Nimrod XV232.

[Crew chief]

Hi all.

As many of you know Nimrod XV232 has been at Coventry airport a few years now as part of Classic flight. With Classic flights move to Newquay XV232 will be staying at Coventry for the duration and has been placed under the custodianship of the Shackleton Preservation Trust. With the SPT effort's focused on returning WR963 to flight it has been decided to form a group within a group so to speak with a small team dedicated to XV232. I and a few volunteers have formed the Nimrod Preservation Group to look after and hopefully breathe some life back into the Nimrod again. This of course will not be easy but at the moment we have sourced a GPU and hope to get it moved to Coventry very soon so we can then start to see what we are dealing with as regards to what works and what does not. On initial inspection last week all engines turn over by hand and indeed two of them look very low houred indeed so maybe one day we can run them. The RAF have removed loads of kit not sure how much yet, the starboard main undercarriage has collapsed so she has a slight lean on at the moment and the Port flap has drooped. Our aim this year is to get ground power on and the APU running so wish us luck. If any of you wish to pay us a visit to get up close to the mighty hunter then please pm me as public access is very limited at the moment. Thanks to 655MaPs for lending a hand with a spare wheel for the GPU and loan of their Houchin manuals.
I will be posting pictures once I've worked out how to do it.

cc.

[Dougs]

Wow really cool one request tho pics, pics and more pics

[RLN]

Best of luck, it sounds as though you have your work cut out. Please keep us up to date as much as you can.

[Avro683]

This is great news. Shes a record breaker as well and needs to be properly looked after. Look forward to pics and updates. Do you have a website or facebook group page for her?

[Leebee0]

Hi mate

Hope you're well. Nice to see you up and running a bit more now . If you need any pics or vid taking I am sure Paul or myself could sort something out for you. I do have some nice pics from when we were there the other weekend. Anyway hope you're well Mark and I will catch up with you soon. All the best. Lee.

Here are a few pics of XV232 to get you going

These I took on 9th February 2013










These were taken on the 3rd August 2013 the day she was handed over to the Nimrod Preservation Group










Thats all for now look forward to seeing how she progresses over the coming months and years

All the best

Lee.

[Avro683]

Sad pictures.. has her stbd gear had some form of failure or just the strut deflated? Also, why would only one side of the flaps droop??

[Mayfly]

Well done Mark

[Crew chief]

Sad pictures.. has her stbd gear had some form of failure or just the strut deflated? Also, why would only one side of the flaps droop??

Sad pictures Avro683 in a word no what you see in the pics is were the rot stops so be positive we are. Yes she has her problems but so did XM655 when we first got hold of her back in the early 90's and look at her now. Once she has been cleaned and her problems sorted she will be an asset to the airport i'm sure. As for the main gear yes the starboard main shock absorber has deflated we may well be able to pump it up or change it if we can her on jacks but that's a while away yet. The Nimrods hydraulic system is quite complex compared to a Vulcan the Nimrod has four each running its own systems so the drooped flap may be one system has lost pressure but we will look into it.
Getting XV232 back to her former glory will take a lot of time and indeed money but it will happen. We are about to get hold of all the aircrafts manuals and Ap's, log cards etc so then the learning begins.
Thanks Lee for posting the pictures.

cc.

[Dougs]

I have to say it does not look in bad condition at all what a cool bit of kit i would imagine alot of the enjoyment comes from working on her anyway have fun CC and most importantly take lots of pics

[Kermit]

No doubt at all that you can do it, CC ! And all things considered, she isnt in too bad a state really, and can only get better now that she has a dedicated team to look after her

[Richw_82]

Its awesome to see XV232 finally getting some attention.. after a few false starts after SPT were asked to caretake her it now appears things can start in earnest - and having seen them go at things, Mark and the gang are the perfect people to be heading it up. They have a good measure of the 'can do' attitude that seems to exist in our little corner of Coventry airport.

I did ask some of the guys from Elvington about the flaps (one up one down) and I seem to recall it being a locking pin malfunction. Blue_2 of the Victor XL231 team may know more, as he was part of the Elvington away team that last ran up XV232 nearly a year ago.

Rich

[Blue_2]

Has it really been nearly a year already? Jeez...
From memory that sounds right. She really wants to be parked flaps up to prevent the cables stretching. The starboard leg should re-inflate ok, and get some control surface locks on her ASAP!
When we came down we got the APU fired up, and 3 of the 4 engines. IIRC No.1 was not interested and magically ate all its oil so we thought it unwise to try any further starting until the engine had seen a more thorough looking at than we had time to give it.
A more in-depth report should be available from the powers-that-be at Coventry. We submitted to them a very concise report of our findings.
She's certainly not beyond sorting, but a short time of unsupervised oiks playing hangar pilots and pressing interesting looking buttons certainly hasn't done the old girl any favours...

[Dougs]

Hanger pilots love it!

[Dan4th]

This is just my opinion, but I personally
believe that the brightest star on this
Nimrod's horizon is that So Many People
who were associated in some way with
Nimrods in general or with this one in
particular are STILL LIVING and in addition
STILL WORKING and therefore capable of
GIVING toward her restoration....

Your success/failure at doing what's right
for XV232 will hinge on your success/failure
at contacting and involving these people....

Do that well and you will have all the support
you need and more

Danf.

[Avro683]

I didn't mean she was a lost cause, just that she looks sad. I do have 100% faith in your efforts. Just a real good scrub down and wash and she will look 8-% better than she does. Hope she can get pulled up onto a hardstanding to make working on her a little better. Looking forward to regular updates etc. Should also post a new thread up on Key forum for the project. Lot's of help there I bet.

[Crew chief]

This is just my opinion, but I personally
believe that the brightest star on this
Nimrod's horizon is that So Many People
who were associated in some way with
Nimrods in general or with this one in
particular are STILL LIVING and in addition
STILL WORKING and therefore capable of
GIVING toward her restoration....

Your success/failure at doing what's right
for XV232 will hinge on your success/failure
at contacting and involving these people....

Do that well and you will have all the support
you need and more

Danf.

Dan4th you are quite right and we are indeed seeking help and advice from any ex Nimrod engineers, in fact 32's old crew chief lives nearby so he's our first port of call.
Thanks for that info Blue_2 i'll ask around at Cov for the report if they still have it.

cc.

[Vulcan Bomber]

Another helping factor is that 226 is as we know well looked after at Brunty and the guys there are only 45 mins away if that.

[Crew chief]

Another helping factor is that 226 is as we know well looked after at Brunty and the guys there are only 45 mins away if that.

Indeed VB we will also being going to see the other Nimrod operators just as soon we get the time.

cc.

[Dan4th]

It's not just the engineers, Crew chief,
anyone with a service connection to this
aircraft, or other Nimrods, might be more
than willing to help out in a financial way,
which you must admit will be needed

Wherewithal will be required, so don't get
all shy about asking those who care.....

Gotta find 'em first, though...

Danf.

[Blue_2]

Unless you have already, get in contact with Mick, our Nimrod's chief. Can supply contact details if req'd

[Crew chief]

All being well our Houchin ground power set will be delivered today so XV232 should have power on in the not to distant future.

cc.

[Kermit]

Thats brilliant news, CC ! Do keep us informed of your progress, and dont shy away from asking for whatever help you need
After all, even a well timed flask can help .... !!

[Crew chief]

All being well our Houchin ground power set will be delivered today so XV232 should have power on in the not to distant future.

cc.

XV232 know has a power set. Many thanks to Fosse way transport for moving it for us at next to no cost. . Next step is get the aircrafts battery's serviced and give the Houchin a service and we should then be able to zap a bit of life into Nimrod. I would also like to thank Ultra Electronics for very kindly giving us three life ex sono boays to display in the aircraft.

cc.

[Avro683]

Carefully putting power to her and slowly bringing various circuits back to life will be so beneficial to the project and help to dry things out a bit as well. Well done chap's!

[Blue_2]

The best thing for her would be mains power and several dehumidifiers permanently running! Glad you've a Houchin of your very own now