Monthly Talks Programme
These take place on the last Thursday of each month at 19:30 (No Talks are held in August and December). The price for Talks at the Fleet Air Arm Museum for 2024 is £6.00. We are continuing to improve the standard of our live Zoom option with the aim of widening the audience for these talks. The cost for this option is £4.00.
Access for Thursday evening Talks at the Fleet Air Arm Museum is via the ground floor access gate, which is to the left of the main entrance stairs. Ring the bell on the sign to the left of the gate and a staff member will come and let you in.
Guests and non members are very welcome at the Museum or on Zoom. Tea/Coffee, Wine and Soft Drinks are available for a donation in the FAAM Auditorium before the presentation starts and also in the interval.
These are very popular events and we encourage you to purchase tickets beforehand to ensure entry. Entry is possible on the door of the night of the Talk but only if the maximum capacity has not been reached. Pre-paid tickets are guaranteed entry as priority will be given to pre-paid ticket holders. Tickets are available online via PayPal. Other payment options are available by BACS and Cheque. Please note: there is a cut off for purchasing advance tickets two days before the Talk date and time when the PayPal links will be disabled. Any payments received after the cut-off will be held over to the following month’s Talk.
NON SoFFAAM MEMBERS
Are very welcome to our Talks both at the Fleet Air Arm Museum and on Zoom. Consider joining SoFFAAM to get the benefits of entry to the Museum and other society privileges. See our Membership page HERE.
NB. We do not issue physical tickets. Names will be added to the audience attendance list at the Museum Auditorium. You will be asked for your Surname and checked-in on the night. The same is for Zoom where you will be checked as you log-in. Zoom links are sent out 48 hours before the talk takes place. If you would like to be added to the email list for our talks, please contact us.
Sqn Ldr (retd) Joe Marsden – in the firing line of Royal Naval gunners and Army missile operators.
Thursday 30 October 2025 at 19:30
The Canberra, the world’s first jet bomber was a very versatile aircraft. Almost 1400 were built and used by Air Forces around the world. It was a very versatile aircraft originally designed as a bomber, it was also used as a Ground attack aircraft and for Photo reconnaissance as well as atmospheric monitoring.
This time Joe Marsden will talk about flying the Canberra on 7 Sqn, towing targets for Ground to Air firing of guns and missiles, providing practice targets for Fighter Controllers and the trials and tribulations of flying the Canberra including visits to Gibraltar and Cyprus.
Payment options for this Talk are below.
October 2025 Talk Payment Information.
Members and guests attending at the FAA Museum is £6.00ea and Zoom £4.00ea. You can also pay on the door on the night to see this Talk, but priority will be given to pre-paid tickets if the hall capacity is reached.
PLEASE NOTE: there is a cut off for purchasing advanced tickets on the Tuesday prior to the Talk at 19:30 when the PayPal link will be disabled. Any BACS or Cheque payments received after this time will be held over to the following months Talk.
PayPal
To attend at the Museum is £6.00
To pay by PayPal please click HERE.
We do not issue physical tickets. PayPal informs us you have paid and your name will be added to the audience attendance list at the Museum Auditorium. You will be asked for your Surname and checked-in on the night.
PayPal Zoom
To attend on Zoom is £4.00
To pay by PayPal please click HERE.
We do not issue physical tickets. PayPal informs us you have paid and your name will be added to the Zoom attendance list and checked-in online on the night.
BACS
BANK: Lloyds Bank plc. Sort Code: 30-99-98 Account No: 00857987
Please reference the payment with your Surname/October so we know which talk you are paying for.
For Zoom, you must email soffaam.joinup@gmail.com requesting your Zoom invite. Please advise your payment is for the October 2025 Talk.
Zoom links will be sent 48 hours ahead of the Talk. If you have not received one by 24 hours ahead of the Talk, please contact soffaam.joinup@gmail.com
Cheque
Please send a cheque payable to SoFFAAM:
Membership Secretary, Coombe View, 1 Coombe Villas, Coombe Orchard, Chapel Street, Axmouth, Devon, EX12 4AU.
Please reference the payment with your Surname/October so we know which talk you are paying for.
For Zoom, you must email soffaam.joinup@gmail.com requesting your Zoom invite. Please advise your payment is for the October 2025 Talk.
Zoom links will be sent 48 hours ahead of the Talk. If you have not received one by 24 hours ahead of the Talk, please contact soffaam.joinup@gmail.com
RJ Mitchell – Father of the Spitfire by Paul Beaver.
Saturday 15 November 2025 at 11:00
Reginald Mitchell is one of the greatest names in aviation history. A visionary engineer, he had a passion for speed, his legacy being the most iconic fighter aircraft of all time: the Spitfire.
During Europe’s uneasy peace of the 1920s he was a trailblazing innovator working at the cutting edge of British aeronautical technology. As war clouds gathered in the 1930s the work of Mitchell and his team became a crucial part of the nation’s plan for rearmament. Though he did not live to see the Spitfire or Seafire in action, his work led to triumph at the Battle of Britain in that summer of 1940 – and to a legendary aircraft that still inspires awe to this day.
Paul Beaver will explore the creative genius of a man devoted to pushing the boundaries of aircraft design and his flair for leadership and collaboration with Rolls-Royce.
Drawing on new interviews, private archives and previously unpublished material Paul will detail one of the great design leaders of the twentieth century.
Paul Beaver is a leading aviation historian, broadcaster and author, as well as an historic aircraft pilot who has been flying the Spitfire since 2011. He has written more than forty books including Spitfire People, Spitfire Evolution and Winkle: The Extraordinary Life of Britain’s Greatest Pilot.
PLEASE NOTE THIS TALK IS A SATURDAY MORNING. Payment options for this Talk are below.
November 2025 Talk Payment Information.
Members and guests attending at the FAA Museum is £6.00ea and Zoom £4.00ea. You can also pay on the door on the night to see this Talk, but priority will be given to pre-paid tickets if the hall capacity is reached.
PLEASE NOTE: there is a cut off for purchasing advanced tickets on the Thursday prior to the Talk at 11:00 when the PayPal link will be disabled.
SoFFAAM MEMBERS HAVE FREE ENTRY TO THE MUSEUM. IF YOU ARE NOT A MEMBER, YOU WILL HAVE TO PURCHASE A MUSEUM ENTRY TICKET AS WELL AS THE TALK TICKET. To purchase a Museum entry ticket click HERE
PayPal
To attend at the Museum is £6.00
To pay by PayPal please click HERE.
We do not issue physical tickets. PayPal informs us you have paid and your name will be added to the audience attendance list at the Museum Auditorium. You will be asked for your Surname and checked-in on the night.
PayPal Zoom
To attend on Zoom is £4.00
To pay by PayPal please click HERE.
We do not issue physical tickets. PayPal informs us you have paid and your name will be added to the Zoom attendance list and checked-in online on the night.
BACS
BANK: Lloyds Bank plc. Sort Code: 30-99-98 Account No: 00857987
Please reference the payment with your Surname/Nov Sat so we know which talk you are paying for.
For Zoom, you must email soffaam.joinup@gmail.com requesting your Zoom invite. Please advise your payment is for the November Saturday 2025 Talk.
Zoom links will be sent 48 hours ahead of the Talk. If you have not received one by 24 hours ahead of the Talk, please contact soffaam.joinup@gmail.com
Cheque
Please send a cheque payable to SoFFAAM:
Membership Secretary, Coombe View, 1 Coombe Villas, Coombe Orchard, Chapel Street, Axmouth, Devon, EX12 4AU.
Please reference the payment with your Surname/Nov Sat so we know which talk you are paying for.
For Zoom, you must email soffaam.joinup@gmail.com requesting your Zoom invite. Please advise your payment is for the November Saturday 2025 Talk.
Zoom links will be sent 48 hours ahead of the Talk. If you have not received one by 24 hours ahead of the Talk, please contact soffaam.joinup@gmail.com
2025
Kevin Morgan – NATS (National Air Traffic Services) TBC
Thursday 27 November 2025