EVENTS AT COTSWOLD AIRPORT
@NEGUS747
ABOUT US
Negus and Cotswold Airport
In early 2020, British Airways announced the early retirement of their Boeing 747 fleet, due to the downtime caused by the Coronavirus pandemic. A year prior to this announcement, British Airways had re-painted three of these iconic aircraft into heritage colour past liveries (BOAC, Landor and Negus), celebrating 100 years of service.
After 6 weeks of negotiations, it was announced that G-CIVB, Negus livery B747 was to have a permanent home here at Cotswold Airport, rather than being scrapped. Negus arrived here at Cotswold Airport in October 2020, much to the delight of many aviation enthusiasts.
In order to earn her keep, work began to transform the aircraft into a corporate events space and private hire venue. Work included re-wiring her to work on mains power, rather than her own APU and installing a professional AV system for events.
On 11th February 2022, G-CIVB was officially opened by local councillor, Joe Harris.
Almost a year and a half since she flew into the airport, in March 2022, Negus opened for the public to step onboard, with many original aspects of the aircraft in the same place as the day she flew in.
Since opening in March 2022, Negus has seen an overwhelming amount of visitors on public tour dates, we are honored that we are able to host these tours onboard this beautiful Queen of the Skies.
The Transformation
In order to generate the funds required for such a large preservation project, Negus needed to be able to earn her keep.
To do so, work began upon her arrival at Cotswold Airport to transform the Economy cabin (World Traveler) into an exclusive events space, complete with Chauvet and L'acoustic products.
The transformation process was a long journey, but the hard work paid off. We now have a spectacular, versatile, venue where we are able to host a wide variety of events ranging from weddings to corporate events.
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The Airport
A Gloucestershire airport steeped in history, Cotswold Airport is now home to a growing Business Aviation and General Aviation (GA) community, and to a host of successful businesses. Kemble Air Services Ltd is the licensed operator of Cotswold Airport and is committed to making it one of the finest airfields in the country, whilst remaining mindful of the natural charm that abounds on this 532-acre site.
The airport is owned by Ronan Harvey who purchased it from the MOD in 2001 and successfully turned it into a thriving civilian airport. Whilst operated by the MOD the airport was famous for being the home of the RAF Red Arrows aerobatic team. This history is commemorated with a Red Arrow ‘GNAT’ taking pride of place beside the airport’s café, ‘AV8’. Ronan’s daughter, Suzannah Harvey, is now the C.E.O. and is building on her father’s vision by continuing the airport’s trajectory to become a leading hub for aviation, a base for aviation and non-aviation related businesses, and a bespoke function venue.