Qualla: 1958 Syerston Avro Vulcan Crash

1958 Syerston Avro Vulcan Crash: Introduction

Wed, 27 May 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Saturday afternoon, 20 September 1958. Battle of Britain Day at RAF Syerston, in the flat country east of Newark. The crowd had come to see the future of British aviation: VX770, the first Vulcan prototype, the great white delta-winged bomber that was supposed to keep the peace by guaranteeing mutually assured destruction. The Vulcan flew low along runway 07. The pilot pulled into a climbing roll to starboard. Then the starboard wing tore itself apart in mid-air, the main spar gave way, and the aircraft fell flaming into the airfield. Seven people died: the four aircrew aboard, and three men in a controllers' caravan who never had time to look up.

1958 Syerston Avro Vulcan Crash: The Aircraft That Should Not Have Been There

Wed, 27 May 2026 00:00:00 GMT

VX770 was the senior member of the Vulcan family, the original prototype that had first flown in 1952. It was a research aircraft, not an operational bomber, and it had spent its career being re-engined every few years as Britain's jet manufacturers tested new powerplants. It beg...

1958 Syerston Avro Vulcan Crash: The Manoeuvre That Killed Them

Wed, 27 May 2026 00:00:00 GMT

The display flight began with a low run along runway 07, then a starboard climbing roll, the kind of manoeuvre that gives a heavy bomber a moment of grace and gives a crowd something to remember. During the roll the starboard wing began to disintegrate. The main spar, the long st...

1958 Syerston Avro Vulcan Crash: The Quiet Disagreement

Wed, 27 May 2026 00:00:00 GMT

The official inquiry was not the end of the matter. Avro's chief test pilot, Tony Blackman, argued later that the truth was more complicated and less comfortable. Blackman believed VX770 had probably suffered undetected damage during earlier flights, possibly during what he descr...

1958 Syerston Avro Vulcan Crash: What Remained

Wed, 27 May 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Air shows in 1958 were not safety-conscious affairs by later standards. Spectators stood close to the line. Display crews flew with confidence rather than choreography. VX770 was the first Vulcan ever built, and the first prototype of any production aircraft tends to carry small,...