PRESS RELEASE
Issued: 5th April 2016
Wing Commander (Ret’d) Bill Ramsey appointed as Operations Director, The People’s Mosquito
The People’s Mosquito is pleased to announce that at the Company’s AGM on 3rd April 2016, Wing Commander (Ret’d) Bill Ramsey, was appointed to the Board of Directors as Operations Director.
Bill has been involved with the project since 2012 in a non-board role as Technical R&D and Ops Advisor but with the end of Vulcan XH558’s operational life, he is now able to focus more time on The People’s Mosquito project, and an agreement was made that he could best serve the project in a Director’s role. The role is voluntary and non-remunerative, as are all Directors’ roles within the organisation.
Bill will eventually be responsible for developing the Operations Manual for RL249 and other operational matters. In the interim, he will be reaching out to other Mosquito operators to discuss any particular problems they might have encountered with the type, as well as working with Ross Sharp, Director of Engineering and Airframe Compliance, and our New Zealand partners to ensure that The People’s Mosquito produces the safest and most reliable Mosquito possible.
As Operations Director, Bill will also be consulting with former Mosquito pilots to glean as much data as possible. Bill has already been in contact with George Stewart in Canada; George is one of the most experienced surviving Mosquito pilots, with well over 1,000 hours on type.
During his RAF career Bill has flown around 6700 hours in some 35 or so aircraft types – mainly Vulcan, Jet Provost, Tornado GR1 and Hawk but was also lucky enough to fly the Lancaster and Dakota with the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight in 1999. Apart from the UK he served overseas in Germany and Saudi Arabia as well as visiting more countries than he can count in various appointments.
His last flying tour was as the senior supervisor to the Red Arrows, accompanying the Team on many memorable occasions – particularly tours to Canada, the Middle and Far East. He rounded off a long RAF career as a Full Time Reservist Qualified Flying Instructor on the Grob Tutor at Cranwell, where he was the RAF Solo Aerobatic Pilot for the Tutor in 2009-10. At the start of the 2011 season he returned to Vulcan flying with the crew of Vulcan B.2 XH558, and was the last aircraft captain for the final flight in October 2015.
Formed in December 2011, The People’s Mosquito is a Registered Charity (No. 1165903) whose objective is the restoration to flight of a De Havilland DH.98 Mosquito aircraft for heritage, conservation and educational purposes; the ongoing maintenance and operation of the aircraft in an airworthy condition and the display of the aircraft to the public.
The project began life on Twitter when warbird restorer and aviation fanatic John Lilley tweeted about his longstanding idea of getting a Mosquito flying in the UK again.
ENDS##
Notes to Editors
Both Bill Ramsey and John Lilley, Chairman and Managing Director, are available for interview/comment. Please contact Nick Horrox who will arrange this if required.
Contact: Nick Horrox, Director of Communications, The People’s Mosquito Ltd.
Mobile: (0) 7966 482770
Email: press@peoplesmosquito.org.uk
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