A special open day which includes a spectacular taxi run demonstration of one of the most iconic airliners ever to grace the skies takes place at Dunsfold Aerodrome on Saturday 15th July. ‘ZA150’ was the very last VC10 of 54 built at Brooklands in the 1960s and was one of the last two to fly with the RAF from Brize Norton in Oxfordshire. On its retirement in September 2013 it was acquired by Brooklands Museum and flew in to Dunsfold, where a team of dedicated volunteers maintains it in running order.

As well as seeing the full-bore-acceleration taxying demonstration, visitors will be able to tour inside the aircraft, chat to the VC10 Volunteers and see for themselves how it was converted from a commercial airliner to an air-to-air refuelling tanker for the RAF. Entry is by pre-purchased ticket only and the timetable for the day is as follows:

12.00-14.00 Pre-booked visitors will arrive via the Stovolds Hill entrance to Dunsfold Aerodrome
13.00-13.15 Taxi run on the Dunsfold Aerodrome
13.45-15.30 Group visits on board the aircraft
14:00 Last entry to Dunsfold
16:00 Event closes

Tickets are available from the Brooklands Museum website: www.brooklandsmuseum.com

The VC10’s graceful ‘T-tail’ and four rear-mounted Rolls-Royce Conway engines made it one of the most distinctive and elegant aircraft of its era. Only the supersonic Concorde amongst airliners was quicker, and the VC10 remains the fastest subsonic airliner across the Atlantic. With its quiet, spacious cabin and exceptional performance, the VC10 was a favourite of passengers and crews alike, fully justifying its epithet of Queen of the Skies.

The last heavy airliner ever to be completely built at Brooklands – and indeed in the UK – its eventual retirement in 2013 marked the end of an unbroken century of front-line service by Brooklands-built aircraft with the British armed forces. That is a unique record, unchallenged by any other factory-customer relationship anywhere in the world.

July is a special month for Brooklands and the VC10: 6th July marks the 30th anniversary of the arrival of the Sultan of Oman’s VC10 into retirement at Brooklands, His Majesty Sultan Qaboos bin Said al Said having most generously donated the aircraft from his Royal Flight to the Museum in 1987. It quickly became, and remains, one of the most popular exhibits in the Museum’s collection as it retains its luxurious gold-highlighted interior. Also on the Museum site is the fuselage of VC10 G-ARVM “Victor Mike”, which has been restored inside to commercial passenger jet standard, along with a special exhibition and video presentation charting the unique legacy of this aircraft.

For more information, contact Paul Stewart on 01932 857381 ext 249 or e-mail: paulstewart@brooklandsmuseum.com

The public face of the RAF, the Red Arrows, will be delighting Wings & Wheels visitors on Saturday 26th and Sunday 27th August as the team headline the 2017 air display at Dunsfold Aerodrome in Surrey.

Flying the distinctive Hawk jets, which flew off the production line at Dunsfold Aerodrome in 1974 in the hands of Duncan Simpson, the Hawk is the Royal Air Force’s advanced trainer and has been used by the Red Arrows since 1979. The squadron is renowned across the world for displaying a nine-ship formation of the British-built fast-jets.

The display is the result of nearly eight months’ intensive training each year, the majority of this completed during the winter months at RAF Scampton, Lincolnshire. Three of the display pilots are brand new to the team for 2017 – Flight Lieutenants Toby Keeley, Dan Lowes and Chris Lyndon-Smith. Chris returns for a second tour with the Red Arrows and will fly this season as Red 5. Toby and Dan will form up on either side of Red 1, flying as Reds 2 and 3. Typically, air crew spend three years as a Red Arrows pilot. Each of the pilots has fast-jet operational experience flying the Tornado or the Typhoon.

The first half of the Red Arrows’ display consists of synchronised, formation aerobatics, followed by a more dynamic second half. Reds 1 to 5 form the front section of the team’s formation, known as Enid, and Reds 6 to 9 make up the rear part, called Gypo. The Synchro Pair, Reds 6 and 7, perform the highly-popular opposition manoeuvres during the latter section of the show. During a display, Red 10 acts as the team’s Supervisor who maintains two-way radio contact with the Team Leader. He also provides the informative and entertaining commentary.

Jamie McAllister, Event Director comments: “The Red Arrows are a cherished national symbol and we are thrilled they are headlining Wings & Wheels this year. Their precision and incredible aerobatics make for a spectacular display to watch and are always a huge hit with our visitors.”

Visitors to Wings & Wheels can also enjoy other air displays including the Eurofighter Typhoon, Battle of Britain Memorial Flight (two Spitfires and Lancaster), Chinook (Saturday only), Apache Display Team with pyrotechnics, Tigers Parachute Team, The Blades and much, much more.

The ‘Wings’ of the event would not be complete without a close-up inspection of all the weekend’s visiting aircraft including the Royal Navy Wildcat, RAF Puma, Apache, Dunsfold’s resident Sea Hawk, and Hunter as well as the infamous Boeing 747, the Brooklands VC10 and Aces High DC3, all open for tours.

Supercars and classic and vintage icons put on an awe-inspiring display of power and speed on the Top Gear track in a 2 hour auto spectacular. The ‘Wheels’ of the show includes displays from McLaren 12C, Lamborghini Aventador Roadster and Huracan, Pagani Zonda, Ferrari California T, Aston Martin Rapide, Dodge Monaco, TVR Tasmin 280i, Ducati Multistrada 1200s, Ferrari F355 Berlinetta, Ford GT40 and Lotus Elise.

Visit the Wheels Zone with a bigger and better crowd line parade and interactive displays from car and motorbike clubs. The Stunt Zone will be exploding into 2017 with four wheeled hair-raising performances from Mission Motorsport and the popular Monster Truck arena returns offering demonstrations and passenger rides.

The Military Zone & Parade is interactive and explosive bringing re-enactors, a living history zone, and our popular military vehicle parade. The Zone has over 80 military vehicles, re-enactment groups, as well as the history of Dunsfold Aerodrome and Army, Navy and RAF recruitment stands for everyone’s enjoyment.

Sid’s Zone is an action packed free area for the little ones. From 10:00 until 16:00 the kids can join in with colouring competitions, arts and crafts, paper plane challenges, face painting and the popular Sid’s Trail which encourages the whole family to search the arena for questions and answers to win a goody bag. Meet and greets with show mascot Siddeley and the display pilots are not to be missed.

The excitement and anticipation doesn’t stop at the main displays as the 32-acre public arena is bursting with a huge variety of interactive attractions containing all you need for a great family day out. The show arena boasts, kit-plane demonstrations, military outlets and displays, static aircraft, fairground and over 80 retail outlets selling a wide variety of products and gifts. Shopping in the arena includes a craft marquee full of craft gifts and tempting tea time treats to take home as well as a *New* Vintage Market with hair and make-up, clothes and collectables.

As the last plane touches down the party starts across the arena with musical evening entertainment from Champagne at the Blitz, a 1940s songbird trio armed with smooth harmonies, seamed nylons and lots and LOTS of red lippy!

Taking the hassle out of your day the show includes added extras to make your experience even more enjoyable; over 25 fixed-price catering outlets, two bars, hospitality facilities, free on-site parking, public camping, lost children point, disabled access, informative show commentary, opportunities to meet the pilots, official show merchandise and grandstand seating.

The 13th annual Wings & Wheels will be held over the August Bank holiday weekend; Saturday 26th & Sunday 27th August 2017, at Dunsfold Park near Guildford, Surrey, and is open to spectators from 09:00 until 21:00.

Advanced rate tickets from £22 for adults or £50 for a family. Single child tickets (for children aged 5 – 15) will be £7. Children under 5 go free. Hospitality packages start from £155 per person, weekend passes, grandstand tickets and camping are also available. For more information visit www.wingsandwheels.net or to book standard tickets call 08712 305 572.

Wings & Wheels is promoted by Dunsfold Park Limited and in 2017 will be assisting the fundraising efforts of Brooklands Museum Trust and Help for Heroes.

Two of the earliest British designed jet aircraft have been confirmed for the flying display at Scampton Airshow thanks to the Norwegian Historic Squadron’s two Vampire jets. The Vampire FB.52 and T.55 will be wowing the crowds at Scampton Airshow with close formation flying of these two beautifully restored Cold War fighter jets.

Visitors to the Scampton Airshow will be treated to a display by the two aircraft which represent British aerospace engineering from the early days of the jet era. Both aircraft are now in the Royal Norwegian Air Force markings to represent Vampires that served with Number 336 Squadron in the early 50s, Norway’s first pure jet fighter squadron.

The RAF operated a large number of Vampires, which were a regular sight in Lincolnshire’s skies during the 1940s and 1950s, with aircraft being based at RAF Swinderby and RAF Manby near Louth.

Paul Sall, Airshow Director is looking forward to seeing this spectacular pair perform ‘keeping the history and heritage of aviation alive is an integral part of Scampton Airshow, to have the Norwegian Historical Squadron’s two Vampire jets performing together is just fantastic.’ The Norwegian Air Force Historical Squadron is a non-profit organisation, dedicated to keeping unique aircraft where they belong – in the air.

With organisers working hard to secure even more international participation, the UK’s New International Aviation Spectacular is going to be an unmissable event. From aviation enthusiasts to families, there is something for everyone at the inaugural Scampton Airshow.

More About The Show

Scampton Airshow – The UK’s New International Aviation Spectacular

Come and be thrilled by a unique mix of modern military jets, historic warbirds, civilian display acts, the RAF Falcons – the UK’s premier military parachute team, all joining the world famous Red Arrows performing at their home base! The inaugural Scampton Airshow takes place on the weekend of 9-10 September 2017.
RAF Scampton aims to play host to more than 100 aircraft over the airshow weekend, both in the air and on the ground. Visitors will be immersed in a feast of aviation, meeting crews from around the world, getting up close to aircraft in the static park, as well as experiencing the amazing 5 hour flying display including the exhilarating take-off and landing!

Heritage

The Scampton Airshow gives you the rare opportunity to visit this historic RAF Station and experience its’ 100 years of aviation. From WW1 and WW2 and the famous 617 ‘Dambusters’ Squadron, through to the Cold War when Scampton was a key station for the Vulcan. You can get close to this rich aviation history by visiting the exhibits and displays in the Heritage Hangar, with a limited number of pre-booked tours for the Heritage Museum.

The heritage theme continues as the backdrop of historic RAF Scampton is perfect for the Vintage Village where you will be transported back to the 1940’s with music, entertainment, re-enactors, old military vehicles, fire engines and memorabilia; all from a bygone age.

Something for everyone

Up to the present day and the RAF Village where you can meet the serving men and women of your Royal Air Force, experience the diverse roles within the current RAF and get hands on with the equipment they use to keep aircraft flying. Over the airshow you will also be able to meet the Red Arrows pilots, engineers and some of the other 150 people who keep the Red Arrows in the air, and feel proud at their dedication and professionalism.

Fast forward to the future and the Techno Zone where a vast range of free fun STEM (science, technology, engineering and maths) activities will inspire young minds and the spark to create the next generation of aviators and astronauts could be ignited!

With all of this on offer there is a huge amount to look forward to when the kids go back to school in September! Scampton Airshow is perfect for families as admission is free to under 16s and there’s a colourful array of activities around the airfield including the largest private collection of fire engines in Europe, classic car display, fairground rides, adrenalin fuelled flight simulators, hovercraft rides and even helicopter pleasure flights.

From aviation enthusiasts to families, there is something for everyone at the inaugural Scampton Airshow! Scampton Airshow promises to be a great value family day out, with FREE attendance for under-16s, when accompanied by an adult ticket holder.

Advance tickets ONLY – available at www.ScamptonAirshow.com

Royal Air Force Charitable Trust

Scampton Airshow will raise funds for The Royal Air Force Charitable Trust. The Trust’s mission is to PROMOTE the Royal Air Force, to SUPPORT its people now and into the future and to ENCOURAGE air-mindedness and the aviation-related education of youth.

The Royal Air Force Charitable Trust has already gone a long way to help aviation-related education of youth in Lincolnshire. In 2016 alone they have granted thousands of pounds to fund Families Days at RAF Digby, Cranwell and Conningsby as well as a Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths (STEM) event at RAF Scampton.

AN aircraft that last made an appearance at the Royal International Air Tattoo 40 years ago is set to make a welcome return later this month.

The rare A-4N Skyhawk will arrive from Germany and go on static display at the airshow on Saturday, July 15 and Sunday, July 16. The Skyhawk is a single engine attack aircraft that was developed for use by the United States Navy and Marine Corps. It is a carrier-capable aircraft that has seen extensive wartime use, from Vietnam to the Falklands conflict.
Owned by Discovery Air Defence, the Canadian company began operating a fleet of seven Skyhawks from Wittmund in 2015 after winning a contract to provide an adversarial air support to help train Luftwaffe crews. The A-4s are contracted to provide services ranging from threat simulation, target towing to flight test support.

The aircraft taking part in the Air Tattoo originally flew with the Israeli Air Force and has since been modified with modern navigation equipment and glass cockpits, whilst retaining some of the key military capabilities like the A-4’s air-to-air refuelling systems.

The last time an A-4 visited the Air Tattoo was in 1977, when a small number of A-4Gs visited Greenham Common from 805 Squadron, Royal Australian Navy. The aircraft launched from HMAS Melbourne, which itself was attending the Silver Jubilee Fleet Review in Portsmouth.

Air Tattoo spokesman Richard Arquati said: “Confirmation that an A-4 Skyhawk is participating in the Air Tattoo is great news and will be welcomed, in particular, by all our enthusiasts. The type last appeared at an Air Tattoo 40 years ago when the event was staged at RAF Greenham Common and since then we’ve been trying hard to get one back.

“It’s a compact little fighter that in its heyday punched above its weight and played important roles in significant conflicts during the 60s, 70s and 80s. Its rarity alone makes it one of the stand-out aircraft taking part in this summer’s airshow.”

Saturday tickets for the Air Tattoo have sold out but there are a limited number available for Friday, July 14 and Sunday, July 16. To view prices and enclosure options, visit www.airtattoo.com. All accompanied under-16s are admitted free of charge. Free parking.