On Friday 5th February I made a trip to Belfast International airport with the intention of visiting the Trident 2E aircraft they have there (G-AVFE), courtesy of the Belfast International Fire & Rescue who have agreed to donate parts from the aircraft in the bid to save our own Trident 1C at Durham Tees Valley Airport.

A little bit about the project - Tony Jarrett secured the last complete Trident 1C anywhere in the world. It's currently a fire trainer at MME, but not really used any more. It has never been burnt and still has most of its interior in place. Tony has also managed to secure a place for it at the nearby North East Aircraft Museum at Sunderland.

So, in a bid to find parts for the aircraft, we got in touch with Belfast whose Trident is also not used very much these days. Since many Trident 2E parts are interchangeable with the 1C model, this could provide a fantastic opportunity to give our aircraft the best restoration possible.

Neil Lomax, who restored Trident 3B G-AWZK at Manchester, is also a team member but could not attend this trip. So Tony and I (plus Tony's partner Jill) made the journey over to scope out the aircraft.

You can read more about our project at http://www.savethetrident.org


NCL-BFS
easyJet
Airbus A319-111
G-EZAN
Flight time: 35 mins



I had checked-in online, so arrived at Newcastle with an hour to spare and quickly passed through security. The airport is always busy first thing on a morning as the five based easyJet aircraft depart, along with KLM, Eastern Airways, Air France, Brussels Airlines, British Airways and a couple of charter flights. I grabbed a coffee and bacon sandwich, then headed to the domestic gates and was ushered straight onto the bus. Our aircraft was parked on one of the remote stands.



I boarded by the rear stairs and took a window seat on the right hand side of the aircraft. It was at this point that tiredness kicked in and I dozed for much of the time. All I can remember is that the takeoff run was short, and then I 'came to' on final approach into Belfast.

By the time we landed it was fairly light, but murky and gray. Belfast, like Newcastle, has a morning buzz. It is full of easyJet and Jet2 aircraft arriving from all over the UK.


I stepped out into the cold air and into the arrivals hall. Since Tony and Jill were arriving an hour later from London Stansted, I decided to go to the viewing area to kill time. However, after searching for it I asked at the tourist information desk to be told it had closed.

So instead I wandered out of the terminal to see the parked cargo aircraft at one end of the terminal, and biz props at the other. Once Tony and Jill had arrived, we called our contact at the fire station, who came to meet us and obtain our airside passes for the day, which had already been printed for us. He took us to the airside access point, where we underwent the standard search, and then we were driven around the airfield to the fire station on the far side.



We were met by Wayne, who was keen to accommodate us and was very helpful throughout the day. After a cup of tea and a chat about our plans, he arranged for us to be driven over to the fire ground where the Trident sits (after waiting for Gordon Brown's jet to depart).




Trident 2E G-AVFE was operated by British European Airways and British Airways on their domestic and European routes out of London Heathrow, until retirement to Belfast in the early 1980s. Like our Trident at MME, this one has also never been burnt, but used instead for evacuation training. Today the fire team have a large modern rig which emulates narrow body and widebody airliners in one, as well as a variety of conditions from smoke to full fire in seconds. So the Trident is rarely used any more.

Tony and I set about making a photographic log of every part of the aircraft, and noting parts we might like to take. The airframe is a little dirty on one side, and has been lowered onto some railway sleepers to make sure the wheel struts don't give way. Inside, it is in quite good condition, even after nearly 30 years since retirement. Many fittings are still in place, including most seats, signs, lights and even the magazine racks!



The cockpit was largely stripped, but has more parts than our Trident 1, so we're hoping to take them. The control columns were present, so this is a big plus for our project as G-ARPO's are missing. We spent over an hour at the aircraft before returning to the fire station via a high-speed drive along the runway. Another cup of tea later, we were ready to move on. The fire fighters agreed to pose in front of one of the engines for us.



Then we were taken back to the terminal side to speak to a man about the use of tools when we return to take the parts off the Trident, and then to speak to some cargo companies about the possibility of ferrying parts to the UK by air.


We really appreciated the time and effort the fire team put into looking after us and taking our project seriously. We were treated like royalty and felt very welcome. Our plan is to return in April or May to take the parts off the Trident and take them to Sunderland ready to install on G-ARPO when she is moved.


As we had some time to kill, Tony, Jill and I took a taxi to Antrim for something to eat and a browse around a retail park, before returning to the airport for our evening flights home. Again, Tony and Jill departed on easyJet to London Stansted, and I was returning to Newcastle.


BFS-NCL
easyJet
Airbus A319-111
G-EZDW
Flight time: 30 mins

By now it was dark again. The flight arrived a little late, but we seemed to board as soon as the incoming passengers had stepped off the aircraft. I again picked a window seat on the right hand side of the aircraft. The flight was pretty full.

Flight time is very quick, so we were hardly in the air long (still long enough for a full drinks service to be offered), before starting descent into Newcastle. We routed past the airport, turning onto final over the sea.



Newcastle was again fairly busy, with aircraft arriving in for night stops. Although parking at the pier, we were bussed to the domestic arrivals door so as not to suffer the inconvenience of passport control.


All in all this was a very productive trip and a great day out. We feel safe in the knowledge that there are many useful parts on the Trident at Belfast which can go towards preserving the last complete Trident 1C in the world.

As I mentioned earlier, we have a website at www.savethetrident.org which has full details about what we're doing, and news on progress. We are also desperate for donations as this is entirely funded by what we can raise (our trip to Belfast came out of our own pockets). So please, if you want to see a part of British aviation history preserved, consider donating whatever you can.


Thanks for reading.

Matt Falcus

[Edited 2010-02-09 09:01:24]