News / concorde
Budget boost for Bristol Aerospace Museum
Bristol’s new aviation museum has been awarded a £2m grant from LIBOR fines imposed on banks.
Lloyd Burnell, project director at the Bristol Aerospace Centre, said they are “absolutely delighted” at the announcement.
Chancellor George Osborne said: “In every Budget we have used LIBOR fines paid by those who have demonstrated the worst in values, to support those who represent the very best of British values.
is needed now More than ever
“Jack Lopresti (MP for Filton and Bradley Stoke) brought to my attention the proposal for a new museum to commemorate the UK flying heritage at Filton in Bristol.
“At the Budget I was pleased to announce £2 million for the Bristol Aerospace Centre to help fund this important project to preserve our aviation history.”
Mr Lopresti said the money will secure the go ahead for the centre which will be a “fitting tribute to Concorde and the rest of our aerospace heritage in Filton”.
Birthplace of aviation
The project’s 9.5 acres airfield site includes two Grade II listed hangars built by the Royal Flying Corp during World War One and have been described by English Heritage as, ‘a rare surviving example of the earliest standard type of hangar’ and ‘the most complete of any of these types of sites in existence’.
The hangers were later home to 501 Squadron which won seven honours in WWII, and was one of the most heavily engaged units in RAF Fighter Command. In particular, the Squadron saw extensive action during the Battle of France and Battle of Britain.
Filton is often described as the birthplace of the UK’s aerospace industry and now the regions engineering and aerospace industries provide some 23,400 jobs and generates £1.1 billion in sales.
Inspiring next generation
The new Bristol Aerospace Centre will tell the stories of the people whose technical innovation, business vision and engineering brilliance have contributed to this achievement over the decades.
The museum is also planning a STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths) centre designed to inspire the next generation of engineers with a series of activities and programmes designed for school children.
Construction work on the Bristol Aerospace Centre is due to start later this year and is expected to open in the first half of 2017.
Find out more about the new Aerospace Museum and take a video tour round Concorde
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