An airplane, aviation and aircraft tour that covers aviation history from early flight through World War 2 aircraft and the Battle of Britain to RAF fighter jets, bombers and aviation news.

Britishtourplans provide you with travel guide itineraries and driving directions for your England self guided tours and this tour is a virtual museum of flight, covering the history of airplanes from museums and airshows throughout England. Britishtourplans also take you to some of the highlights of Britain’s heritage as we travel, to make the most of your visit.

The brief overview itinerary

Day 1
Your flight to London is just the gateway to aviation history. We set off and travel to the renowned Battle of Britain airfield at Tangmere. This was a front line RAF fighter station during the Battle of Britain and houses a wonderful Battle of Britain aviation museum. Free time to relax and unwind.

Day 2
We continue to visit the Solent Sky Aviation Museum - formerly the Southampton Hall of Aviation Museum - onward to visit Salisbury and its Cathedral with its spire, the tallest in Great Britain. The City has many Queen Anne and Georgian facades and the Old Town has narrow alleys full of medieval houses and quaint inns. We continue our sightseeing and stay the night Free time in the afternoon to relax and unwind

Day 3
Depart Salisbury and visit Stonehenge , the major pre-historic stone circle in the UK, continue westward to visit the Fleet Air Arm Museum at Yeovilton to see Britain’s major naval airplane museum. The aircraft are displayed in a natural setting for naval airplanes, on the flight deck of an aircraft carrier.

Day 4
Drive north through England’s beautiful villages of the Cotswolds, Boughton on the Water, Morton in Marsh, if we have time stop to visit the Wellington Aviation Museum or the Royal Flying Corps airfield at RFC Rencomb, which is also home to the ‘Utterly Butterly’ biplane team who offer flights with aerobatics along with wing walking for the stout hearted. Then on to RAF Aviation Museum Cosford with one England’s largest aircraft museum collections in the UK, as well as an excellent airshow during the year.

Day 5
To Coventry Aircraft Museum which incorporates the Jet Heritage Centre with optional flights with Air Atlantique. Onwards to the Nottingham East Midlands Airport Aeropark to see their lovely, but small, aviation history collection.

Day 6
To Newark Aviation Museum in the heart of England and the RAF’s ‘bomber country’. Newark Aircraft Museum is a WW2 bomber airfield and has an excellent aircraft museum and a gliding club on the site. A drive through RAF Cranwell to see the façade of College Hall, home of the RAF Officer Training – and watch out for the airplanes that are now ‘gate guardians’ - then on to the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight at RAF Conningsby, to see the only airworthy Lancaster bomber in the UK (and one of only two in the world). See it along with the Spitfires, Hurricane and Dakota and the Visitor Centre. These aircraft fly at airshows throughout England in the summer and are maintained by the RAF to preserve some aviation history. Spend the night at the hotel that was the WW2 RAF Officers Mess for 617 Sqadron, the Dambusters.

Day 7
We visit East Kirkby, an old WW2 airfield to see the aviation museum and Lancaster bomber ‘Just Jane’ and often they taxi her out to the old runway. Then south to Biggleswade to visit the Shuttleworth Collection which is home to a huge slice of aviation history. Still a tiny active airfield but with a fantastic collection of very early airplanes. They host evening air shows during the summer, often during the calmness of the evening due to the age and fragility of the aircraft. Onwards to the American Military Cemetery at Madingley and then to Cambridge with a visit to the famous ‘Eagle’ pub. Free time to explore.

Day 8
The short drive from Cambridge to IWM Duxford, an original Battle of Britain airfield to see the fabulous Imperial War Museum’s airplane collection and various historic aircraft being restored and flown. This really is Britain’s ‘museum of flight’. We visit the impressive USAF (American) hanger and Memorial and the Land Warfare Museum. During the summer months the air shows here is not to be missed – especially the Duxford Flying Legends air show. Back to spend the night at Cambridge. Free time to explore – and visit the ‘Eagle’ again.

Day 9
South today to the De Havilland Aircraft Heritage Aviation Centre and Mosquito Aviation Museum then continue to visit RAF Hendon for the RAF Museum. Sadly no air show here but a fantastic museum.

Day 10
Hawkinge Battle of Britain Museum to see its artifacts and fascinating relics. Items in this museum bring home the fact that the Battle of Britain was not just about Spitfires and Hurricanes, Messerschmitts and Heinkels but about British and German pilots and what happened to them and their aircraft during the fighting. To Capel-le-Ferne, the Battle of Britain Memorial, on the White Cliffs of Dover.

Your Britishtourplans travel guide will then return you to London to conclude your aviation history tour.

Depending on your tour dates, it may be possible to include one or more of the many air shows during the summer season.

To help you plan your tour dates, please view the complete list of UK Air Shows

Tour consists of 81 pages. Approx file size 5mb