Sad

One of the joys of my life was attending an air show at Biggin Hill and watching the older planes lovingly preserved by enthusiasts flying or in a few cases left on the ground for engineers (and others) like me to look at and occasionally have a look under the covers. Whilst my own enthusiasms go elsewhere I couldn't help but admire the dedication and no doubt the personal costs that went into looking after these planes. So rooting around the various MSM outfeeds today I ran across an article that saddened me greatly...
BBC.

The last airworthy Vulcan bomber will fly for the final time next year, the trust which funds the aircraft has confirmed.
The XH558 has been based at South Yorkshire's Robin Hood Airport since March 2011 after the RAF Lyneham base closure was announced.
It has been decided that "challenging modifications" to both wings would not be sustainable to the old aircraft.
The Vulcan to the Sky Trust said it decided not to fund the repairs.
Trust chief executive Dr Robert Pleming told supporters: "At the end of next year, she will need a £200,000 modification to her wings to increase her flying life.
"We know that you would do your upmost to fund this work, but for a number of reasons we have decided not to ask you to take this risk."

The 'Vulcan' was of course the main reason I attended the air show as I'd been reading and monitoring the groups progress for quite a while and was overjoyed when they managed to get the 'tin triangle' back into airworthiness.
No, it's not exactly going to break hearts, though perhaps it will with some enthusiasts,but the world is definitely a less fun place to be with me this morning...