CIVIC LEADERS START MUSEUM PROJECT

TWO civic leaders officially started a major development project at the country’s oldest aircraft museum on Tuesday, April 5^th, 2016..

And after they had dug special spades into the ground to ceremonially start work on the newdisplay hangar at the de Havilland Aircraft Museum at London Colney, the Deputy Mayor of Hertsmere, Cllr Peter Rutledge, and Deputy Mayor Cllr Jane West announced that the Heritage Lottery Fund had just given the museum permission to start developing its detailed proposals as part of its application for £1.5million funding for the project.

“This museum is a very special place, and is crucial for the conservation and preservation of .these historic de Havilland aircraft and this major local company,” said Cllr Rutledge, who with Cllr West was making their first visit to the museum. “It is a wonderful place and we are delighted to announce that the museum has passed the first stage of its application to the Heritage Lottery Fund.”

This means that the HLF is providing £62,200 funding needed to work up the detailed proposals, which will be submitted shortly, and the museum is also raising match funding towards the hangar project.

Within the past 10 days the museum’s original hangar, erected in time for the opening to the public of the then Mosquito Museum at Salisbury Hall in 1959, has been dismantled and is to be disposed of as its site is needed for the new extra-large hangar.

“We don’t have enough undercover space for all of the de Havilland aircraft we have at the museum, and long-term preservation means they cannot stay out in the open indefinitely,” said museum marketing director Mike Nevin.

“The museum really does need extra covered space, and as part of our ongoing plans we intend to develop much more community and educational use of the new building.