MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Cash crisis grounds Falklands' Vulcan project

A multi-million-pound bid to re-launch a historic supersonic bomber, which had been provisionally booked for the 25th Falklands liberation anniversary, could be permanently grounded after a cash crisis, reports the Cambridge Evening News.

The Avro Vulcan was a British engineering masterpiece when it was unveiled in the 1950s - a military aircraft that was extremely agile yet could carry large payloads faster than the speed of sound.

But spiraling costs mean the Vulcan to the Sky Trust is out of money and unless £1million can be found the project could be abandoned at the halfway stage.

If the scheme does go bust it would be a blow to Cambridge-based firm Marshall Aerospace, which has specially trained engineers working to get the plane in flight.

Felicity Irwin, campaign director for the trust, said 20,000 donors together with a Heritage Lottery Fund grant had already given £4.2million but that is now not enough.

She said: "A 100 per cent uplift of cost in a major aspect of the contract and a further £500,000 overrun estimate on another are unaffordable in the timescale and could well be the last straw.

"These costs could not have possibly been anticipated but it is still not too late. "If people would like to support then that's what we need or we may have to bring the whole project to a stop.

"Vulcan is quintessentially British. Her design was years ahead of its time and is still relevant to aerospace research and development today.

"It does seem to be particularly tragic when this icon is so near yet so far from completion."

Out of the 134 Vulcans built, the XH558 is the only one that can possibly fly again.

Besides being booked for the 25th Falklands Anniversary tribute next year the Vulcan has other air shows planned.

A spokesman for Marshall Aerospace said: "We are contracted by the Vulcan operating company for engineering work on the aircraft to restore it to airworthy condition.

"That work is under way and we are very pleased with the progress which has been made."