A fun day of 1940s nostalgia at Sally B and Friends Day
Thousands of visitors came to Duxford’s first Sally B and Friends Day on Sunday 31 July for a day of great entertainment, 1940s nostalgia and fantastic flying. Many visitors were dressed in fabulous 1940s outfits and really entered into the spirit of the day!The wartime nostalgia could be felt across the Museum, with Rangers Re-enactors bringing the ‘Friendly Invasion’ of the United States Forces to life, while the Pitsford Home Guard perfectly recreated the real ‘Dad’s Army’ with Local Defence drills, demonstrations and interaction with visitors.
Fabulous forties music was provided by Room 21, who had visitors toe-tapping to Swing and Big Band classics, while the D-Day Darlings wowed the crowds with an authentic Andrews Sisters-style show, featuring instantly recognisable wartime songs that had everybody singing along!
The opportunity to meet the B-17 Preservation Team proved incredibly popular, with packed audiences for the talks by Andrew Dixon (Training Captain), Peter Brown (Chief Engineer) and Elly Sallingboe (Sally B operator) and some lively question and answer sessions.
There was some fantastic flying during the afternoon of Sally B and Friends Day. Sally B took to the skies in a solo display and was then joined by her ‘little friends’, the North American P-51 Mustang and the Supermarine Spitfire IXB.
The Italian trainer aircraft Fiat G-46 then performed a solo display, in its first appearance at Imperial War Museum Duxford.
The SWIP Team of Peter Wells and Guy Westgate performed a superb display in their graceful and agile Twister SA1100 aircraft and were followed by a display of the Beechcraft 17 Staggerwing, Douglas Dakota DC-3 and Beech 18 Expediter. Sally B then joined the three aircraft for a very special salute to the Sally B Supporters Club, without whom it would not be possible to keep Sally B flying.
A T28 Trojan aircraft then flew, followed by aerobatics master Mark Jefferies, who performed a jaw-droppingly amazing display in the Extra 330SC, which drew rousing applause from the crowd.
For the grand finale, Sally B flew with the SWIP Team in their Twister SA1100 aircraft before performing a poignant final solo display to the strains of the 1940s recording of Vera Lynn singing ‘We’ll Meet Again.’
This was a fantastic celebration of Sally B in her 66th year and a relaxed, fun and nostalgic day that was enjoyed by all!
