Stock aircraft scrapyard in Essex

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Member for

19 years 9 months

Posts: 1,424

Hello, if anyone has a copy of wrecks and relics 1992-1995 (ish) I would be interested to know the registration number of any Fairchild metro III or Swearingen Metroliner which was scrapped at Stock in Essex.

Anyhow my request is quite a narrow field but I also open this thread up to anyone who wishes to write or post their memories of the scrapyard at Stock in Essex.

Thanks in advance.

Original post

Member for

18 years 1 month

Posts: 1,270

I used to frequent Hanningfield Metals quite a lot in the early nineties, though I don't recall those particular airframes.
I can remember the two RAE Viscounts, and a Varsity being dismantled, the Viscounts were totally complete with various bits of experimental avionics in the cabin.
...and of course those Phantoms, I really wanted that 74 Sqn tiger Phantom. It's a real shame that most of them were scrapped.
I had a few engines and APUs from there over the years.

Are they still in business?

Pete

Member for

14 years 2 months

Posts: 585

The best place for Metros is the scrapyard....

Member for

17 years 10 months

Posts: 3,778

As far as I know they went, but Steve still sells from time to time on eBay, cannot remember the user name, something like Nancy ----

Member for

17 years 7 months

Posts: 1,444

I started going after the Phantoms were scrapped so missed the best part. But when I did start going, I went nearly every week, Friday was a good day regularly took a day off work, and when the skip came from St Athan, it could be filled with unexpected goodies, or just filing cabinets and desks, I went any time I could get there, the possibility of what you might find was always exciting, but sometimes came back empty handed, but mostly happy with goodies.

My first first visit there was a Canberra PR9 cockpit lying on its side by the entrance, the nose cone missing and wiring spilling out of the front, no idea what the id was, I came away with the half stick and top and full instrument panel set from a Canberra, missing only a few instruments, the engine and side panel cut out complete from the cockpit still all in one piece, that was from the one painted up as Aries I think scrapped at Cranwell, that lot cost be under £100, the top from that stick went into WE173, still got the bottom but somewhere. I can't remember the proper serial too many cut out brain cells. Also a PR9 panel later again nearly complete about £75

After that it was downhill for me, regular boot loads of cockpit stuff, Buccaneer, Tornado, Phantom, some Harrier bits. I remember massive skips overflowing with crushed up Tornado's. Rummaging through the scrap mountain could turn up overlooked goodies, like a Harrier GR5 throttle box once.

I had two cockpits from there, Canberra PR3 WE173, sadly only from the nav panel forward, but still had seat and bare panels in it, it was on the pile to be fragged when I got it, and Tornado GR1 ZD710 which a forum member here now owns, always looked sorry for itself, but pretty sure was the first Tornado cockpit in private ownership. Some interesting times there, classified documents turning up in a filing cabinet, urgently collected by the MOD when they were told.

I agreed a price on an F4 cockpit only annoyingly to be let down later a few months later when they finally came in. Towards the end I found it got very disappointing, the RAF scrap had stopped, and after one particular experience I stopped going, shame there is nowhere like that today.

Member for

18 years 6 months

Posts: 993

The last time I saw Steve he had pretty much finished with aircraft scrapping as there was too much Health and Safety/Environmental Paperwork to be filled in as part of any tender.

I think he still has the yard as he mainly supplies bits for Film & Television work.

Last time I was there was just after he had cleared the Mig 27 from Foulness. The centre section was just inside the yard

Steve would have sold the Phantoms were it not for the scarp and remelt clause in the tender which was strictly enforced. The Tiger Phantom which Steve wanted to keep caused him big problems with disposal sales.

Many of the cockpit sections were cleared as the environment agency wanted them stored on concrete and not where they were.

Member for

19 years 9 months

Posts: 1,424

Anyone know where the Viscount cockpit ended up? At one time I had all the equipment to fit this out which was taken from a BEA simulator but sadly wasn't able to acquire the cockpit and have since moved the kit on. I only attended Stock once probably about 10-12 yrs back, remember a PR9 cockpit and a large shed full of instruments and aviation equipment to browse through and buy.
The only place I now know of anything similar is ASI at Kemble but everything passing through them now is all modern stuff, their previous base at Alton was also interesting.

Member for

18 years 1 month

Posts: 1,270

One of the RAE Viscounts, or just the cockpit? Went to Brooklands I think.

Pere