RNHF Fundraising

**NEW** - FNHT RAFFLE - GREAT PRIZE TO BE WON!

Pusser's Rum have kindly donated a fabulous prize for the Fly Navy Heritage Trust Raffle - a holiday for two at Marina Cay, British Virgin Islands.

For more details on how to obtain tickets, please click on the link below.

Volunteer RNHF Fundraisers & Educators

As most of you will appreciate, keeping our "old girls" flying takes quite a lot of effort and sadly more money than the cash-strapped defence budget is able to provide. The MoD does provide considerable support and the lion’s share of the cash, but industry sponsorship and help-in-kind provide a significant additional part. Further funding comes from airshow appearances by the aircraft, public legacies and donations, sales of merchandise and various fund raising initiatives. Yet another valuable thread is provided by individuals who do various things in their own way to raise cash for the cause. Stanley Brand wrote a book, Jack Thomas poetry, others speak publicly, but the most important feature of all of this is that they pass on the deeds and heritage of the Fleet Air Arm, which after all is very much a part of our remit. There are many such individuals who help us in their own particular way, and we are grateful to them all.

Andrew George Linsley

One of these individuals is Andrew George Linsley, a Lieutenant RN, who trained in the 1950s and worked as both an Observer and Diver. He retired from a very successful career in ‘civvy street’ and took up the challenge to help the RN Historic Flight. For many years now he has run a stall at airshows around the UK, selling our merchandise and also giving talks on a variety of historical Fleet Air Arm subjects.

The 1974 recovery of a Blackburn Skua from a lake in Norway where it landed, on the ice, in 1940 is one such theme. Andrew led the very successful diving recovery expedition and the aeroplane can now be seen in the Fleet Air Arm Museum. He also talks on other historically important and interesting aspects of Naval aviation. Andrew is often helped by Bob Buck, a university lecturer who is a master of turning aircraft parts and memorabilia into attractive and collectable aviation mementoes.

Bruce Vibert

Bruce Vibert was a Swordfish Pilot during WW2, flying from Escort carriers in support of the Arctic and Atlantic Convoys. A tough job in terrible conditions, but they helped turn the tide of WW2, allowing essential supplies and munitions to get through to Russia and of course to England in her hour of desperate need. Bruce joined the Canadian Navy after WW2, from which he retired in 1958. Nowadays he gives talks in graphic detail of how they trained and flew, the conditions they suffered, making do with inadequate tools and outdated aircraft yet also of the fantastic comradeship and spirit that existed in those terrible days.

It would be quite wrong to attempt to mention all who help the RNHF for there would, inevitibly, be one or two inadvertently missed out! However, they all help to pass on the Fleet Air Arm message and assist in educating the general public of the deeds of our predecessors and passing on something of the spirit of our service. Additionally, with their ‘earnings’ they help to keep our old aeroplanes in the air as an emotive reminder of how things were and hopefully enthuse today's youth and encourage them to become a member of the worlds most exclusive club!