Thank you @RAeS Cardiff Branch for the opportunity to speak to you this evening at the South Wales Aviation Museum. Great audience, some brilliant questions!!! Full age range from air cadets to some long retired members… #Engineering #aviation #Tonka Tornado ZA326

South Wales Aviation Museum (SWAM) Tornado ZA326 Boscombe Down Aviation Collection ZA326 from the recent Threshold.aero photoshoot

Today marks the 40th anniversary of the first flight of ZA326. Construction number BT006, she was built in 1980 but suffered a terrible fire prior to her first flight. After more than two years of rebuilding, ZA326's first flight was on 31/03/1983 at 09:57, landing at 11:33.

The patch celebrating 40 years since ZA326's first flight is now available for direct purchase at runway25.com/product/za326-… A percentage of each sale goes directly to the Panavia Tornado Preservation Group to help continue the restoration of ZA326.

Bruce Lumsden recently donated some 35mm reels to us. Dated 28th July 1983 they capture ZA326 flying approach trials at RAE Bedford. Thanks to @itvmedia for digitising the 40-year old footage, which includes the encoded data on the left of the frame to calculate aircraft position

Tornado GR.1P ZA326 getting some sun on it's back outside SWAM today SWAM #SWAM

ZA326 has a new neighbour in the hangar at SWAM, Jaguar GR.1 XX727

Fast. Beautifully engineered. Expensive. Impromptu visit by some bikers to South Wales Aviation Museum (SWAM) yesterday resulted in this great photo of 326 side by side with a Ducati Desmosedici RR.

David Harrison, ex Victor, Tornado and VC10 navigator has shared these fabulous photos he took on a tanking sortie. Unsure of the year but great pics of ZA326. Thanks David!

Ride along with Flt Lt Ollie Suckling on some OLF in the GR4 down in the Moffat Valley back in 2015. Ollie is a long time member of the Tornado ZA326 team, and now flying with the Red Arrows. Follow him on Instagram (instagram.com/raf_red4) for lots of exclusive content. ✈️

Good morning from South Wales Aviation Museum (SWAM). Here's a little update on today's activities. Follow Neil's Jaguar restoration at XX764 If you've got any questions about what we are up to, or want to know more about Tornado in general, post below and we will do our best to answer.

Not only does South Wales Aviation Museum (SWAM) have a Tornado GR1 and a GR4 on display, but also some interesting exhibits dotted around the hangar. Huge thanks to Jet Art Aviation who managed to find the original main RH flying panel from Tornado ZA326, and have donated it to the cause.

Saturday. Work in progress.

Progress update at the end of Saturday. We also did some work in the front cockpit, which we will show tomorrow. If you would like to help us continue to restore ZA326, please donate at paypal.com/donate/?cmd=_s…

Saturday South Wales Aviation Museum (SWAM) shenanigans

Sunday update from South Wales Aviation Museum (SWAM). Thanks for all your support this weekend.

Pic 1: newly fitted original ZA326 RH main flying panel, found by Jet Art Aviation (gauges not fully screwed in whilst we continue to fault find) Pic 2: ZA326 in service, with sideslip gauge fitted in panel. The hunt for that continues! Pic 3: How the cockpit looked 10 years ago🙈

Congratulations to Panavaia Tornado Preservation Group trustee Robert Swanson who has received a personal commendation from ACM Harv Smyth in the 2024 New Year's Honours.

2024 marks the 50th anniversary of the first Tornado flight, and to celebrate, we've worked with Runway25 to produce a special PVC patch. Order now at runway25.com/product/tornad… The Panavia Tornado Preservation Group receives a percentage of each sale.

Ever wondered what it's like to sit in the rear cockpit of a Tornado when the engines are started? Whilst we're still a little way off firing up the RB199s, this clip filmed by Dave Best in 2001 gives a great idea of the sights and sounds as ZA326's right-hand engine is started.