AVIATION
INTRODUCTION
Each year I attend various airshows to capture some of the atmopsphere of these events and to witness first hand some of the best flying that can be seen anywhere.
The shows that I tend to visit generally concentrate on those which give a good variety of types both historic and modern, though I have to confess that my main interest lies within the fields of warbirds and classix jets.
With the current drawdown in our own forces, it is becoming increasingly difficult to see the 'power' side of the RAF due to their heavy commitments. This is not to detract from the Hawk and tucano displays or of course the world famous Red Arrows.
In the field of classic jets, the simple fact of the matter is that things like Hunters cost a fortune to operate and the world's only flying Sea Vixen seems not to get booked by organisers, depsite the fact that we could see this unique machine for a fraction of the cost of aircraft like the Vulcan. Kemble - I still can't bring myself to call it Cotswold Airport - is the place to catch classic jets each year and is an excellently organised event.
The warbird community seems to be thriving with new aircraft appearing each year - despite the loss of some to foreign shores. Duxford in particular always sees new aircraft taking to the air and Flying Legends in July always springs a few surprises. Shoreham, a personal favourite, is surely the best family show of the year and has so far raised almost £2m for RAFA. In a wonderful setting, the 5 hour flying display is always a treat.
For shows of a very intimate nature, Old Warden is difficult to beat and there is nowhere else where you can see such a variety of eras represented regularly in such a classic location.
No intorduction to aviation events can go without a mention of that Magical Step Back In Time which is the annual Goodwood Revival each September. Nowhere else in the world can one experience the best flying, classic cars of such a value and variety doing battle on the circuit and all set to period set pieces and a crowd dressed the part. Indeed if there is one event that must be experienced in a lifetime then the Goodwood Revival is it!
The vagaries of the British weather can of course play havoc with our shows, witness what happened to Shoreham in 2010 and the high winds which seem to have blown at every event i have so far attended this year (as at 20th June) but it seems that airshow crowds are a hardy bunch judging from the numbers that attend!
This introduction does no more than scratch the surface and I hope that the reviews and galleries that will appear on this site wet the appetite and do justice to all the hard work that goes in to organising these shows.
To access the various reviews and photo galleries, simply hover over 'AVIATION' in the menu bar and go to the year you wish to visit.
The shows that I tend to visit generally concentrate on those which give a good variety of types both historic and modern, though I have to confess that my main interest lies within the fields of warbirds and classix jets.
With the current drawdown in our own forces, it is becoming increasingly difficult to see the 'power' side of the RAF due to their heavy commitments. This is not to detract from the Hawk and tucano displays or of course the world famous Red Arrows.
In the field of classic jets, the simple fact of the matter is that things like Hunters cost a fortune to operate and the world's only flying Sea Vixen seems not to get booked by organisers, depsite the fact that we could see this unique machine for a fraction of the cost of aircraft like the Vulcan. Kemble - I still can't bring myself to call it Cotswold Airport - is the place to catch classic jets each year and is an excellently organised event.
The warbird community seems to be thriving with new aircraft appearing each year - despite the loss of some to foreign shores. Duxford in particular always sees new aircraft taking to the air and Flying Legends in July always springs a few surprises. Shoreham, a personal favourite, is surely the best family show of the year and has so far raised almost £2m for RAFA. In a wonderful setting, the 5 hour flying display is always a treat.
For shows of a very intimate nature, Old Warden is difficult to beat and there is nowhere else where you can see such a variety of eras represented regularly in such a classic location.
No intorduction to aviation events can go without a mention of that Magical Step Back In Time which is the annual Goodwood Revival each September. Nowhere else in the world can one experience the best flying, classic cars of such a value and variety doing battle on the circuit and all set to period set pieces and a crowd dressed the part. Indeed if there is one event that must be experienced in a lifetime then the Goodwood Revival is it!
The vagaries of the British weather can of course play havoc with our shows, witness what happened to Shoreham in 2010 and the high winds which seem to have blown at every event i have so far attended this year (as at 20th June) but it seems that airshow crowds are a hardy bunch judging from the numbers that attend!
This introduction does no more than scratch the surface and I hope that the reviews and galleries that will appear on this site wet the appetite and do justice to all the hard work that goes in to organising these shows.
To access the various reviews and photo galleries, simply hover over 'AVIATION' in the menu bar and go to the year you wish to visit.
