Pyestock - Feb 2013 - Pic Heavy

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UE-OMJ

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You know how you have that one place on your to-do list, and it's been there for years but you've just never gotten round to doing it - for me this is Pyestock.

Finally, I had the chance to get there, 'A Little Feisty' (who I'd never met) had arranged a visit and I was lucky enough to have been invited. I wasnt going to turn this down, so off we headed...

I was a bit apprehensive, I usually explore either solo or with people I know. This one was a bit of a leap of faith as I was going with 4 people I'd never met. Ok, we all meet new people but we tend to start on easy, local sites, not dangerous places with secca patrolling and a fairly high risk of getting hurt. But the day went well, all people in the team worked well together, supported each other and I felt as if I was in good company.

'A Little Feisty' definitely loves this place, and made a great guide. Thank you :)

National Gas Turbine Establishment

The National Gas Turbine Establishment in Fleet, part of the Royal Aircraft Establishment, was the prime site in the UK for design and development of gas turbine and jet engines

located in Farnborough, UK. Conceived in the build up to World War Two, and realised in the post-war paranoia of the opening virtual salvos of the cold war, Pyestock was one of a number of top-secret sites which would bolster the UK’s standing during the austere 1950s; and become a vital component of the White Heat of Technology in the twitchy 1960s.

It was arguably the world's leading research facility into the research and design of gas turbines (or jet engines). "V" bomber, Harrier and Tornado engines were designed and refined in its custom test facilities; the air plant and custom cells could fly a Concorde engine at Mach 2 from the safety of the ground; all the gas turbines used by the Navy were put through harsh, enduring sea-worthiness tests; and the hush-hush top-secret captured Soviet engines were discretely tested for performance and reverse engineered.

Some really great information and details of the buildings here http://www.ngte.co.uk/buildings/index.htm


The site is HUGE, and security patrols in 4x4's very regularly, this visit we only managed to see 3 of the buildings, but we got out without being caught so a return trip is still available if we want to. Towards the end the secca car was hanging around near us as if they were onto us, so getting out when we did seemed the logical thing to do.

My photo style isnt HDR - I try to keep it honest and true to life as much as possible, most Pye photos I see from here are HDR and processed, so hopefully this is a nice change of pace... The one thing the photos dont show is the sheer size of the place, everything is MASSIVE, pipe work that you could drive a car though, pipes and cables everywhere, nuts as large as tennis balls and one of the largest spanners I've ever seen!!!



On the way in...

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Building 1 - The Air House

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Notice the person in the distance taking a photo - this shows the size of this one building...

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On to Cell 4...

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Finally, Cell 3...

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We found the 'ON' switch :mrgreen:

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And on the way out again....

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Thanks for looking :)

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Last edited:
Absoultely superb! Amazing pictures, really nicely done.

Im plotting and scheming to get a look at this place :D
 
Looks like you saw the highlights anyway, anything else is a bonus. If you like tunnels cells 1 & 2 are worth a look and there's a lovely control room in the power station building, if you do end up making a revisit anyway.

There's a new secca team now that have been hired by the demolition firm so get it done if you want it people.
 
Great pics!

Was happy to oblige - glad you enjoyed it . . . and any excuse for a revisit on my part :)

Pye is just one of those places that I think has to be seen to be truly appreciated, as no matter how good the photos are, they never quite convey the true size and scale of the place . . . and once inside you can't help but then try and imagine how it looked and sounded when it was active. It is sad to see how much damage the metal thieves have done - no matter how inevitable, but it still has so much to give and so as long as it's still possible I'll continue to get my fix of this place . . . Mr Cornwell has a lot to answer for! :mrgreen::mrgreen::mrgreen:

Happyshopper - was good to meet you too on our way out :cool:
 
Happyshopper - was good to meet you too on our way out :cool:

I was wondering if it was one of you guys ;)

I had the most relaxed visit ever - stroll in, mooch around, stroll out again. No subtlety, no ninja skills, and saw no sign of anyone else for 2 hours! It's much more pleasant when you're not worrying about getting caught and spoiling someone else's explore, solo ftw!
 
Thanks everyone :)

The sad thing is we've really only scratched the surface. Below is the Pyestock map, and circled is the part we explored. SOOOO much more to discover....

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Excellent shots Steve

The sad thing is we've really only scratched the surface. Below is the Pyestock map, and circled is the part we explored. SOOOO much more to discover....

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TBH you saw most of the best bits :mrgreen:
 

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