Sometimes a new find comes from hours of online searching, often it comes from just getting out there and looking - this one was the result of time spent out and about - well that and @The Queen's nose for dereliction.
Racal Thorn Defence Systems, Hutton Moor Flight Shed, Weston Airport was a leading European supplier of advanced naval electronic warfare equipment and airborne surveillance radar systems. Based on what was Weston Airfield it remains one of the last groups of buildings on site.
The Security Guard and reception staff were not around....
Quick look in the labs...
Before moving onto the buildings main feature - one needed for the testing of radar - space!!
Not just floor space needed - but height too - to allow the free suspension of radar cluster/antenna for testing - high in the roof-space three large gimbals for the mounting of radar kit (one in blue above)
And so - up into that roof.....
One of those giant gimbals...
As an idea of the size, and height - clock the chair on the floor below..
The computer, high in the roof, used to control the gimbal..
Seems, however, that radar wasn't their only line of research - lasers too...
Laser testing building (with power, but sadly no shark-mountable lasers)...
Oh look - laser technicians notes..
And as a nice little final find we came across the document store...
Whilst not actually locked, it took a while to open this door...
Eventually managing it, as the door swung open - nothing, empty, nadah, - oh well not quite...
The only thing in the room was a single roll of used 35mm film, in its case, with a job number written on it.
From the type of film it had to be about 20 years old - at the very youngest.
Well, naturally I said 'yoink in the name of history' and hot-footed it to my nearest branch of Boots, to see if anything remained on the exposed film...
Result!! -pics of the plant when in use, and of the testing of helicopter radar in a quarry somewhere...
Thanks for looking, and thanks to @The Queen for her company...
Racal Thorn Defence Systems, Hutton Moor Flight Shed, Weston Airport was a leading European supplier of advanced naval electronic warfare equipment and airborne surveillance radar systems. Based on what was Weston Airfield it remains one of the last groups of buildings on site.
The Security Guard and reception staff were not around....
Quick look in the labs...
Before moving onto the buildings main feature - one needed for the testing of radar - space!!
Not just floor space needed - but height too - to allow the free suspension of radar cluster/antenna for testing - high in the roof-space three large gimbals for the mounting of radar kit (one in blue above)
And so - up into that roof.....
One of those giant gimbals...
As an idea of the size, and height - clock the chair on the floor below..
The computer, high in the roof, used to control the gimbal..
Seems, however, that radar wasn't their only line of research - lasers too...
Laser testing building (with power, but sadly no shark-mountable lasers)...
Oh look - laser technicians notes..
And as a nice little final find we came across the document store...
Whilst not actually locked, it took a while to open this door...
Eventually managing it, as the door swung open - nothing, empty, nadah, - oh well not quite...
The only thing in the room was a single roll of used 35mm film, in its case, with a job number written on it.
From the type of film it had to be about 20 years old - at the very youngest.
Well, naturally I said 'yoink in the name of history' and hot-footed it to my nearest branch of Boots, to see if anything remained on the exposed film...
Result!! -pics of the plant when in use, and of the testing of helicopter radar in a quarry somewhere...
Thanks for looking, and thanks to @The Queen for her company...
