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The Lincolnshire Aviation Heritage Centre is an aviation museum in East Kirkby, Lincolnshire, England. It was opened to the public in 1988 by Lincolnshire farmers Fred and Harold Panton, as a memorial to their older brother, Christopher Witton Panton, who lost his life during the Second World War. ==Museum history== Pilot Officer Christopher Panton served as a Flight Engineer with Royal Canadian Air Force 433 Squadron, based at RAF Skipton-on-Swale. On the night of 30/31 March 1944, he was flying in Handley Page Halifax ''HX272'', one of 782 heavy bombers taking part in a raid on the German city of Nuremberg. This attack, known as RAF Bomber Command's "Black Friday", would become notorious for the high losses incurred – 108 British aircraft were lost, 665 aircrew were killed and 159 taken prisoner.〔The raid took place on a night of bright moonlight. There was little cloud and the weather conditions caused the British heavy bombers to produce extensive Contrails (these normally did not form at the height the bombers flew at). As well as being unusually visible, the British had the bad luck that their route took their aircraft directly through the zone in which 200 German night-fighters, already in the air, where waiting for them - the Germans had been forewarned as their radar had picked up the bomber force before it had even crossed the British coast. The conditions for the Germans were ideal - one pilot used only 56 rounds to ammunition to shoot down four British aircraft.(''See Lord and Fox (1978)'').〕 One of those aircraft was ''HX272'', which caught fire and exploded after being attacked by a night fighter over Friesen, Germany. Christopher Panton was among the five crew killed, the remaining three survived to become prisoners of war. By the early 1970s, Christopher's younger brothers – Fred and Harold Panton – were successful poultry farmers. They became interested in acquiring a Second World War aircraft as a tribute to him and managed to obtain an option to purchase Avro Lancaster Mk VII, ''NX611'', then serving as a gate guardian at RAF Scampton. The aircraft's purchase had the condition that it remain at Scampton until 1983. In 1981, they bought a part of the former Royal Air Force airfield, RAF East Kirkby, to be a site for the aircraft when it became available.〔 The Lancaster was moved there in 1987 and has been there ever since. Other exhibits have also been acquired and historic aircraft with other owners are housed there, but the Lancaster remains the museum's focus. The airfield was originally built in 1943 as a Bomber Command Station and was used by both No. 57 Squadron RAF and No. 630 Squadron RAF from 1943 until the end of the war. It had four years of post–war use by United States Air Force for Air Rescue squadrons before military use ceased in 1958. The airfield was sold in 1964. Much of the runway is still intact today and it is used by local farmers as hard standing. The control tower has been recorded as being haunted.〔Halpenny, Bruce Barrymore ''Ghost Stations Lincolnshire'' – Pages 138–144〕 In 2008, the museum opened a part–grass, part–concrete unlicensed airfield, allowing aircraft to land there with prior permission.〔(【引用サイトリンク】 title=Flying in to East Kirkby )〕 The Prime Meridian passes through the site; its position is marked by an inscribed monument. There is also a monument to the airmen from 57 and 630 Squadron who were lost during the war. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Lincolnshire Aviation Heritage Centre」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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