West Walton aviation museum faces turbulent times
A Fenland museum which has spent the last 30 years documenting the area's aviation history faces an uncertain future and could even be forced to close.
Fenland and West Norfolk Aviation Museum based in West Walton is home to thousands of aviation relics including four complete aircraft as well as well as remnants recovered from World War Two crash sites across the area.
Now its newly appointed chairman Chris Herring has issued an urgent SOS to help secure the museum's future with a Gofundme page aimed at raising at least £50,000 in the next four years.
The museum currently leases the site at Bambers Leisure off the Old Lynn Road, where it has been located for the past three decades, but the lease is due to expire in four years time and there is doubt over whether it will be able to remain where it is or be forced to move elsewhere.
Chris said: "The lease is up in four years time and the landlord has indicated he may either want to sell the land or lease it at a commercial rate. We are lucky we currently only pay peanuts - £500 per year for the site - but once our lease expires then that could change.
"We totally understand where the landlord is coming from, but if our rent increases to a commercial rate then we are not going to be able to stay. The alternative is to look at buying the site, but that is equally expensive and means we need to raise at least £50,000 so we can do it.
"Moving is not the cheaper option, even if we could find a site we could afford, it is going to cost thousands and thousands to relocate. We have four complete aircraft, a fuselage of a Shackleton, which was based on a Lancaster bomber, we have a member currently restoring a Hurricane fuselage and we have a 747 flight simulator, as well as thousands of other exhibits.
"It is going to require cranes and numerous lorries to help us relocate the museum and that is all going to be expensive. The landlord has indicated he would expect to sell the site for around £50,000, but for a museum like ours which is run by volunteers, most of them elderly, that is a huge sum and we simply don't make that kind of money.
"Last year our takings were around £7,000 and that was all spent on maintaining the site and the exhibits - we don't have a surplus of cash. We are in a Catch 22 - we need lots of financial help to either stay where we are or move.
"Unfortunately we can't get help from the Heritage Lottery fund because we don't own the site, and so they won't consider giving us a grant. That is why I have set up the Gofundme page.
"I have only just taken over as chairman and have decided we need to take action now to ensure the museum's future. We are in danger of being lost if we can't raise the necessary money then everything will have to be sold, given away or worse still scrapped with the history lost forever.
"Over the last 30 years our members have recovered crashed WW2 aircraft from sites all over East Anglia. These have then been displayed with the story of the crews that often made the ultimate sacrifice for the Allied forces.
"Despite our small size the local history recorded in our museum cannot be underestimated. We have had relatives of some the lost aviators visit us from as far afield as New Zealand to see the remains of the aircraft their family member was in when they perished and many a tear and story has been shared.
"That is why I'm appealing for people to donate, to help preserve our heritage."
To help secure the museum's future visit: www.gofundme.com/f/k8z2k3-save-our-museum?