This is the new monument dedicated to the men of ‘The Mighty Eighth’ in Normandy. The set of four life-size bronze statues of medal-awarded USAAF Airmen was unveiled at the La Fière Memorial Park near Sainte-Mère-Eglise on 5th June. The four airmen (L-R) are Staff Sgt. Maynard...
The Wellington Quarry, or Carrière Wellington, is a World War I memorial, museum and battlefield site, in, or rather under, the streets of Arras in Pas-de-Calais, France. It played a significant role in hiding thousands of British & Commonwealth troops for weeks before unleashing them in a...
There’s an interesting 16-min documentary that has just been released by the Hainan International Media Center (HIMC), highlighting a little-known chapter of WW2 history: a daring rescue of Allied Prisoners of War (POWs) on China’s Hainan Island in 1945. Unlocking Pigeon Mission, released in time to commemorate...
Phase one of the much anticipated UK version of Puy du Fou, the historical ‘theme park with no rides’, could be open in 2029 if the outline planning proposal, just submitted to Cherwell District Council, is approved. The French theme park company, with sites in France, Spain,...
It’s a good question. Especially as self-driving vehicle trials expand across the UK and there is a need for remote oversight on services such as driverless buses, delivery vehicles and robotaxis (not private vehicles), where one person can monitor several vehicles as they follow fixed routes and...
This is the fuselage, or ‘gondola’, of the rather extraordinary French WW1 Voisin X bomber and gunship. The Voisin X was a two-seat pusher biplane produced either as a night bomber or a gunship armed with a 37 mm (1½”) Hotchkiss cannon and a defensive 7.7mm machine...
The first ever electric flight to land at London Gatwick airport, did so yesterday (9 July) as part of the VINCI Airports Network Elektro Tour. The Elektro Tour is taking place over 17 days with a Pipistrel Velis Electro* light aircraft flying between nine VINCI airports in...
The Sir John Soane’s Museum has opened a new temporary exhibition of the life and revolutionary work of British-Italian architect Richard Rogers. Richard Rogers: Talking Buildings was opened yesterday by the Soane’s Director, Will Gompertz and the curator of the exhibition, Richard’s son, Ab Rogers. The small...
Skyports Infrastructure held a preview last week of its now complete vertiport at Bicester Motion in Oxfordshire. This is one of the UK’s first testing grounds and hubs for electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) flights. Vertiports are a key component of the Advanced Air Mobility (AAM)...
A Texas-based start-up, Venus Aerospace, is developing a next-generation rocket engine that could power hypersonic* aircraft. This includes passenger aircraft flying from conventional runways. They aim to reach speeds between four to six times the speed of sound. At Mach 4, passengers could leave London and arrive...
Vertical Aerospace, last week, reached a landmark in the development of their VX4 eVTOL, by making the first-ever piloted wingborne flight of a winged eVTOL in European open airspace. Electric Vertical Take-Off and Landing (eVTOL) aircraft developers around the world are edging nearer and nearer to fully...
The London Canal Museum (LCM) is housed in an historic canal warehouse, just north of King’s Cross. It has displays and artefacts on two floors, telling the story of canals, and London’s canals in particular, from their construction, the goods and industries that relied on them for...
Tomorrow (27 May) in Liverpool, the shipping and cruise line Cunard opens its new ‘Sea of Glamour’ photography exhibition, celebrating the line’s 185 year history. Curated by British photographer and filmmaker Mary McCartney, the exhibition features 185 incredible images – sourced from the Cunard archives, and a...
The London Tunnels project has announced a partnership with the Museum of Military Intelligence (MMI) which will put part of the museum’s collection on permanent display in the tunnels, showcasing the history of military intelligence and the military use of the tunnels. London Tunnels are developing the...
This is a niche blog about technically-minded travel. It reflects my own interests in the mechanical, technical, historical, engineering, transport and military world.
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