life long club memberships....I know who the ex-engineer was at the time who the comments were aimed at & I'm sure he'll remember.

[Xplumberlives]

I do not frequent the luxury of membership to 'The Other Side', ever since they deleted myself and various others who were told we would be classed as 'Friends Of The Vulcan' as we were ex employees of TVOC. We went after first flight.

PhantomAviator..
Excuse me?, Who told you were deleted? certainly not me....as club membership sect..... I did not delete anyone who worked on the return to flight and was a club member, to the best of my knowledge all ex-staff members who were club members still are for instance Flip-Flop Man for one...... if you care to PM me with your name, address & membership number..... I will investigate the database to find what has gone wrong and also anyone else who can not access the VTS Forum please do the same...

Denis Parker
VTSC Membership Sect

If I remember correctly, almost 2 years ago to the day, when the Club forum became members only, the ex employees [mainly engineers] who were not club members were refused access.
After a large backash on the forum due to inappropriate comments made by an ex-manager, I thought all ex-employees were given life long club memberships....I know who the ex-engineer was at the time who the comments were aimed at & I'm sure he'll remember.