Visit Shuttleworth Old Warden Aerodrome, near Biggleswade, Bedfordshire and discover a truly awe-inspiring collection of historic aircraft and vehicles dating from the first half of the 20th century.
Explore the hangars, smell the engine oil, see the engineers at work. Visit on an event day and be captivated by these incredible aircraft in flight, taking off from the traditional grass runway.
Look out for their Blériot XI, dating from 1909 – the world’s oldest airworthy aircraft; the racing aircraft DH88 Comet – which won the MacRobertson air race from England to Australia in 1934; and even a Supermarine Spitfire being restored in the engineering workshop.
Other restored airplanes include: Sopwith Pup, Sopwith Triplane, Avro 504C, RAF SE5A, de Havilland DH60X Moth, Gloster Gladiator, Hawker Sea Hurricane, and many more.
No trip to the Collection is complete without a visit to the Engineering Workshop. Here you’ll find engineers and volunteers working to restore the Collection’s aircraft and to keep them in an airworthy condition.
The workshop provides an important service. By keeping as much of the engineering work ‘in house’ as possible, they are able to ensure quality and keep important skills alive. They carry out restoration, machine work and engine rebuilds of the Collection aircraft and the privately owned vintage aircraft.
It's not all just about aircraft either, as Shuttleworth boasts a fine collection of vintage cars and motorcycles. But there's more...
Having just reopened after a £3.5m restoration, this is the perfect time to discover Shuttleworth's 'Swiss Garden.' An outstanding example of the Regency fashion for creating landscapes in a picturesque alpine style. With new vistas revealed at every turn, 13 listed structures, an adjacent woodland sculpture trail and three resident peacocks, the Swiss Garden is a delight to explore.
The Guardian newspaper describes it as ‘A miniature world, dotted with follies as absurdly pretty as illustrations in a fairy tale.’
Some of the forthcoming events include an Engineering open weekend, Scale model exhibition, and various Christmas celebrations
