Skip to content
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • YouTube
  • Email

Purchase your PlaneTags Festival V Tickets Here

A question? Visit our contact page

  • Shop
    • Commercial Aircraft
    • Vintage Aircraft
    • Helicopter
    • General Aviation
    • Shop All
      • PlaneTags Coasters

        Enjoy Your Favorite Libation In Style

      • Digital Gift Cards:

        $30, $50, $100

  • PlaneTags Coasters
  • Archived PlaneTags
  • Misc & Apparel
  • Blog
  • Gift Cards
  • Albania (USD $)
  • Algeria (USD $)
  • Andorra (USD $)
  • Angola (USD $)
  • Anguilla (USD $)
  • Antigua & Barbuda (USD $)
  • Argentina (USD $)
  • Armenia (USD $)
  • Aruba (USD $)
  • Australia (USD $)
  • Austria (USD $)
  • Azerbaijan (USD $)
  • Bahamas (USD $)
  • Bahrain (USD $)
  • Bangladesh (USD $)
  • Barbados (USD $)
  • Belgium (USD $)
  • Belize (USD $)
  • Benin (USD $)
  • Bermuda (USD $)
  • Bhutan (USD $)
  • Bolivia (USD $)
  • Bosnia & Herzegovina (USD $)
  • Botswana (USD $)
  • Brazil (USD $)
  • British Virgin Islands (USD $)
  • Brunei (USD $)
  • Bulgaria (USD $)
  • Burkina Faso (USD $)
  • Burundi (USD $)
  • Cambodia (USD $)
  • Cameroon (USD $)
  • Canada (USD $)
  • Cape Verde (USD $)
  • Caribbean Netherlands (USD $)
  • Cayman Islands (USD $)
  • Chad (USD $)
  • Chile (USD $)
  • China (USD $)
  • Colombia (USD $)
  • Comoros (USD $)
  • Cook Islands (USD $)
  • Costa Rica (USD $)
  • Croatia (USD $)
  • Curaçao (USD $)
  • Cyprus (USD $)
  • Czechia (USD $)
  • Denmark (USD $)
  • Djibouti (USD $)
  • Dominica (USD $)
  • Dominican Republic (USD $)
  • Ecuador (USD $)
  • Egypt (USD $)
  • El Salvador (USD $)
  • Equatorial Guinea (USD $)
  • Estonia (USD $)
  • Eswatini (USD $)
  • Ethiopia (USD $)
  • Falkland Islands (USD $)
  • Faroe Islands (USD $)
  • Fiji (USD $)
  • Finland (USD $)
  • France (USD $)
  • French Guiana (USD $)
  • French Polynesia (USD $)
  • Gabon (USD $)
  • Gambia (USD $)
  • Georgia (USD $)
  • Germany (USD $)
  • Ghana (USD $)
  • Gibraltar (USD $)
  • Greece (USD $)
  • Greenland (USD $)
  • Grenada (USD $)
  • Guadeloupe (USD $)
  • Guatemala (USD $)
  • Guernsey (USD $)
  • Guinea (USD $)
  • Guinea-Bissau (USD $)
  • Guyana (USD $)
  • Haiti (USD $)
  • Honduras (USD $)
  • Hong Kong SAR (USD $)
  • Hungary (USD $)
  • Iceland (USD $)
  • India (USD $)
  • Indonesia (USD $)
  • Ireland (USD $)
  • Israel (USD $)
  • Italy (USD $)
  • Jamaica (USD $)
  • Japan (USD $)
  • Jersey (USD $)
  • Jordan (USD $)
  • Kazakhstan (USD $)
  • Kenya (USD $)
  • Kiribati (USD $)
  • Kuwait (USD $)
  • Kyrgyzstan (USD $)
  • Laos (USD $)
  • Latvia (USD $)
  • Lesotho (USD $)
  • Liechtenstein (USD $)
  • Lithuania (USD $)
  • Luxembourg (USD $)
  • Macao SAR (USD $)
  • Madagascar (USD $)
  • Malawi (USD $)
  • Malaysia (USD $)
  • Maldives (USD $)
  • Malta (USD $)
  • Martinique (USD $)
  • Mauritania (USD $)
  • Mauritius (USD $)
  • Mayotte (USD $)
  • Mexico (USD $)
  • Moldova (USD $)
  • Monaco (USD $)
  • Mongolia (USD $)
  • Montenegro (USD $)
  • Montserrat (USD $)
  • Morocco (USD $)
  • Mozambique (USD $)
  • Namibia (USD $)
  • Nauru (USD $)
  • Nepal (USD $)
  • Netherlands (USD $)
  • New Caledonia (USD $)
  • New Zealand (USD $)
  • Nicaragua (USD $)
  • Nigeria (USD $)
  • Niue (USD $)
  • North Macedonia (USD $)
  • Norway (USD $)
  • Oman (USD $)
  • Pakistan (USD $)
  • Panama (USD $)
  • Papua New Guinea (USD $)
  • Paraguay (USD $)
  • Peru (USD $)
  • Philippines (USD $)
  • Poland (USD $)
  • Portugal (USD $)
  • Qatar (USD $)
  • Réunion (USD $)
  • Romania (USD $)
  • Rwanda (USD $)
  • Samoa (USD $)
  • San Marino (USD $)
  • São Tomé & Príncipe (USD $)
  • Saudi Arabia (USD $)
  • Senegal (USD $)
  • Serbia (USD $)
  • Seychelles (USD $)
  • Sierra Leone (USD $)
  • Singapore (USD $)
  • Slovakia (USD $)
  • Slovenia (USD $)
  • Solomon Islands (USD $)
  • South Africa (USD $)
  • South Korea (USD $)
  • Spain (USD $)
  • Sri Lanka (USD $)
  • St. Barthélemy (USD $)
  • St. Helena (USD $)
  • St. Kitts & Nevis (USD $)
  • St. Lucia (USD $)
  • St. Martin (USD $)
  • St. Vincent & Grenadines (USD $)
  • Suriname (USD $)
  • Sweden (USD $)
  • Switzerland (USD $)
  • Taiwan (USD $)
  • Tanzania (USD $)
  • Thailand (USD $)
  • Timor-Leste (USD $)
  • Togo (USD $)
  • Tonga (USD $)
  • Trinidad & Tobago (USD $)
  • Tunisia (USD $)
  • Türkiye (USD $)
  • Turks & Caicos Islands (USD $)
  • Tuvalu (USD $)
  • Uganda (USD $)
  • United Arab Emirates (USD $)
  • United Kingdom (USD $)
  • United States (USD $)
  • Uruguay (USD $)
  • Uzbekistan (USD $)
  • Vanuatu (USD $)
  • Vietnam (USD $)
  • Zambia (USD $)
Login
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • YouTube
  • Email
Search
MotoArt PlaneTags
  • ShopShop
      • Commercial Aircraft
      • Vintage Aircraft
      • Helicopter
      • General Aviation
      • Shop All
      View All PlaneTags
    • PlaneTags Coasters

      Enjoy Your Favorite Libation In Style

    • Digital Gift Cards:

      $30, $50, $100

  • PlaneTags CoastersPlaneTags Coasters
  • Archived PlaneTagsArchived PlaneTags
  • Misc & ApparelMisc & Apparel
  • BlogBlog
  • Gift CardsGift Cards
Search Login Cart 0
Cart

Your cart is currently empty.

Not sure where to start?
Try these collections:

  • Shop PlaneTags
Spend $124.95 more to qualify for free domestic shipping!
    Order special instructions
    Estimate shipping rates
    Taxes included and shipping calculated at checkout.
    Subtotal
    $0.00 USD
    View cart
    Recently viewed
    Search

    We use cookies

    This site uses cookies for better user experience and analytics.

    Access Denied
    IMPORTANT! If you’re a store owner, please make sure you have Customer accounts enabled in your Store Admin, as you have customer based locks set up with EasyLockdown app. Enable Customer Accounts
    The Handley Page Victor: A V-Bomber That Delivered
    • Feb 20, 2020
    • by Dave Hall

    The Handley Page Victor: A V-Bomber That Delivered

    • Feb 20, 2020
    • by Dave Hall

    The Handley Page Victor, the last of the British V-Bombers, entered the Cold War fray during the ’50s and served with the RAF years beyond the lifetime of the manufacturer itself. One of them, XL191 RAF, faithfully flew with the 55 Squadron as an aerial fuel tanker. Read more about this dramatic, fantastic looking plane then add Handley Page Victor K2 PlaneTags to your collection. 

     

    handley page victor

    Photo from Flickr user Irish251 On display at RAF St. Athan, September 1984.



    Who was Handley Page Limited?

    Handley Page Ltd. was founded by Sir Frederick Handley Page in 1909 and grew to be Britain’s first publicly traded aerospace manufacturing company. They are known for their heavy bombers and other innovative airliners, and their role as pioneers in aviation history. Handley Page himself had experimented with monoplanes and biplanes before starting his company and building a factory in Great Britain over a century ago. 

    During the First World War, the Royal Navy required heavy bombers to fly runs over the German Zeppelin yards, with the intent on eventually reaching Berlin. Handley Page produced a series of aircraft which included the O/100, the O/400, and the V/1500. The V/1500 did have the range needed to reach Berlin but the war ended just as it entered service. Immediately after the war, some O/400s were converted to passenger use for the Handley Page Transport airline London to Paris run. Handley Page Transport merged with two other airlines to form Imperial Airways, UK’s first national airline service. They built the H.P.42 for routes to India and Africa, as well as other large airliners. Right before WWII, the RAF requested heavier, long-range aircraft. Handley Page produced a series of bomber designs including the Heyford, Hampden, and Halifax, as well as other aircraft, for the war effort. 

    handley page victor
    Permission to use photo given by Andrew Read. Photo by John W. Read.
    Handley Page Victor K.2 XL191 of 55 Squadron RAF at the British Aerospace families day at Hatfield on 6th July 1985.



    Victor Specifications (B.Mk 2)


    • Crew:    5
    • Propulsion:    4 Turbojet Engines
    • Engine Model:    Armstrong Siddeley Sapphire ASSa.7
    • Engine Power (each):    48,9 kN 11000 lbf
    • Propulsion:    4 Turbofan Engines
    • Engine Model:    Rolls-Royce Conway RCo.11
    • Engine Power (each)    76,7 kN 17250 lbf
    • Speed    1030 km/h    556 kts 640 mph
    • Service Ceiling    16.764 m 55.000 ft
    • Range    7.360 km   3.974 NM 4.573 mi.
    • Empty Weight    41.277 kg 91.000 lbs
    • max. Takeoff Weight    105.687 kg 233.000 lbs
    • Wing Span    36,48 m 119 ft 8 in
    • Wing Area    223,5 m² 2406 ft²
    • Length    35,03 m 114 ft 11 in
    • Height    8,57 m 28 ft 1 in
    • First Flight    December 24.1952
    • Total Production    80
    • Variants    Victor B.1, B.1A, B.1A (K.2P), BK.1 (K.1), BK.1A (K.1A), B.2, B.2RS, B(SR).2, K.2

     

    XL191 victor
    Photo from Flickr user eLaReF        
    July 30, 1977    Finningley, England, United Kingdom. Finningley, Jul 1977 Jubilee Review
       

    Handley Page Victor: A Cold War Bomber


    After WWII, there was an immediate need for nuclear deterrents and bombers to carry them. Three of these were produced and were known as the V-Bombers. They were the Vickers Valiant, Avro Vulcan and the Handley Page Victor (HP.80). The Victor was a four-engine jet, with a unique crescent wing, designed by Godfrey Lee. It remained in service many years beyond Handley Page Ltd. itself, even after fatigue cracks were found following a nuclear mission. It was then repurposed as a strategic reconnaissance aircraft and modified with radars, sensors, and cameras. In 1968, the Royal Air Force converted the Victor once again, into an aerial refueling tanker. 

     

    aerial fuel tanker
    Photo from Flickr user Irish251 
    XL191 Victor K.2, With a Lightning fighter, Binbrook, August 1984.                       

               



    History of XL 191 RAF


    • September 20, 1961 - Constructed
    • June 13, 1962 - Taken on Strength/Charge with the Royal Air Force with s/n XL191, transferred to 139 Squadron.
    • May 29, 1970 - Transferred to HSA for conversion to a Victor K.2.
    • January 1, 1977 - Transferred to 55 Squadron.
    • January 20, 1982 - Sent for a major overhaul at Saint Athan. 
    • April 26, 1982 - Transferred to 55 Squadron.
    • September 11, 1984 - Transferred to Saint Athan for a major overhaul.
    • January 1, 1985 - Transferred to 55 Squadron.
    • June 19, 1986 - Crash-landed short of the runway at Hamilton, ON, during the Hamilton airshow. The crew escaped safely but the plane was severely damaged. 
    • July 7, 1986 - Declared category 5(S) damage. Portions were given to the Canadian Warplane Heritage Museum, Mount Hope, Hamilton, ON.
    • Spring 1987 - Walter Soplata purchased the nose section shell and transported it to his collection in Newberry, Ohio. 
    • 2019 - MotoArt preserves the remaining portions as limited edition Victor K.2 PlaneTags


    The Soplata Collection RAF Bomber


    handley page victor motoart

     

    Walter Soplata was the son of Czech immigrants, a husband and father of five, a union carpenter, and an aviation enthusiast who, together with his family, created an airplane sanctuary on his land in Ohio. His labor of love eventually amassed almost 20 incredibly rare airplanes, 50 different engines, and decades of history. All done without the cranes and machinery used today to dismantle an airplane. He disassembled each plane himself, with hand tools and the help of his children, and transported them to his collection. Read more about MotoArt’s Soplata Collection PlaneTags. 

     

    planetags handley page victor

     

     

    MotoArt gets A Victor

    motoart handley page

    Last summer and fall, MotoArt owner Dave Hall and the team traveled to Ohio to see Walter Soplata’s collection in person. “Even months later,” recalls Hall, “The moment I first saw the Handley Page Victor is still so fresh in my mind. It was just sitting there, this hulking mass of machinery in disrepair, but I imagined being the bomb-aimer cramped inside that nose, and it took my breath away.” 





    The team was able to get in and out of Ohio before the snowfall and winter hit. They were able to get enough material for a small run of 1,000 PlaneTags.  “No one likes to imagine an incredible plane like the Victor or the B-36 Peacemaker or any of the others in the Soplata Collection being cut up,” states Hall. “But no one likes to see them rot away either. I was glad we were able to preserve and share this piece of history with other enthusiasts.”


    Handley Page Victor PlaneTags

    handley page victor planetags

     

    These PlaneTags feature a weathered patina in shades of grays, tans, and yellows. They are etched with the Victor’s image on one side, and the back is ready for custom information to be added. The colorful display card was designed specifically for PlaneTags and explains the origins of the plane, and displays the Soplata Collection logo. Like the others in the Soplata Collection, such as the B-36 Peacemaker and the Douglas DC-7, these are expected to sell out. 


    cold war planetags

     

    “My vision is to create an Encyclopedia of Aircraft,” says Hall, from his office at MotoArt Studios in Torrance, CA. “Instead of having a book, or a boneyard, full of planes, you’ll be able to hold them all in your hand. That’s my dream.” If that is your dream too, make sure you get one of these for your collection while it's possible.



    MotoArt’s 20th Anniversary


    With the 20th anniversary coming up next year, MotoArt has many exciting things in store for the months leading up to it. Many more vintage and commemorative planes will be added to the Encyclopedia of Aircraft, like the Handley Page Victor, interspersed with great commercial planes like the ANA 767 and an upcoming Thai Airways 747. MotoArt has also launched an American Airlines Mad Dog MD-80 line of furniture that is unlike any of past offerings. Read about the Mad Dog Wing Desk that kicked off the collection in January.

    There are also more big surprises in store so make sure you are signed up for the PlaneTags and MotoArt newsletters. 

    Follow PlaneTags

    Facebook | IG | Twitter


    Follow MotoArt

    Facebook | IG | Twitter

    Share:

    • Share on Facebook
    • Tweet on Twitter
    • Pin on Pinterest
    • Share by Email
    Share
    Share
    • Facebook Share on Facebook
    • Twitter Tweet on Twitter
    • Pinterest Pin on Pinterest
    • E-mail Share by Email
    0 comments
      • Jan 30, 2020
      • by Dave Hall

      ANA’s 767: The $71 Million Dollar Plane

      • Mar 12, 2020
      • by Dave Hall

      Thai Airways 747: Culture and Hospitality On Board

    Latest Stories

    View all

    SR-71 Blackbird News: 2 Days Until New SR-71 PlaneTags Release
    • Jul 08, 2025
    • 0 comments

    SR-71 Blackbird News: 2 Days Until New SR-71 PlaneTags Release

    The Countdown to SR-71 PlaneTags Begins Now!  In just 2 days, you’ll have the chance to own a piece of aviation history with the SR-71 PlaneTags. Crafted from the actual stabilizer of the legendary SR-71 Blackbird, these limited edition PlaneTags...

    Read more

    SR-71 PlaneTags: How MotoArt Preserved a Piece of Blackbird History
    • Jul 03, 2025
    • 0 comments

    SR-71 PlaneTags: How MotoArt Preserved a Piece of Blackbird History

    The SR-71 Blackbird is one of the most iconic aircraft ever built, known for its unparalleled speed, high-altitude capabilities, and groundbreaking design. Developed by Lockheed’s Skunk Works during the Cold War, the SR-71 was designed to be the fastest and highest-flying reconnaissance aircraft in history. With speeds reaching Mach 3.35 (2,200 mph) and cruising altitudes exceeding 85,000 feet, it set records that have yet to be broken.

    Now, you can own a piece of this aviation legend. MotoArt has meticulously crafted exclusive SR-71 PlaneTags from the actual parts of the aircraft, allowing aviation enthusiasts and collectors to hold a piece of history in their hands. These PlaneTags offer a unique opportunity to connect with the SR-71 in a way that was never before possible.

    Read more

    The SR-71 Blackbird: A Legacy of Speed and Innovation
    • Jun 27, 2025
    • 0 comments

    The SR-71 Blackbird: A Legacy of Speed and Innovation

    For aviation enthusiasts and collectors, the SR-71’s legacy continues to captivate. Now, you have the opportunity to own a piece of this legendary aircraft through SR-71 PlaneTags, crafted from the very materials that made this remarkable plane a star of the skies. But before we dive into the story of these unique collectibles, let’s take a look back at the SR-71’s incredible journey and its lasting impact on the world of aviation. Sign up for exclusive access today. 

    Read more

    Invalid password
    Enter

    MotoArt PlaneTags

    ABOUT US
    • How It's Made
    • Store Locator
    • FAQ
    • Blog
    • MotoArt
    • Affiliate Program
    • Frequent Flyer Program
    • PlaneTags Encyclopedia
    CUSTOMER SERVICE
    • Military - First Responder Discount
    • Contact Us
    • Return Policy
    • Terms & Conditions
    ACCOUNT
    • Sign Up
    • Login
    • Orders

    Stay in the loop with our weekly newsletter

    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • YouTube
    • Email
    © 2025 MotoArt PlaneTags. Designed and Developed by BreadLoaf
    • American Express
    • Apple Pay
    • Diners Club
    • Discover
    • Google Pay
    • Mastercard
    • PayPal
    • Shop Pay
    • Visa
    • Choosing a selection results in a full page refresh.
    • Opens in a new window.