July – Page 2 – Airscene News

Royal Canadian Air Force celebrate centenary at RAF Fairford

RIAT Royal Canadian Air Force

This year’s Royal International Air Tattoo (RIAT) had a touch of the transatlantic about it as the Royal Canadian Air Force marked their 100th birthday at the world-renowned airshow.

Celebrating all things Canada, they had a designated area on the showground, routinely patrolled by their RCAF Centennial mascot Astra, who posed for pictures with visitors.

On Saturday morning crew members, engineers and the RCAF Commander, Lieutenant-General Eric Jean Kenny were presented a birthday cake from RIAT, in recognition of their centenary.

The Canadian’s arrived with a number of different aircraft, including a yellow Kingfisher for the first time which featured alongside other aircraft on their static display, while the CF-188 Hornet, which was in a special paint scheme for this year, took part in the flying display.

RIAT’s Head of Air Operations, Peter Reoch, said: “It was a pleasure to host an exciting array of aircraft from our Canadian friends at the show this year, from the huge CC-177 Globemaster to the much smaller Chipmunk, there was something of interest for everyone.

“Friday’s special flypast with the Hornet alongside the RAF Red Arrows was the icing on the cake.”

RAF Fairford is the only place in Europe where the Canadians are recognising their landmark birthday, which has been a theme of this year’s alongside ‘Pushing the Boundaries in Air and Space’, 75-years of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) and 50-years of the iconic F-16 Fighting Falcon.

Col Maggie Jacula, RCAF 2024 Campaign Manager said: “It is an absolute honour to be here at RIAT to celebrate the Centennial of the Royal Canadian Air Force.

“We have received such kind hospitality from the RIAT team and the general public who have come to visit our aircraft and crews and to enjoy a bit of Canadiana at the RCAF Centennial Tent.

“It is wonderful to be able to share our Centennial with our British friends.”

Tickets for next year’s show are already on sale via www.AirTattoo.com.

RIAT24 final aircraft announcement

RIAT Typhoon

It’s the finishing touches to this year’s line-up this week, with our final aircraft announcement for RIAT24.

With well over 200 aircraft already confirmed we are delighted to be adding a pair of Phantoms from the Hellenic Air Force to the static display! In addition we’ll also have Royal Navy Wildcat, more American F-16s, Metrea King Air and new Tecnam operated by the RAF’s Rapid Capability Office.

To view your full finalised line up for this year’s show, visit below.

www.airtattoo.com/the-airshow/aircraft-and-pilots/aircraft-updates

RAF Museum Midlands Wins Tripadvisor Travellers’ Choice Award 2024

RAF Museum Midlands win Tripadvisor Award

RAF Museum Midlands recognised as a traveller-favourite attraction.

The Royal Air Force Museum Midlands is pleased to announce today that it has been recognised in Tripadvisor’s® Travellers’ Choice® Awards for 2024. The award honours businesses that consistently earn great reviews, placing them among the top 10% of listings around the world on Tripadvisor.

As the world’s largest travel guidance platform, Tripadvisor has unparalleled authority with travellers and diners. This award is based on genuine feedback from anyone in the community who has visited and left an authentic, first-hand review on Tripadvisor over a 12-month period, making it a valuable and trustworthy designation of great places to visit.

Alan Edwards, Head of Operations at RAF Museum said:
‘We are honoured to be included among travellers favourites this year and extend our heartfelt thanks to every visitor who left us a review. This accolade is a testament to the exceptional work of our staff and volunteers, who ensure our visitors have an outstanding experience. Their dedication to delivering a warm welcome, engaging experiences, and maintaining the Museum to the highest standards has led to this achievement.’

John Boris, Chief Growth Officer at Tripadvisor said:
‘Congratulations to the RAF Museum Midlands on its recognition in Tripadvisor’s Travellers’ Choice Awards for 2024. Travellers’ Choice honours businesses that consistently demonstrate a commitment to hospitality excellence. This means you have made such a memorable impact on your visitors that many of them took the time to go online and leave a great review about their experience. People rely on Tripadvisor’s Travellers’ Choice seal to help them navigate the myriad of things to see, eat and do across the globe. We hope this recognition continues to drive business to you in 2024 and beyond.’

Check out all the reviews, and discover more about the RAF Museum Midlands on Tripadvisor. Entry to the RAF Museum is free, to book your day out at the top attraction visit www.rafmuseum.org/midlands.

More USAF aircraft confirm for RIAT24

RIAT B-52

As our American friends celebrate Independence Day, we are pleased to confirm more USAF aircraft coming to RIAT24.

Starting with the mighty B-52 Stratofortress, this awesome jet will be on static display over the weekend. In addition, we have a F-35A Lightning II, a pair of F-15E Strike Eagles, both from RAF Lakenheath also on static display. Finally, a highlight of the Friday show will be the U-2 taking to the sky as part of our flying display programme before parking up on static display for the rest of the weekend.

Another Friday treat will be the rare appearance of a RC-135 Rivet Joint from the Royal Air Force, which will lead a multination flypast to recognise 75-years of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation.

www.airtattoo.com

Aircraft taken on loan from the Royal Air Force Museum

Newark Meteor

Throughout 2023 and 2024 the trustees of the Newark Air Museum [NAM] have been in discussions with the Royal Air Force Museum (RAFM), regarding the loan of the Gloster Meteor F.8 (mod) WK935 / 7869M, which is often referred to as the Prone Meteor.

The Loan Agreement was finalised on 21st June, 2024. Thanks to a lot of pre-planning and preparation work the Prone Meteor was moved from the RAFM Cosford site to NAM’s site in eastern Nottinghamshire, close to the border with Lincolnshire, on Monday 24th June, 2024.

Staff from the Michael Beetham Conservation Centre (MBCC) at Cosford supervised the move, which was undertaken by their preferred contractor, SPH Plant Limited from Telford, Salop. During a subsequent two-day time period the MBCC staff reassembled the Prone Meteor, before moving into Hangar 2 on NAM’s Southfield Site. Local forklift hire was kindly arranged by AEM Lifting from Tuxford, Notts.

“The museum first contemplated trying to take the Prone Meteor on loan, at the suggestion of aviation historian Ken Ellis, whilst developing the Interpretation Plan for the other British prone trials aircraft, the Reid and Sigrist Desford.” commented Newark Air Museum Trustee, Colin Savill.

“We are grateful to the Royal Air Force Museum staff at both London and Midlands, who have helped implement this loan agreement.” He concluded, “Securing the loan of the Prone Meteor allows us to display these two unique aircraft from the golden age of British aviation, together at one location; something that has never happened before!”

An additional comment has also been made by Dr Harry Raffal at the RAF Museum: “We are delighted that through our loan of the Meteor F8 to Newark Air Museum new audiences will engage with this unique strand of the RAF story. The loan will provide an exciting new exhibit at Newark Air Museum whilst helping the RAF Museum share our collection more widely.”

www.newarkairmuseum.org

CC Prizes from Key Publishing

It gives me great pleasure to announce that Key Publishing are returning to Airscene as a sponsor again this year.

Two years of pandemic and staffing changes did mean I have had to find new contacts, and try to get what is effectively new sponsorship in place.

I was permitted to pick prizes this year from the current catalogue, and so Key Publishing will be providing the following:

1 copy of “Avro Military 1910-63” valued at £15.99 and 2 copies of “Aviation Photographer” – a bookazine valued at £4.99. I had made this pick before the bookazine sold out, and it is not certain it will be back in print when the competition closes, so winners of the bookazine prizes will be given the opportunity to select any alternative bookazine up to £5 in value if this one is not available.

Please support our sponsors where you can, Key’s shop can be found at: Key Publishing Shop: Aviation and Transport Specialists — Key Publishing Ltd

Chinook and Memorial Flight set to fly at Bournemouth

Bournemouth Air Festival Chinook

The popular Royal Air Force Chinook Display Team will be returning to Bournemouth Air Festival for an impressive aerial display this year.

The team have only chosen only eight air shows to display at this season, so their performance of pirouettes and turns over our award-winning coastline, is not to be missed.

The iconic sounds and sights of the World War Two aircraft in the shape of Battle of Britain Memorial Flight, Spitfire, Hurricane and Lancaster will also make a graceful reappearance across the four days which runs from 31 August – 3 September.

Festival goers can ensure they get the best view by taking advantage of VIP daytime hospitality or VIP live music evenings with dusk flying in the official marquee.

Visitors can also snap up casual reserved seats on the beach with a dedicated ‘Sandbar’ and toilets – all on the central flight line in an exclusive area.

This year’s festival, organised by Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole Council (BCP Council), includes exciting ground events such as a fun fair, performances from the band of Her Majesty’s Royal Marines and fireworks. There will also be food stalls and the opportunity to meet Armed Forces officers in the RAF, Royal Navy and Army Villages.

Councillor Millie Earl, Deputy Leader of BCP Council and Portfolio Holder for Connected Communities, said: “Having the Chinook Display Team and Battle of Britain Memorial Flight at this year’s event is an opportunity not to be missed.

“Make sure you to get the best view of the festival and snap up some of the hospitality seats going. The event promises to be something for everyone.”

This Chinook display appearance is supported by Thales UK

www.bournemouthair.co.uk

Shackleton WR977 Work Starts at Newark Air Museum

Shackleton at Newark Air Museum

On 25th July, 2023 installation work started on a bespoke scaffolding system around the nose and forward fuselage of Avro Shackleton WR977 at Newark Air Museum (NAM). This will allow teams of museum volunteers to work on this significant restoration and repainting project in safe conditions.

In 2023 NAM successfully installed jacking pads underneath the aircraft, which allowed refurbished jacks to be installed under both wings of the aircraft. This allowed NAM to make the aircraft safe; helped to mitigate issues with the main undercarriage structures; and allowed the visiting public to once again have some access inside the aircraft.

The installation of the new scaffolding by Inspired Scaffolding Services from Bilsthorpe near Newark will allow for restoration work to be undertaken on the front section of WR977 in a safe and secure manner. This work will include: sealing the main cockpit glazing; in-depth cleaning; conservation of, and the painting of this area of the aircraft.

For most of the work period, WR977 will remain as part of the museum’s open cockpit offer. The modest contributions for accessing this iconic aircraft (when possible) will contribute towards the ongoing fund raising campaign to cover the scaffolding hire costs and the cost of the weekly safety inspections.

The current anticipated timeframe for the work is ten weeks; from the end of July through to the first week of October.

In these challenging times NAM is seeking support to help fund the costs associated with the hire and regular safety inspections of the scaffolding. This NAM fund raising campaign can be accessed via the following Just Giving page: https://www.justgiving.com/campaign/wr977-scaffolding-2023

www.newarkairmuseum.org

Red Arrows Timings Announced at Bournemouth Air Festival

Bournemouth Air Festival Red Arrows

Timings for the world-famous Red Arrows have been announced for this year’s Bournemouth Air Festival.

The key times the Red Arrows will take to the skies during the air festival are Thursday at 5.30pm, Friday and Saturday at 5pm and Sunday at 2.45pm.

As well as the Red Arrows there will be an impressive line-up of air displays from fast jets to aerobatic bi-planes, helicopters and night air pyrotechnic displays.

Buy the official air festival souvenir programme to get free access to the up-to-date display timetable over the four days, exclusive stories about the aircraft and our fascinating local aviation history.

Meet the support teams that keep the display pilots flying in the RAF Village, Royal Navy Village and Army Village.

Discover games and exhibitions from local companies featuring virtual reality, lifeboats that save lives at sea and zero-carbon technology at the Ultra Energy STEM Village (Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths).

Organised by Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole Council (BCP Council) this exciting event showcases our beautiful coastline and is yet another reason for visitors to come and explore our unique towns.

Councillor Millie Earl, Deputy Leader of the Council and Portfolio Holder for Connected Communities, said: “Bournemouth Air Festival is a huge event, with much to see and do whether that’s visiting the fun fair, getting inspired at the Ultra Energy STEM Village, or being mesmerised by the aerial acrobatics. It promises to be an exciting four days.”

www.bournemouthair.co.uk

RIAT 2024 Anybody?

The Royal International Air Tattoo has today confirmed the addition of a pair of tickets for RIAT 2024 to be added to the prize pot in the Airscene 2024 Calendar Competition.

A bit too early to say what the theme for the Air Tattoo 2024 will be in it’s 28th year with Royal status, but we suspect there could be a ww2 link with it being the 8-th anniversary of D-Day next year. So perhaps we can expect a C-47 or two? No doubt there will be lots of invasion stripes anyway 🙂

Whatever the line up is, the forecast is fine and sunny for the winner of the this years Calendar Competition, as this pair of tickets for the Sunday are allocated to 1st place prize.

Entrants are permitted to send in 2 images for review, so if you are good enough to make the shortlist that will go forward to our panel of judges in October, then do get your first entry in asap!

http://www.airscene.co.uk/competitions/2024calendar.php