Some aircraft are remembered for a single date. For Vulcan XH558 there are several, but 18 October 2007 is the one that matters here. It was the day the aircraft flew again after its restoration.
The flight
Wikipedia says XH558 returned to flight on 18 October 2007 and carried out three test flights. The Register, reporting the same day, described it as the first of three planned test flights, with the Civil Aviation Authority clearing take-off from Bruntingthorpe airfield in Leicestershire, subject to weather. The Vulcan to the Sky Trust's own account also places it at Bruntingthorpe on Thursday 18 October 2007.
How long did it last? Wikipedia's List of surviving Avro Vulcans says the flight lasted 34 minutes. The Trust's account calls it "the thirty minute test flight". I would guess the second is a rounded figure, but I cannot prove that, so I am giving you both. The Register's report does not give a duration.
The Register names the pilot as Al McDicken. The Trust's account names two pilots, and the sources do not settle who flew what, so I have kept names out of the social posts.
What it cost
The money is where the sources do not line up neatly. The Register's 2007 report said the restoration cost £6.5m and was carried out by the Vulcan to the Sky Trust. It added that Sir Jack Hayward, owner of Wolverhampton Wanderers, gave £500,000 that kept the project afloat, and that around 20,000 people worldwide donated. In 2015 The Register described a "£7m restoration".
Wikipedia seems to explain the gap. It says £6.5m had been raised by the time of the first test flight, rising to £7m by the time of the first display. Some other sources say more than £7m, but I could only see those as search-result snippets, so I have not relied on them. If you want one number, I would say roughly £6.5m to £7m, depending on the date and what is counted.
Eight years of flying
After 2007 the aircraft flew public displays from 2008 until 2015. Wikipedia's list says the end of flying came when the technical authorities withdrew their support, without which the rules do not allow it to fly. Its final flight was on 28 October 2015, which Wikipedia's XH558 article describes as a small display at its Doncaster Sheffield base.
Where it is now
Wikipedia says XH558 is preserved at Doncaster Sheffield Airport in taxiable condition. It is not airworthy, so there are no more displays to chase. I have not been able to confirm anything about visiting arrangements, so check with the airport or the Trust before making a trip.
About the pictures
I have no photograph of the 2007 flight with a licence I can use. The photos in this package are library pictures from Wikimedia Commons, taken in 2008 and 2009 by Ronnie Macdonald and Tony Hisgett, both under CC BY 2.0. They show the aircraft in display flight after its return, not the day itself. I have no radar catch of it either, so this one is told in photographs.
Have you seen it fly?
Between 2008 and 2015 plenty of people watched XH558 at airshows and flypasts. If you saw it, I would like to hear where.
Sources
- Wikipedia, "Avro Vulcan XH558": https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Avro_Vulcan_XH558
- Wikipedia, "List of surviving Avro Vulcans": https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_surviving_Avro_Vulcans
- The Register, "Restored Vulcan takes to the skies", 18 October 2007: https://www.theregister.com/2007/10/18/vulcan_flight/
- The Register, 20 May 2015, Vulcan XH558 swansong: https://www.theregister.com/2015/05/20/vulcan_xh588_swansong_grounded_end_year/
- Vulcan to the Sky Trust, first flight account: https://vulcantothesky.org/?p=233937
- Photos via Wikimedia Commons: Ronnie Macdonald (CC BY 2.0), Tony Hisgett (CC BY 2.0)