Your best warbird seen flying?
Discussion
Aged 7 (1972) on a school residential trip to Fellside Centre near Caldbeck in the Lake District. Sitting in the main common room getting the talk about remembering to eat, wash and put your boots in the drying room when out of the large bay-window all I could see was a Vulcan, flying at what appeared to be tree-top height about 100 yards away.
I was already plane-crazy at that time and stood up in front of the rest of the class, teachers and staff, pointing out of the window shouting "That's a f***ing Vulcan bomber!".
Needless to say my 100% accurate aircraft recognition wasn't well received by the teachers.
... but I can still see that picture in my mind's eye to this day.
I was already plane-crazy at that time and stood up in front of the rest of the class, teachers and staff, pointing out of the window shouting "That's a f***ing Vulcan bomber!".
Needless to say my 100% accurate aircraft recognition wasn't well received by the teachers.
... but I can still see that picture in my mind's eye to this day.
hammo19 said:
This one on its way to a display
url]
|http://thumbsnap.com/mRbixaNA[/url]
Aahhh....that reminds me of another non-airshow moment and quite a surreal one at that. !992 and at my desk next to office window, 6th floor in West London, with a great view looking east towards central London. Heard sound of approaching jet (not unusual being only 5 miles or so north of LHR) but this was clearly not a civvie airliner, by the very loud noise. Turned to look out and scan up and heading west at around 2-3000 ft was a Russian Tu-22 Backfire nuclear bomber.....being a cold war child, it was a very surreal moment, and not something I thought I'd ever likely to see.url]
|http://thumbsnap.com/mRbixaNA[/url]The others in the office thought I'd lost the plot as I rushed - blabbering f
kin 'ell quite loudly 
to the other side of the office to watch it head out west.The Backfire was on its way to the Farnborough Airshow.
Most of those I can remember have been from the last couple of years at Wings and Wheels, where I got to see the BBMF and Canadian Lancaster a couple of years ago, and the Vulcan a couple of times of course. Bloody love the Vulcan, as cliched as that is for everyone to hear.
Having spent many childhood holidays in the Lake District visiting my grandparents, we got a load of jets flying overhead as we headed out for walks up the hills or around the lakes.
However, at W&W last year I think the best was the Typhoon coming over at (seemingly) full chat. My mate and I had nipped over to get some beers, from our position with other mates at the end of the viewing area. Where the was no commentary. By the beer tent, commentary was available. So we got to hear "Here he comes, this WILL be loud, cover your ears" but had no chance to do so with both hands used for beers. Whereas everyone else in our zone had no warning at all, and we returned to an area full of deaf people with screaming children.
But damn, that was awesome.
Having spent many childhood holidays in the Lake District visiting my grandparents, we got a load of jets flying overhead as we headed out for walks up the hills or around the lakes.
However, at W&W last year I think the best was the Typhoon coming over at (seemingly) full chat. My mate and I had nipped over to get some beers, from our position with other mates at the end of the viewing area. Where the was no commentary. By the beer tent, commentary was available. So we got to hear "Here he comes, this WILL be loud, cover your ears" but had no chance to do so with both hands used for beers. Whereas everyone else in our zone had no warning at all, and we returned to an area full of deaf people with screaming children.
But damn, that was awesome.
Unexpected but at an airshow so does it count?
Farnborough a couple of years ago watching from the hill just to the west of the airfield (where you're sadly not allowed to be any more). Due to the D-day anniversary they had a flight of a couple of Dakotas all painted up in invasion strips take off together and come roaring past us fairly low. At least I thought there were a couple. I turned to get a photo from the side as one went past and then the third one I hadn't spotted came straight over us very low
Farnborough a couple of years ago watching from the hill just to the west of the airfield (where you're sadly not allowed to be any more). Due to the D-day anniversary they had a flight of a couple of Dakotas all painted up in invasion strips take off together and come roaring past us fairly low. At least I thought there were a couple. I turned to get a photo from the side as one went past and then the third one I hadn't spotted came straight over us very low
When I was about 14 saw a Mig 21 in formation with two Austrian Air Force Saab 105. The noise was stupendous. At first I thought it was airshow related but it turned out that it was Yugo deserter being escorted. But best of all was when visiting The Westbury white horse in 1997. For some reason there were lots of police around and as I was saying hello to one of them a Tornado came shrieking past at low level. We nearly crapped ourselves.
Driving my old Coach back from a "Bedford Gathering" in Huntingdon up the M1(akin to driving a huge greenhouse) I thought the old girl was playing up as a strange noise started to come from behind me. Next thing the BBMF Lancaster came right over me as it flew along the motorway line. Great view from my huge windscreen as it flew off into the distance in front of me.
Difficult to pick just one!
I grew up close to RAF Coltishall in the 70s and 80s. Seeing the Lightnings take off was always awesome - outrageous noise, get (seemingly) just off the ground, point nose at sky...then in 1991 on my year off seeing the Jaguars in desert pink was an eye-opener - we were used to them in normal camouflage, so they were just "part of the scenery". Seeing them in desert pink ready to go off to war suddenly brought home what they did.
I now live close to the Cambridge Airport approach flight path, so occasionally see some interesting stuff - the Sally B does some sort of test flying out of there at the start of every season, the Red Arrows often fly in and out in formation as they use it as a staging post between shows, the Battle of Britain flight likewise. Seeing a pair of F15s take off as I drove past the end of the Lakenheath runway was pretty good (and extremely loud).
I grew up close to RAF Coltishall in the 70s and 80s. Seeing the Lightnings take off was always awesome - outrageous noise, get (seemingly) just off the ground, point nose at sky...then in 1991 on my year off seeing the Jaguars in desert pink was an eye-opener - we were used to them in normal camouflage, so they were just "part of the scenery". Seeing them in desert pink ready to go off to war suddenly brought home what they did.
I now live close to the Cambridge Airport approach flight path, so occasionally see some interesting stuff - the Sally B does some sort of test flying out of there at the start of every season, the Red Arrows often fly in and out in formation as they use it as a staging post between shows, the Battle of Britain flight likewise. Seeing a pair of F15s take off as I drove past the end of the Lakenheath runway was pretty good (and extremely loud).
Being an RAF brat I have many ,but one that left our family in stunned ,tear filled awe until the chearing broke out .
We had arranged to scatter both my parents ashes at the Battle of Britain Memorial at Capel Le Fern.
18 family members for an informal service ,the ashes were scattered and a few words were said ,The Evening Hymn and Sunset were discreetly played .As the music faded the magical sound of a Merlin was heard .A Spitfire flew along the coast banked out to sea and continued turning until it was coming straight at us,it climed up and over us performing a victory roll directly overhead .
Pure coincidence but timed to perfection .
We say it was mum and dads escort to heaven .
We had arranged to scatter both my parents ashes at the Battle of Britain Memorial at Capel Le Fern.
18 family members for an informal service ,the ashes were scattered and a few words were said ,The Evening Hymn and Sunset were discreetly played .As the music faded the magical sound of a Merlin was heard .A Spitfire flew along the coast banked out to sea and continued turning until it was coming straight at us,it climed up and over us performing a victory roll directly overhead .
Pure coincidence but timed to perfection .
We say it was mum and dads escort to heaven .
It's an airshow one for me, but even after 45 years it's still a vivid memory, My Dad took me to the Liverpool Airshow at Speke Airport in 1969iirc
We'd managed to get a spot right at the front of the crowdline, Dad's ex RAF and was giving me all the skinny on the aircraft displaying, and like any other 9 year old I was enjoying it immensely, we'd had Spitfires, Lightnings, Hunters and a very noisy Phantom display, but the last aircraft to take off before a break in the program (to let some civil stuff take off and land iirc) was the The Mossie RR299 which sounded glorious as it swept down the runway and off down the Mersey until it was time for it's display, after a 15-20 minute wait the Tannoy crackled into life and announced "Ladies and Gentlemen if you look to your right you'll see the Mosquito running in to commence its display" And until my dying day it'll stay with me forever the first pass was at well over 300knots (Dad estimated it at about this figure) in a 75 degree bank which he pulled right round the crowdline trailing a faint black smoke (apparently the sign of RR Merlins being exercised properly) The pilot then put on a beautiful display which ended up with a similar fast pass in the other direction, when again he flew up the Mersey off to another display somewhere else...
The Liverpool Echo had a report about the airshow a couple of days later and it only had one photo, and yes it was of that display, I had that cutting for years until it finally got lost in the mists of time..
Hope we get to see the sight and sound of the wooden wonder in the UK in the near future
We'd managed to get a spot right at the front of the crowdline, Dad's ex RAF and was giving me all the skinny on the aircraft displaying, and like any other 9 year old I was enjoying it immensely, we'd had Spitfires, Lightnings, Hunters and a very noisy Phantom display, but the last aircraft to take off before a break in the program (to let some civil stuff take off and land iirc) was the The Mossie RR299 which sounded glorious as it swept down the runway and off down the Mersey until it was time for it's display, after a 15-20 minute wait the Tannoy crackled into life and announced "Ladies and Gentlemen if you look to your right you'll see the Mosquito running in to commence its display" And until my dying day it'll stay with me forever the first pass was at well over 300knots (Dad estimated it at about this figure) in a 75 degree bank which he pulled right round the crowdline trailing a faint black smoke (apparently the sign of RR Merlins being exercised properly) The pilot then put on a beautiful display which ended up with a similar fast pass in the other direction, when again he flew up the Mersey off to another display somewhere else...
The Liverpool Echo had a report about the airshow a couple of days later and it only had one photo, and yes it was of that display, I had that cutting for years until it finally got lost in the mists of time..
Hope we get to see the sight and sound of the wooden wonder in the UK in the near future
tdm34 said:
It's an airshow one for me, but even after 45 years it's still a vivid memory, My Dad took me to the Liverpool Airshow at Speke Airport in 1969iirc
The Mossie RR299 which sounded glorious as it swept down the runway and off down the Mersey until it was time for it's display, after a 15-20 minute wait the Tannoy crackled into life and announced "Ladies and Gentlemen if you look to your right you'll see the Mosquito running in to commence its display" And until my dying day it'll stay with me forever the first pass was at well over 300knots (Dad estimated it at about this figure) in a 75 degree bank which he pulled right round the crowdline trailing a faint black smoke (apparently the sign of RR Merlins being exercised properly) The pilot then put on a beautiful display which ended up with a similar fast pass in the other direction, when again he flew up the Mersey off to another display somewhere else...
In 1969, it's very likely (almost certainly) that the pilot of RR299 that day would have been legendary DH Test Pilot Pat Fillingham, who had been one of the original wartime DH Mosquito TP's and who I believe had more Mossie hours in his log book than any other pilot, and displayed his beloved RR299 as often as he could up to his retirement from DH (HS by then) in 1975.The Mossie RR299 which sounded glorious as it swept down the runway and off down the Mersey until it was time for it's display, after a 15-20 minute wait the Tannoy crackled into life and announced "Ladies and Gentlemen if you look to your right you'll see the Mosquito running in to commence its display" And until my dying day it'll stay with me forever the first pass was at well over 300knots (Dad estimated it at about this figure) in a 75 degree bank which he pulled right round the crowdline trailing a faint black smoke (apparently the sign of RR Merlins being exercised properly) The pilot then put on a beautiful display which ended up with a similar fast pass in the other direction, when again he flew up the Mersey off to another display somewhere else...
As an ex spotter seen lots of stuff at airfields / air shows / air ports throughout U.K. and Europe but True wild spots:-
1970's - Family Holidays - Flamborough head - two German F-104's - Great Yarmouth - 2 x RF-4's (USA) -
1979 - Flying from Leeds with a mate who just got his PPL - in Cessna 152 up towards Harrogate - Vulcan flying low level went under us - on another trip saw 3 B-52D's line abreast about 2 miles in front of us, again low level.
1985 - Corfu - Agios Gorgios (sp?) - sat on beach with a beer - Two Greek F-104's - low pass about 1/4 mile off shore.
1989 - Stopped spotting but went to an open day at RAF Stafford - USAF EC-135 - LOW level - impressive.
2014 - Going to tourist attraction underground caves in Wales ( later found it was the entry point to Mach Loop ) - on some A road going over a brow of a hill - looked in mirror to see two Typhoons directly behind me - warned the family and ducked - the car rocked and the two Typhoons went over on their sides, descended into the valley, over a lake then just did a 90 left and disappeared.
2016 - working at Warton 3 days a week - Typhoons, Hawks, Tornados all being put through their paces.
1970's - Family Holidays - Flamborough head - two German F-104's - Great Yarmouth - 2 x RF-4's (USA) -
1979 - Flying from Leeds with a mate who just got his PPL - in Cessna 152 up towards Harrogate - Vulcan flying low level went under us - on another trip saw 3 B-52D's line abreast about 2 miles in front of us, again low level.
1985 - Corfu - Agios Gorgios (sp?) - sat on beach with a beer - Two Greek F-104's - low pass about 1/4 mile off shore.
1989 - Stopped spotting but went to an open day at RAF Stafford - USAF EC-135 - LOW level - impressive.
2014 - Going to tourist attraction underground caves in Wales ( later found it was the entry point to Mach Loop ) - on some A road going over a brow of a hill - looked in mirror to see two Typhoons directly behind me - warned the family and ducked - the car rocked and the two Typhoons went over on their sides, descended into the valley, over a lake then just did a 90 left and disappeared.
2016 - working at Warton 3 days a week - Typhoons, Hawks, Tornados all being put through their paces.
One of the best things I've seen was, arriving at Beachy Head late for the Eastbourne Air Show a few years back and seeing the BBMF Lanc come over from behind me, EXTREMELY low!
I think that this thread will be won by the chap who is a member on here (forget his name) who flew from Canada on Vera when she was over.
I think that this thread will be won by the chap who is a member on here (forget his name) who flew from Canada on Vera when she was over.
Earlier this year we were driving along the side of Loch Lomond in some glorious February sunshine when we were overtaken by a Hercules seemingly skimming the water. I then noticed a second one flying alongside the first at about the same altitude. They both disappeared into the mountains and I remember thinking that there can't be a better job anywhere in the world at that moment than flying through the highlands in that wonderful sunshine.
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