Anyone going to RIAT?
Discussion
im going fri and saturday (possibly a mistake and the OH may drag me away, but it looks like its gonna be wet!
i cant remember last year too much but seemed to think parking was on grass with no trackways laid down?
if it does p it down is there propensity for the car parks to turn to a quagmire as i may not bring the QV if so??
i cant remember last year too much but seemed to think parking was on grass with no trackways laid down?
if it does p it down is there propensity for the car parks to turn to a quagmire as i may not bring the QV if so??
As per last year happy enough to attend one of the arrival days. A good variety of a/c & a number of practice displays - more than enough.
No longer can cope with the crowds & vehicle congestion. Having enjoyed air shows throughout the 1960's & '70's into the early 80's, USAF bases especially fabulous noisy & exciting everything since has been so diluted padded out with gliders & silly girls on wings it's all become a little boring.
No longer can cope with the crowds & vehicle congestion. Having enjoyed air shows throughout the 1960's & '70's into the early 80's, USAF bases especially fabulous noisy & exciting everything since has been so diluted padded out with gliders & silly girls on wings it's all become a little boring.
WJNB said:
... silly girls on wings it's all become a little boring.
I hardly think strapping yourself to the wing of a Stearman and then being flown aerobatic is "silly". FWIW the last wing-walker I met (on a tube train oddly enough, not at RIAT) was training as an airline pilot. Edited by Yertis on Tuesday 16th July 10:17
WJ agreed
I was a veteran of old Mildenhalls and Finningley's in the 80's and 90's and simply find modern airshows are too busy, too congested and rather pricey, they are not really that dear when you compare them to similar things, but I simply can't do the tens of thousands of people holding up phones for pictures they are never going to look at and getting in your way crap, like you get an concerts and other big sports events.
I was very lucky to see planes few have seen, few will see again, and I treasure those moments of walking out with a couple of models and watching the Arrows over our heads, as we always left early before they came on as they lived down the road from Waddington where I lived!
My best memory is Waddington years ago, seeing an F117 display and being stood near a WW2 veteran, I looked at him, and asked "what do you think of that then Sir?" And he just shook his head and smiled at me as I shook his hand. And on the same day waving to a Russian in a Su27, after spending years as a kid looking at blacked out awful pictures of Su24's etc in books coz we were at war sort of.
There I am waving at a Russian!! Awesome stuff
Best display I ever saw, toss up between a 6 ship Hercules display team (I kid you not) and the Blue Angels who made the Arrows look silly!
I was a veteran of old Mildenhalls and Finningley's in the 80's and 90's and simply find modern airshows are too busy, too congested and rather pricey, they are not really that dear when you compare them to similar things, but I simply can't do the tens of thousands of people holding up phones for pictures they are never going to look at and getting in your way crap, like you get an concerts and other big sports events.
I was very lucky to see planes few have seen, few will see again, and I treasure those moments of walking out with a couple of models and watching the Arrows over our heads, as we always left early before they came on as they lived down the road from Waddington where I lived!
My best memory is Waddington years ago, seeing an F117 display and being stood near a WW2 veteran, I looked at him, and asked "what do you think of that then Sir?" And he just shook his head and smiled at me as I shook his hand. And on the same day waving to a Russian in a Su27, after spending years as a kid looking at blacked out awful pictures of Su24's etc in books coz we were at war sort of.
There I am waving at a Russian!! Awesome stuff
Best display I ever saw, toss up between a 6 ship Hercules display team (I kid you not) and the Blue Angels who made the Arrows look silly!
chunder27 said:
Best display I ever saw, toss up between a 6 ship Hercules display team (I kid you not)
The Green Barrows....although, my aging memory recalls them being a 5-ship....?The other great RAF display team was the Green Marrows which was a brilliant 4-ship Canberra display team
theplayingmantis said:
if it does p it down is there propensity for the car parks to turn to a quagmire as i may not bring the QV if so??
Shouldn't be too bad, the ground is probably pretty thirsty at the moment.It was like running the marathon des sables last year trying to find drinking water, might be ideal if the visibility holds up.
theplayingmantis said:
im going fri and saturday (possibly a mistake and the OH may drag me away, but it looks like its gonna be wet!
i cant remember last year too much but seemed to think parking was on grass with no trackways laid down?
if it does p it down is there propensity for the car parks to turn to a quagmire as i may not bring the QV if so??
Last year there were plenty of metal trackways laid down in the grass area I parked at.i cant remember last year too much but seemed to think parking was on grass with no trackways laid down?
if it does p it down is there propensity for the car parks to turn to a quagmire as i may not bring the QV if so??
Just returned from a few hours at Fairford watching some arrivals - mainly heavies. Had to leave at 1pm & not nearly as interesting as least year. Lovely easy parking though.
Last year I went on the second day & there were more arrivals, the heavies seemed to have already arrived. There was much more noise & practice displays by fighter jets & stuff.
Is this the norm seeing as 2020 is in the diary?
Last year I went on the second day & there were more arrivals, the heavies seemed to have already arrived. There was much more noise & practice displays by fighter jets & stuff.
Is this the norm seeing as 2020 is in the diary?
We have decided to give it a miss this year. We have been at every Fairford Tattoo since 1995 and we just feel that it’s hard to justify the entry fee when we are seeing less variety each year.
It’s a shame because it was a highlight of the summer for us and In some ways the event has improved (facilities, shuttle buses etc..) the flying display Is often very samey though with not much variety from one year to the next.
It also feels like the general admission crowd are squeezed into smaller areas, gone are the days of getting a crowd line spot at a reasonable time. It is also dominated by keen photographers who set up their giant lenses and spend the day on their feet, meaning that you haven’t much hope of getting a view of the planes on the runway unless you are prepared to camp overnight and secure your spot at the crack of dawn.
I know this sounds all very negative but we have been saying the same thing to each other after every show for the last few years. I am quite tempted to attend arrivals or departures day as I feel there is more likelihood of seeing some unusual and interesting aircraft in the sky, even if they are just landing or taking off.
If you haven’t been before, ignore the above because it is still a good day out. Maybe I need to take a year or two out and recharge my enthusiasm!
It’s a shame because it was a highlight of the summer for us and In some ways the event has improved (facilities, shuttle buses etc..) the flying display Is often very samey though with not much variety from one year to the next.
It also feels like the general admission crowd are squeezed into smaller areas, gone are the days of getting a crowd line spot at a reasonable time. It is also dominated by keen photographers who set up their giant lenses and spend the day on their feet, meaning that you haven’t much hope of getting a view of the planes on the runway unless you are prepared to camp overnight and secure your spot at the crack of dawn.
I know this sounds all very negative but we have been saying the same thing to each other after every show for the last few years. I am quite tempted to attend arrivals or departures day as I feel there is more likelihood of seeing some unusual and interesting aircraft in the sky, even if they are just landing or taking off.
If you haven’t been before, ignore the above because it is still a good day out. Maybe I need to take a year or two out and recharge my enthusiasm!
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