With a heavy heart, I left the RAF Museum and headed for the Brooklands Museum, munching on a sandwich in the traffic. As the world’s first racing circuit and the UK’s largest aircraft manufacturing base one time, there are plenty of things to see both on land and in the air. There are also a large number of elderly volunteers working at the museum, who will happily answer any questions you have. The bank run experience is only £1, as a donation to the drivers and staffs, what a bargain. There is a full line-up of British cars, from old-timers to recent F1 models. The 1933 Napier-Railton, being equipped with a 24L aircraft engine, is a must-see. At the former aircraft factory, there is a corner where you can enjoy the transition of aircraft materials from fabric to wood, metal and composite materials by touching them, and another corner where you can make an airplane by bending and riveting aluminum sheets, and there are also many technical experience exhibits for children, which I envy. The exhibitions of World War II aircraft and jet aircraft are also worth seeing. I got to ride in a Spitfire in the morning in RAF museum, and then I was in the cockpit of a Harrier in the afternoon! What a day! To top it all off, I got to experience boarding a Concorde. The Concorde was designed in 1962, which is the same age as me! It was like coming from the future on a different time axis, and seeing this supersonic passenger plane, which is now gone, up close was really moving.
The entrance to the Brooklands Museum. It was the world’s first purpose-built racing circuit, and its huge bank is very impressive.From classic cars to F1 cars in the back, this is the first hall that gives you the feeling that you can see all the major exhibits here, a la carte. After this, the exhibits get deeper and maniac.This is a corner where you can sit in an F1 cockpit and experience a driving simulator. There is a line.The Napier Railton was equipped with a monstrous W-12 engine with a 24-liter displacement. In 1935, it set a course record of 235 km/h at Brooklands.There are also a lot of old motorcycles. These racers are in a transitional period, so there were bunch of unique designs like this, the front suspension links are popping out of number plate.Aircraft on display lined up after the former aircraft factory. This is a Vickers Wellington with the skin removed.The upstairs exhibition hall is home to a diverse range of aircraft, from canvas-covered biplanes from the early days of aviation (replicas) to large warplanes such as the Hawker Hurricane and jet aircraft such as the Bae Hawk.You can get into the cockpit of a Harrier. Both the Harrier and the Spit were told to get down on the seat with your shoes on and then put your legs down and sit down, but I wonder if pilots usually do that. I felt a little uncomfortable about stepping on the seat with my shoes on, but you definitely have to do that to get in. There is no registration or queue here, and when you go there, there is a staff member who will let you get in.Concorde No. 6 returned to its home country because some of its parts were produced at Brooklands. You can apply for a 30-minute guided tour and go inside to sit in the seat and experience what it’s like to board the plane. They also show a short movie about the history of Concorde inside.The world’s first stratosphere wind tunnel. The inside is lowered to 1/20 atmospheric pressure and -60℃ to recreate the conditions at an altitude of 20,000km, and it is possible to observe the movement of aircraft in high-speed air flow as a wind tunnel. I’m surprised that something like this was built before the Cold War. Truly, the technology of old Britain was wonderful.広い芝生にはコンコルドを始めとした旅客機が数多く展示されており、たいていは中まで見られるようになっている。後ろに見えるのがオリジナルのブルックランズ・サーキットの巨大バンク。この辺は荒れておりもう走れないが一部デモ走行可能な区間がある。There are many passenger planes on display on the large lawn, including the Concorde, and most of them can be seen from the inside. The huge bank of the original Brooklands Circuit can be seen in the background. This area is rough and cannot be driven on any more, but there is a section where demonstration driving is possible.
There are many photos in the gallery, so please take a look. There is also a video of the bank run experience. First, here are some photos related to cars.
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