Avro Heritage Museum opening

Image: David Rutley MP with Mary Robinson, MP for Cheadle, at the Avro Heritage Museum.

Member of Parliament for Macclesfield, David Rutley, attended the opening of the Avro Heritage Museum, at the site of the old Woodford Aerodrome, where the aircraft assembly plant previously stood.

The Museum was opened by Sir Charles Masefield, former president of BAE Systems, in front of an invited audience and significant media presence. The museum celebrates the rich aircraft heritage at Woodford, hosts numerous exhibits, including a Vulcan bomber, which was built at the site, and visitors will be able to sit in the cockpit of the aircraft.

The museum was the brainchild of Harry Holmes, founder member of the Avro Heritage Centre, and now President of the Avro Heritage Trust. After BAE Systems closed the plant in 2011, the site was donated to Avro Heritage Ltd and funds were provided for the museum. The museum will open to the public next month.

Speaking following the opening, David said, “It was a great honour to be invited to the opening of the Heritage Museum. Avro and aircraft manufacturing form a significant part of our local heritage, and is, rightly, a great source of pride to the community. The event was made even more relevant to me, as the day before I had met a former gunner in a Lancaster Bomber, which had been assembled at Woodford. I would like to pay tribute to Harry Holmes and BAE Systems, in addition to everyone who has helped to make this important new attraction come to life.”