Researched 2026-10-11 from the sources listed below. Airframes move between hangars, workshops and loans: check with Aerospace Bristol before travelling to see this one.
The airframe in brief
| Serial / registration | 9048 |
|---|---|
| Type | Bristol Bolingbroke Mk IVT |
| Taken on charge | 8 October 1941, Royal Canadian Air Force |
| Units / operator | Royal Canadian Air Force (training) |
| Struck off charge | 21 August 1946 |
| Later owners | Military Aircraft Restoration Corp, Chino 1972–76; Yankee Air Corps Museum, Chino 1981–99; 1st Composite Group, Apple Valley 1999–2001 |
| Arrived | 2006, from California, in three parts |
| Status | Under restoration |
| Where | Aerospace Bristol, Bristol |
The story of 9048
9048 is a Bolingbroke Mk IVT, the crew-training version of Canada's licence-built Blenheim IV. The Royal Canadian Air Force took it on charge on 8 October 1941 and used it as a trainer.
It was struck off charge on 21 August 1946 and listed for disposal at RCAF Paulson, to go to a farmer for parts. It later belonged to Wes Agnew of Hartney, Manitoba. From 1972 to 1976 David Tallichet's Military Aircraft Restoration Corporation held it at Chino, California. The Yankee Air Corps Museum, also at Chino, had it from 1981 to 1999. In 1999 it was trucked to the 1st Composite Group at Apple Valley, California.
Bill Morgan acquired the badly damaged remains, and they reached the UK from California in 2006 in three parts. Volunteers first worked on it in garages and garden sheds. The parts were later brought together in a First World War hangar at Filton, where the Blenheim was designed.
Work now goes on in the museum's Conservation in Action Workshop, opened in 2021. The right wing was fitted in 2022 and the left wing in June 2023. The tailcone followed in January 2024 and the tailplane in June 2024. The fin went on in mid-2024, with a rudder support structure made from scratch by volunteer Tim Nutt.
Seeing 9048 today
Under restoration by volunteers in the Conservation in Action Workshop, where visitors can see the airframe being reassembled.
| Museum | Adult entry | Airframes | Headline exhibit |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aerospace BristolBristol, Gloucestershire | £20 | 14 | Concorde G-BOAF, the last Concorde ever built and the last ever to fly (26 November 2003, into Filton, forever). You can board her.… |
Also known as: RCAF 9048 · Bolingbroke IV · Fairchild Bolingbroke · Bristol Blenheim · Blenheim IV · RCAF 9408