Yorkshire Air Forces Museum used to be a base for 77 RAF Bomber squadron up to 1944, from then on (after suffering heavy aircraft losses), 77th moved to newly opened airfield (Sutton station), and Elvington airfield became a base for French Squadrons operating within No. 4 Group - 346 (Guyenne) and 347 (Tunisie). YAFM is one of the largest independent aviation museums in Britain. Many of available displays are held in old airfield buildings. The whole site is opened to visitors - officer's mess, living quarters, control tower, fire station, aircraft hangar...
There is plenty to see and read about (aircraft as well as vehicles), it can easily be a whole day out. YAFM has far more exhibits (from WW2) than on display at Cosford, but majority are placed in 1 hangar (second hangar is in plans for now, as some modern planes like Tornado or Harrier are kept outdoors), and that congestion makes reference photographing rather difficult. It seems every bit of space is used (there is a big gap in main display hangar though, something must be coming in, or just has gone out), smaller exhibits are placed in spaces under wings of large aircraft, with closer access obviously restricted due to H&S regulations (pants!). Nevertheless, whatever I have seen there (some of the aircraft are replicas - Spitfire, Me - 109), was well worth my time and cost. I do really regret it was one time trip (at least in not too distant future, but surely I will visit again), and not everything could have been recorded or photographed in one go. At some point I felt like "Japanese tourist" snapping everything what I've seen or been to, finding out what I actually seen back at home.
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| Dakota C-47 |
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| Waco Hadrian CG-4A |
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| Fairchild Argus II FK338 |
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| DH Mosquito NFII |
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| HP Halifax II(III) |
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| Me 109 G6 (replica) |
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| Air Gunner's Exhibition |
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| Fire Station |
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| French Officers' Mess |
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| Control Tower |
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