Aviation Photography - Nimrod XV232

Hawker Siddeley Nimrod MR.2 XV232
Nimrod Preservation Group
Coventry, Bagington airport
2023 to 2026

From the Nimrod Preservation Group website: XV232 was first delivered to RAF St Mawgan in 1970. Her primary roles were defined as a Submarine hunter and Search and Rescue aircraft. She served her country from RAF Luqa in Malta and RAF Kinloss in Scotland until 2010.

Nimrod XV232 landed at Coventry airport on May 11, 2010 following a delivery flight from RAF Kinloss in Scotland. A veteran of the Falklands War, XV232 in 1982 set a distance record for a reconnaissance flight that has yet to be beaten. Supported by in-flight refuelling assets, the aircraft covered 8,453 miles (13,609km) in 18 hours and 50 minutes while monitoring the South Atlantic for Argentinian naval activity.
Throughout 2024 the Group continued with engine-run events for fund raising hopefully, on the third(?) Saturday of most months. They continue to look for additional ways to raise funds, including a GoFundMe page.

November 10, 2025. "This last week, out of the blue, we received a letter along with other occupants and businesses based at Coventry Airport that we have a deadline date of the 9th May 2026 to have fully ceased operations and to have left the airfield." The group now has only a few options left: raise hundreds of thousands of pounds to relocate the aircraft to Manston, which has offered it a home, or allow it to be taken away at no cost and scrapped at Kemble (Cotswolds Airport). In the latter case, it would be dismantled for parts. It's such a shame, I was there on December 6, 2025, to see one of its last anti-det engine runs.

May 2026. Nimrod Preservation Group XV232 announced the creation of a strategic partnership with the RAF Manston History Museum as part of the long-term preservation plans for Nimrod XV232. The airport is now closed and XV232 is being readied for its move to Manston.
XV232 was one of the last Nimrods to undergo a major servicing programme before the fleet was withdrawn from service. Following completion, she flew under her own power to Coventry, arriving as one of the best preserved and most complete Nimrods in existence.
That excellent condition has been maintained by our volunteer team, but preparing XV232 for her move to RAF Manston History Museum is a far more demanding engineering task. Many procedures, including engine removal, dismantling major assemblies and preparing the aircraft for transport, have not been carried out since her RAF service. Every stage requires detailed planning, specialist knowledge and the correct equipment to ensure the aircraft and everyone involved remain safe.
One of the first major milestones is removing the remaining fuel. Although it sounds straightforward, the Nimrod's complex fuel system makes it a significant operation. Volunteers are draining each tank in sequence using specially made tools, transfer pumps and IBC storage tanks.
Completing this work makes the aircraft safe to dismantle, reduces its transport weight and marks another important step towards its relocation. Every bolt removed and every hour donated by our volunteers brings XV232 closer to her new home at RAF Manston History Museum.

June 2026, Current work includes:
Planning aircraft jacking arrangements and specialist support equipment.
Preparing for the careful removal of the engines and associated components.
Recovering, inspecting and assessing ground power equipment for future preservation work.
Developing storage, protection and transport plans for major aircraft components.
Reviewing bomb bay door securing arrangements and other preparations for the aircraft's move.

Hawker Siddeley (later BAE Systems) Nimrod MR.2 (XV232) with the Nimrod Preservation Group.

Left to right: Hawker Siddeley Nimrod MR.2 (XV232) with the Nimrod Preservation Group was also engine running today.

Left to right: For a small fee on the day of an engine run in July 2024, I was inside Nimrod MR.2 (XV232) with the Nimrod Preservation Group.

Left to right: A lonely looking Nimrod during the weekend January 2025 the nearby Avro Shackleton left by road bound for Elvington and the Yorkshire Air Museum (see report).