Five carloads of Geezers visited the amazing De Havilland Aircraft Museum near to St Albans.
On arrival we were informed that a power cut had left the hangers a little darker than usual. As the Geezers are nocturnal so this didn’t bother us much.
The enthusiasm shown by the volunteers was infectious. Special mention goes to John Magowan who obviously loves the Merlin engine dug up from a Suffolk field. He was like an excited boy telling us as much as we could take in about the history of the engine that won The Battle of Britain and probably the Second World War. The 27 litre V12 Merlin engines first flew in 1935.
The Mosquito in the title was so fast with its two supercharged Merlins that it could outpace a doodle bug and shoot it from the sky.
And that’s how the Merlin engine ended up in a field! To find out more visit the museum and speak to John.
De Havilland produced some stunning aircraft the Comet in particular stands out with its polished aluminium fuselage.The first revolutionary jet airliner to take to the sky, and the first to crash!
Metal fatigue took its toll on this beautiful shining bird. The design of the square windows being a major factor.
The Geezers always exit via the gift shop and guess what? Yep – they bought several self assembly models that will keep them amused for hours.
Eddie Snooks, Geezers Chair