U-boat at Birkenhead

Site Issues 2006 Archive Room
#1

If you want to see the U-boat at Birkenhead you best be nimble!!!

The Warship Preservation Trust - Closure NoticeJanuary 18, 2006 at 5:39 pm

I made a recent visit to the Warship Preservation Trust for the first time to see the ships they have preserved there (see my some of my pictures of the ships - HMS Onyx and U543), today I received an email from them indicating that they are going into voluntary liquidation and closing from the 5th February 2006.

See http://www.limewolf.com/

Some pics of U 543.


Note Falklands war LCP in foreground, just behind fence.

#2

More on the closure here: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/merseyside/4625102.stm

It seems somewhat short sighted of the Council not to have found them a new home, as visitors bring money into the area.

Sad really

#3

It is a shame that it is all just for development, now that is bull.

Henk

#4

[sarcasm]Stupid ideas from Wirral Council? That’s something new [/sarcasm]

I’ll have to try and get home before they close then.

#5

Just spoken to my dad about this - he knows a guy on the committee.

The U-Boat is going to be moved to Albert Dock in Liverpool, but Liverpool City Council are unwilling to pay for the other ships (HMS Plymouth, HMS Onyx, HMS Brongington and LCT7074) to be moved over the river as it will cost around £25,000.

The warships will close for business on the February 5th 2006.

Unfortunately, due to the main local backer pulling out (a local millionaire, Sir something or other), there is no money in the pot for the other ships, so they could be scrapped.

Also, an electrician working on the U-Boat recently found an Iron Cross hidden in a cubby hole onboard the sub.

#6

BDL some of Liverpools local councillors are trying to find a way of getting the whole package moved across the river, one of them is Joe Anderson who is a top bloke( we were at uni at the same time and shared a couple of classes) though he is tied up with the Micheal Shields case he is hoping to lobby extensivly for the move.

It would make sense to site them in Liverpool due to it’s Naval history and would tie in nicely with either the maritime museum or the Western approaches centre. As Liverpool will have capital of culture status in 2008 I can’t see why some of the money shouldn’t be spent on the move. To be honest £25,000 isnt that much considering the over spend on the big dig thats been going on for months.

If the the local council grew some balls and hit the developers who are conveting every availible building into yuppie apatrments with 0.1% surcharge on profits they would have enough to refit all the boats and have their own Navy.

#7

Hopefully they’ll find a way - there was talk of HMS Plymouth going to Plymouth at one point. It would be a shame to break up the fleet though, or to move Onyx away from her home (she was built at Lairds).

Apparently they’re one of the most popular tourist attractions on the Wirral, so hopefully that’ll help their case.

#8

well, maybe they can sell it to our canadian navy, at least it shouldnt be leaking like the one we bought from the british and i think it killed some of our canadian soldiers inside due to fire accident

#9

It did, but the enquiry found that the fire was caused by a mistake by the Canadians, not something the British had done IIRC.