The leader of the project to get a Cold War Vulcan bomber airborne again has won a national award.

The leader of the project to get a Cold War Vulcan bomber airborne again has won a national award.

Dr Robert Pleming, chief executive of the Vulcan to the Sky Trust, was named preservationist of the year 2007 by the The Transport Trust.

The trust awards the honour each year to someone who has made an outstanding contribution to the field of transport preservation.

The £5.5 million project to restore the aircraft is nearing completion at Bruntingthorpe Proving Ground , near Lutterworth, Leicestershire, England, LE17, UK.

Engine testing is expected to start in the next few weeks.

Dr Pleming received the award from the Transport Trust's patron, Prince Michael of Kent, at a ceremony at the Museum - Brooklands, in Surrey.

Dr Pleming was recognised for his management of the restoration work on XH558 leading a group of 30 engineers getting the aircraft - the only remaining Avro Vulcan capable of flying again - ready for take-off.

Dr Pleming said: "After all the ups and downs over the past few years, it is wonderful to know that we are soon due to see the aircraft back in the sky. Now, it's not a matter of if XH558 will fly again, but when she will.