Concordia

Concordia Winter 2021 Obituaries

Dr Robert Pleming (1964-1970) died on 2nd February 2021 aged 69 W e are sad to report that Robert Pleming (1964- 1970) died suddenly on 2nd February 2021. He died at

home in Alresford, Hampshire and leaves behind his wife Suzanne, his children Rachel, Elaine and David and grandchildren Henry, Freddy and Sylvie. He will be greatly missed by all who knew him. Many OMTs will recall that Robert was the driving force and visionary behind the Vulcan of the Skies Trust, which took the last airworthy Avro Vulcan, XH558, and kept it flying from 2007- 2015. There have been many tributes in the aviation and air show enthusiast community. By way of a tribute, here is an edited version of an article sent in by Bill Sheppard in 2015 about XH558’s last flight at Doncaster Airport. The culmination of a remarkable programme masterminded and inspired by an OMT took place at the end of October. The Vulcan to the Sky project was masterminded and spearheaded by Robert Pleming, OMT, who has written previously in Concordia about the programme. The last airworthy Vulcan, XH558, took its final flight on Wednesday 28th October from its base at Robin Hood Airport, Doncaster (formerly RAF Finningley) in South Yorkshire. The final flight had been planned long in advance, but it nearly didn’t happen due to heavy rain. Moreover, as was widely reported afterwards, the police had insisted on the flight details being kept secret from the public for fear of large crowds overwhelming the airport, in the hope of a last sight of a Vulcan in flight. However, the weather gods relented (appropriately, of course, given the plane being named after the Roman god of fire and volcanoes) and the airport was able to provide a later take- off slot. XH558 took off just before 3pm, and landed again ten minutes later. There were many supporters and enthusiasts who did manage to see the last flight. As the Vulcan to the Sky newsletter puts it: “We must also thank one remarkable man without whose vision and leadership we would not have enjoyed eight more years of fabulous Vulcan displays.”

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took her last flight before becoming the jewel in the crown of a permanent exhibition, called The Vulcan Experience, at Doncaster Airport. John Sharman, Chairman of the Vulcan to the Sky Trust, said on Robert’s death: “Robert was a true visionary whose determination to restore Vulcan XH558 to flight captured the hearts and minds of millions of people. His determination was an inspiration and an exemplar of how to bring a difficult project to fruition.” “We will continue our work on his vision for the future of XH558 as an inspiration for green technology as well as an aeronautical milestone. His mission was to engage young people in the possibilities that a career in engineering can create to tackle the challenges facing the world today.”

Chief Executive of the Vulcan to the Sky Trust, Robert was the driving force to return Vulcan XH558 to the skies. He approached then owner, David Walton, in 1997, and together agreed that he could carry out a feasibility study of a return to flight project based on sound management practice and a professional approach. In the evenings and weekends released to him in 1997 following the loss of the ability to practice his favourite sport, Robert built a team to guide the project’s direction, and established sufficient credibility with the Vulcan’s Design Authority, BAE Systems (British Aerospace at the time), for the formal decision to be taken to proceed with the activities necessary to achieve the return to flight. The rest is history after she returned to flight on 18th October 2007. Eight years and ten days later, XH558

Obituaries

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