Jaguar On The Prowl At Bentwaters
On 19th March 2022, the former RAF Bentwaters came to life with the sound of Jaguar GR1A XX741 performing its first public taxi run post-restoration.
Purchased by the Bentwaters Cold War Museum (BCWM) in 2009, the Jaguar has been subject to years of hard work and restoration by a specialist team of ex-RAF engineers, with the aircraft performing its first post-restoration fast taxi runs in March 2020. Two years later, the public had their first chance to view the aircraft fast taxiing, followed by a nighttime photoshoot.
The spring conditions were perfect for the taxi run. The timing of the taxi runs during late afternoon ensured that the Jaguar could be photographed against a backdrop of trees and HASs, as opposed to a backdrop of cluttered Bentwaters Parks industrial units which sit to the north of the runway. This was just perfect in the fading spring light. Photographers were positioned alongside the runway, just 20 metres from the centreline, for the most exhilarating, adrenaline-inducing experience you could ask for. After a short slow taxi to position the Jaguar at the end of the runway, the aircraft powered down the Bentwaters runway with the Adours well illuminated in the fading light. Epic.
XX741 was then located on an apron near the BCWM’s restoration shelter for a nightshoot, with the aircraft being positioned in front of some trees for an aesthetically pleasing clutter-free backdrop, while the use of re-enactors provided opportunities for the photographers who were keen to capture images of the aircraft as it would have been in operational service.
Sadly, the aircraft has remained in the BCWM restoration HAS throughout 2025 due to a fuel leak, but the issue has been resolved and there is hope that XX741 will once again perform fast taxi runs in 2026. You can support both the Jaguar and the Bentwaters Cold War Museum by becoming a Bentwaters Aviation Society member.
