This year is the 25th Birthday of The National Lottery, and Newark Air Museum is excited to be a part of the celebrations by joining in the #ThanksToYou campaign, which celebrates the contribution of National Lottery players in supporting good causes over the past 25 years!

On Saturday 23rd and Sunday 24th November 2019, the museum is offering a free admission to the air museum to National Lottery players.

Newark Air Museum will be one of many National Lottery-funded visitor attractions across the UK participating and saying ‘thanks’ to people who have raised money for good causes by buying a lottery ticket.

The idea is simple: any visitor, who presents a National Lottery ticket or Scratchcard on 23rd and Sunday 24th November 2019, will gain free admission to the air museum site, in this special birthday year.

Back in 2003 the museum received £453,000 from The National Lottery. The money helped to pay for the construction of Aircraft Display Hall 2 on the Southfield Site and this is our visitors chance to come and see the aircraft and helicopters that are now housed in that building for free

Howard Heeley from the museum said, “Thanks to National Lottery players we were able to get around twenty five aircraft and cockpits displayed under cover, thereby protecting their condition for future generations of visitors to see and enjoy.”

Since The National Lottery’s first draw took place on 19 November 1994, more than £40 billion has been raised for good causes in the areas of arts, sport, heritage and community – that’s £30 million a week making a difference to lives of people and communities throughout the whole of the UK.

Terms and Conditions for this can be found on the museum website.

www.newarkairmuseum.org

On Sunday 14th June 2020, the RAF Cosford Air Show will commemorate the 75th anniversary of Victory in Europe Day and host “Fighter Meet 2020”. Tickets for this spectacular annual event will go on sale on Friday 22nd November.

The exciting theme of Fighter Meet 2020 will demonstrate the evolution of air defence aircraft over the last century. This will include commemorating the 80th anniversary of the Battle of Britain – bringing to life the legendary story with emotive flying displays and interactive ground exhibitions – as well as looking to the future, showcasing the very best of today’s Air Supremacy.

The VE Day theme will focus on displaying historic aircraft from World War II, both in the air and across the iconic Vintage Village on the showground, combining re-enactment groups with a VE Day street party, a Vintage Fayre, classic vehicles & period entertainment.

Air Show Director, Mr Clive Elliott, said,” We are excited to deliver another spectacular Air Show, full of rousing stories from the past and fascinating displays, inspiring the next generation.”

The RAF Cosford Air Show attracts over 50,000 visitors. The Air Show will again be an Advanced Ticket Only event. Tickets will go on sale on Friday 22nd November – available online via the RAF Cosford Air Show website – with an early bird discounted price currently available.

www.cosfordairshow.co.uk

Families looking for indoor activities to escape the cold and frost during the festive season can do no better than a day trip to the Fleet Air Arm Museum in Somerset. With its four halls all undercover, filled with over 100 historical aircraft, the museum provides a great winter option for visitors young and old to roam freely around the naval aviation exhibits; try the immersive aircraft carrier experience; board the first British-made Concorde; and uncover the role of women in the Royal Navy in the new “Pioneers to Professionals” exhibition. Throughout the winter season, the Museum Café will serve a selection of hot food, beverages and cakes, while aircraft landings and take off can still be watched from the two indoor airfield viewing spots.

Along with the permanent exhibits, this December visitors can also enjoy a programme of special events:

• Christmas Concert Under Concorde – the HMS Heron Royal Navy Volunteer Band will be performing their annual carol concert on 12th and 13th December under Concorde 2, with mulled wine and mince pies on arrival.
• Christmas Search and Rescue – from 21st December to 5th January, budding aviators can help find Rudolph on an arts and crafts activity trail to try and save Christmas. Included with museum ticket.
• Top Gun on the Flight Deck – feel the need for speed with a special screening of the cult 80s action movie featuring fighter pilot Tom Cruise on 28th December, with Top Gun-inspired cocktails and exclusive access to the aircraft before the film.

Entry to the Fleet Air Arm Museum costs from £13.50 per adult and £10.00 per child, with family tickets available from £39.50 for two adults and up to three children. Tickets for the Christmas Concert and Top Gun screening are to be purchased separately but include access to the museum. Book online at www.fleetairarm.com

To mark the 80th anniversary of the Battle of Britain, the RAF Museum is making a selection of our Second World War art collections available to borrow for display.

The aim of this programme is to make works of art from our national collection more publicly accessible, to enable greater exploration of Battle of Britain stories within the national context of the 80th anniversary, and to build stronger relationships between national and regional organisations to support knowledge exchange.

Lenders will be able to borrow individual works or request a selection from the list, to be displayed in any appropriate form of temporary exhibition or single object showcase.

The RAF Museum will provide curatorial information about the works, the Battle of Britain 80th anniversary logo/brand pack and will promote the loans to the public as part of a nationwide campaign to mark the anniversary.

Works will be available to borrow from 1 March – 31 October 2020. The programme is open to Expressions of Interest from any accredited regional museum or gallery (or organisations working towards accreditation).

Successful lenders will be asked to share information about the RAF Museum with the displayed loan(s), and to share information about your organisation and Battle of Britain programme with us so we can promote your activities.

Transportation, courier support and nail to nail insurance costs must be met by the lender. The RAF Museum will endeavour to keep these costs as low as possible and will not recharge our internal administration costs.

Detailed condition reports, high resolution images and further details about the works can be provided upon request.
We welcome Expressions of Interest by 30th November 2019. As part of your EOI, please provide information about:

• Your selected loan(s) request. Please quote the RAFM accession number, title, and artist name in in all correspondence.
• Your proposed loan dates.
• Your display plans including the submission of UKRG Facilities Reports
• The collections (if any) you would be displaying alongside the loan(s).
• The audience reach the display would have
• Have you borrowed items from the RAF Museum/other national museum before?

Preference will be given to organisations that haven’t worked with the RAF Museum/other national museums for loans before. We would particularly welcome EOIs from organisations outside London.

Please send your expression of interest via email to Lisa Hickman, the Museum’s Registrar on 0208 358 4885 or lisa.hickman@rafmuseum.org

www.rafmuseum.org

The trustees of the Newark Air Museum (NAM) are delighted to announce that they have entered into an agreement with the Imperial War Museums (IWM) to accept the most generous transfer of Eurofighter Typhoon DA4 (ZH560) to the museum. Preparations are now underway to move DA4 to NAM’s Gateway Aviation Site in north eastern Nottinghamshire, close to the Lincolnshire county border.

The process to transfer this significant airframe started during the summer, when IWM announced its availability for disposal as part of a review of its extensive aviation collection. This review has identified objects that do not fully fit with its remit to tell the stories of the causes, course and consequence of war from the First World War to the present day in Britain and the former Empire.

In the documents notifying interested parties of the proposed disposal the IWM’s Disposals Manager made the following comments about the DA4 airframe.

“As a prototype, this airframe is an experimental model and is not representative of a production or operational aircraft. DA4 was one of the seven original industry development aircraft before becoming a RAF ground instructional airframe.”

Following a visit to IWM’s Duxford site by Dave Hibbert, Museum Trustee & Acquisitions Officer, NAM was able to confirm to the IWM Disposals Manager that the DA4 airframe fulfilled several criteria in the museum’s stated Collecting Policies, including:

“Aircraft used in a Training role, this because of our local connections with Flying Training.

Aircraft which show the development of the Jet Fighter / Bomber from the Post War period.”

Another important factor for NAM trying to secure DA4 was that it had been based at nearby RAF Coningsby, Lincs, where the airframe had been used for training ground crew specialists for the Royal Air Force. As such displaying DA4 at Newark would allow them to provide good public domain access to the aircraft for the local RAF and aviation community.

An initial letter of intent to proceed with the transfer was received by NAM in late July 2019. Since that time liaison-work has been ongoing between the two museums to confirm a suitable date for the move to be completed. Following more recent contacts with IWM Duxford, the move has been scheduled to take place in early 2020.

“We are honoured, excited and extremely proud to have secured such a fantastic airframe for the collection,” commented Dave Hibbert. He continued, “We are especially grateful for the assistance provided by the IWM staff in helping us to start the process of undertaking this landmark transfer.”

He concluded, “We are now looking forward to working with the IWM team at Duxford during the coming months to complete this move in an efficient and professional manner.”

www.newarkairmuseum.org

He’s an expert on aircraft at Yeovilton’s Fleet Air Arm Museum and a familiar face from television documentaries, now senior curator David Morris is highlighting some of his top 100 favourite items at the museum during a special exclusive evening at 6pm on Tuesday 3rd December.

The evening coincides with the publication of two new books by David, both available on the night. “The Fleet Air Arm and RNAS* in 100 Objects” and “Corsair KD431 revisited”. The Fleet Air Arm Museum has one of the last remaining Second World War Corsairs painted in authentic colours.

David Morris, senior curator at The National Museum of the Royal Navy’s Fleet Air Arm Museum explains:
“Only six years after man had successfully flown for the first time in 1903, the Royal Navy saw the potential of taking flying machines to sea. Initially they were used for aerial surveillance but quickly became involved in combat. We are so lucky to have a vast collection – Europe’s largest – at the Fleet Air Arm Museum – and it’s been thrilling to pick some of my favourites to share.

“Those attending the evening might be surprised at my choices. They include a simple deck hook or arrestor hook, the immensely strong metal hook fitted to aircraft and used to catch a wire on a ship’s deck to bring the aircraft to a halt. This is perhaps the one object that is unique to naval aviation. It is perhaps ‘the’ most definitive naval aviation object in the book.

“Probably my all-time favourite involves First World War Naval Air Fitter Henry Allingham, who was born in 1896, alive in three centuries (he died in 2009 age 113) and possibly unique in that he had the potential to have seen every object in the book. The bronze bust of Henry, on display at the Fleet Air Arm Museum simply has to be object No1 in my list of favourites.”

Doors open at 6pm and tickets cost £15 and include mulled wine and mince pies, rum and gin tasting and an opportunity to visit the museum and its ship. Tickets are available online at www.fleetairarm.com/event

Date: 11-16 November 2019

Time: 10:15am-1:00pm

Cost: £6.00 per person (under 16s free)

This month, the Michael Beetham Conservation Centre at the Royal Air Force Museum Cosford will open its doors, allowing Museum visitors behind the scenes access to aircraft conservation projects and the chance to speak with the teams who carry out this vital work.

From 11-16 November visitors can get up close to the current conservation projects undertaken by the Museum’s team of Technicians, Apprentices and Volunteers during the annual Conservation Centre Open Week. Highlights will include the newly restored Second World War Westland Lysander III (S.D.) fuselage, and the Handley Page Hampden fuselage, which is now nearing completion. The Open Week in November will be the last opportunity for aviation fans to view both aircraft at Cosford before they move to the RAF Museum London for public display in the new year.

The Lysander has now been restored to its form glory after undergoing three years of conservation work including a new fabric outer skin and complete repaint. As the only surviving Special Duties variant of its type, the Lysander is now painted in No 161 Squadron Special Ops colour scheme, reflecting its service towards the end of the war in non-operational special transport services.

Nearing the end of almost 30 years of restoration, the Hampden is one of only three examples of the type remaining, recovered from a crash site in northern Russia in 1991. The aircraft now has all four fuselage components fully assembled, attached and painted in its original 144 Squadron colour scheme and serial number. The Hampden restored at Cosford is the first complete fuselage section in the UK since the mid-1940s.

The Open Week is also an opportunity to see the Messerschmitt Me 410 in a stripped back condition with engines and internal structure fully visible for the first time. The Me 410 was moved into the Conservation Centre earlier this year for a short-term restoration programme and is due to go back on display in the Museums War in the Air hangar before Christmas.

RAF Museum Conservation Centre Manager, Darren Priday said:
“It’s hard to believe that the Open Week is upon us again. For regular visitors, this will be the last chance to see the Hampden and Lysander before both head to our sister Museum in north London for public display. New this year will be the chance for our visitors to see the Me 410 in more detail than would normally be possible when the aircraft is on display; the aircraft will go back on public display late November. As always, a warm welcome awaits our visitors.”

Repeat visitors will be able to view the on-going restoration of the Vickers Wellington. One of two remaining Wellingtons, the aircraft at Cosford is the only complete example of its type. Since its arrival at Cosford in June 2010, the Wellington has been stripped of its linen outer skin so that work to repair small amounts of corrosion to the geodetic framework could take place. The wings are now free of corrosion and have been painted in a protective layer and the fuselage will soon undergo the same treatment. Following this, the aircraft will then be re-covered in Irish linen, doped and painted in its Bomber Command colour scheme.

Members of the public who have followed the story of the world’s last surviving Dornier Do 17 will be able to get up close to the aircrafts forward fuselage and learn more about the project. Clear of the marine crustacean that has coated the aircraft for 73 years underwater, the fragile fuselage will be on display for visitors to view. Previously destined for the RAF Museum’s London site, the aircraft will now remain at Cosford and will eventually go on display in a specially controlled environment to help preserve the remains of the sole surviving example and to best tell its remarkable story. Fellow German aircraft LVG CVI, a two-seat reconnaissance and artillery spotting aircraft used during the First World War, built mainly of wood and fabric, will also be on display in a stripped back condition.

There will be much more than just aircraft on show during the annual open week. The Range Safety Launch (RSL) 43ft boat, number 1667 is one of the centre’s longest running projects and demonstrates the diversity of the role played by the Royal Air Force in protecting our nation. Most of the conservation work on RSL 1667 has been carried out by the Museum’s team of engineering Volunteers.

The Conservation Centre will open from 11-16 November between 10.15am and 1.00pm each day and admission is £6.00 per person (children under 16 are free and must be accompanied by an adult). The Museum’s display hangars will open from 10.00am until 4.00pm and entry is free of charge. For further information or to purchase tickets in advance visit: www.rafmuseum.org/cosford.

PLUS…in addition to the Open Week, visitors will also have the exciting opportunity to climb on board the Hawker Siddeley Nimrod R.1 XV249 during daily tours running throughout the open week. Visit the Museum website for more details and to purchase tickets in advance.

The RAF Museum London is proud to announce the Hawker Typhoon is back on display in Hangar 3

HAWKER TYPHOON IB MN235
MUSEUM ACCESSION NUMBER 74/A/27

Ordered by Air Ministry from Hawker Aircraft Ltd, contract no.943/SAS/C.23 (A). Sub-contracted by Hawker Aircraft Ltd to Gloster Aeroplane Co Ltd, sub-contract no.B.12148/39. Glosters built all but 15 of the 3,317 Typhoons built.

1944 Built by the Gloster Aeroplane Co Ltd at Hucclecote, Gloucester. Fitted with 2,180hp Napier Sabre IIA Engine. Given airframe No.153219. Part of Typhoon batch MN229 – MN269 which formed part of the 5th production batch of 800 aircraft, delivered Dec 43 -Jun 44.

O8 Feb 44 First flight at Hucclecote Aerodrome, Glos – a 40 minute flight flown by Squadron Leader Allan H Smith DFC, serving as a test pilot for the Gloster aircraft company on rest after completing his first operational tour with No 486 (NZ) Squadron. Squadron Leader Smith later commented that it must have been a good aircraft because he signed it ‘off test’ for delivery to the RAF after 40 minutes flying without any faults that would require another test flight. See logbook copy DoRIS ref. MF10029/12.

16 Feb 44 Off contract and allocated to 51 MU Lichfield, Staffs for storage.

Mar 44 Allocated to USA for flight evaluation, in response to a USAAF requirement to investigate the Typhoons’ potential as a fighter-bomber and to increase its fuel capacity.

12 Mar 44 To 47 MU RAF Sealand, Cheshire for packing.

24 Mar 44 Shipped to New York on the `SS American Manufacturer’.

16 Apr 44 Arrived in New York. Last entry on movement card.

6 May 44 To Wright Field, Ohio

After arrival in the United States the Typhoon was intended for fighter comparison and evaluation trials by the USAAF. On an unknown date it was issued with the Flight Test evaluation serial number T2-491/FE-491, though it is thought that it did not fly with this number applied. The `FE’ stood for `Foreign Experimental’. The aircraft was evaluated at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Dayton, Ohio. Due to changing requirements the Typhoon did not undertake the test programme originally envisaged and following a minor accident after only nine hours flying was put into store.

Examination of the aircraft as part of the assessment of its condition after 21 years at Hendon revealed that on the starboard side of the cockpit there is a small wooden container marked `Airplane Defect Reports’.

The aircraft also carries, on the reverse of a removable panel below the cockpit (port side) a `Data Case’ that has the following pencilled on it: `P38-G-3-LO, Aircraft 42-12791′. If this is indeed from a P-38 Lightning then these would seem to be two small modifications made by the Americans during their brief evaluation of the aircraft.

Jul 44 Noted at Freeman Field, and photographed 6 Jul 44 after assembly. Photo assembled in USA – Aeroplane June 2004 p.82.

24 Jul 46 Again at Freeman Field. Engine prepared for storage. Total flying hours – nine.

03 Jan 49 Allocated to the National Air Museum and eventually placed in crated storage at the reserve collection of the Smithsonian Institute, Washington. Apparently never on public display whilst in USA.

On this date the aircraft passed from USAAF ownership but its location remained unchanged – Chicago Orchard Place Airport, Park Ridge, Illinois, used for storage of museum aircraft since late 1948. It appears to have been dismantled for storage by this date.

Also transferred was a spare Napier engine sent out with the aircraft in 1944 – in 2016 this remained in store, complete and in good condition, with the Smithsonian Institution.

Aug 1953 Letter in Air Pictorial (page 249) from Keith Boyer, who had seen `a Hawker Aircraft’ serialled MN235 – The Typhoon – at O’Hare International Airport, Chicago. Air Pictorial mis-identified the aircraft as a Hurricane, despite the correctly quoted serial number. The aircraft was stored for a future National Air Museum along with some 135 other aircraft.

In the late 1940s, General Henry `Hap’ Arnold, Chief of Staff of the US Army Air Force, collected together sixty WW2 aircraft from all over the world and had them stored in an unused Douglas Aircraft Company factory at Park Ridge, Chicago, Illinois. However the aircraft – presumably including the Typhoon – were evicted when the factory re-opened in1952 with the on-going Korean War. The factory site later became O’Hare International Airport. After a period of external store the aircraft were crated by the time Mr Boyer saw them, and they were moved to the newly acquired storage facility at Silver Hill, Suitland, Maryland by early 1955 from whence the Typhoon was extracted in 1967. This is now the Paul E Garber facility of the National Air and Space Museum.

Apr 67 RAFM request to Smithsonian for Typhoon to be returned to the UK. Aircraft prepared for shipment.

Jul 67 Presented to RAFM by Smithsonian. Hurricane IIc LF686/5270M given in exchange by RAF 1969.

04 Jan 68 Shipped back to England from Baltimore to Liverpool Docks on S S Samaria. Taken by road to 71 MU Bicester for survey of work needed for restoration.

09 Apr 68 Transported by road by 71 MU to 27 MU Shawbury for restoration to display condition by a largely civilian team, restoration beginning 26 April 1968.

Arrived in UK missing one 20mm cannon, spinner, most engine cowlings, starboard aileron, undercarriage parts, radiator/oil cooler unit, side panels below cockpit and various inspection panels.
The missing cannon was replaced from RAFM stocks; the spinner was adapted from a HP Hastings spinner and other parts were made by 27 MU. The aircraft was in generally good condition with only slight corrosion.
Replacement engine cowlings were made from sheet aluminium, and the missing radiator was replaced by a cut-down Bedford lorry unit made to look like the original from the front at least. The incomplete state of the aircraft delayed the restoration team who had hoped to have the aircraft ready for the Royal Review of the RAF at Abingdon in June 1968; the intended display of the aircraft on Horse Guards Parade September 1968 also had to be postponed. See Form 700 issued at 27 MU 19 November 1968 – DB351.

19 Nov 68 Restoration completed and aircraft formerly presented to Dr John Tanner of the RAFM by Wg Cdr D A Gifkins, CO of 27 MU. Aircraft remained in store at Shawbury. Photos: Aircraft Illustrated Feb 69 p.48; Aero Modeller Feb 69 p.63; Royal Air Force News 14 Dec 1968. Colour photos at Shawbury – Aircraft Illustrated Apr 71 p.151 and Wrecks and Relics – The album p.55; Hawker Typhoon Special Mach 1 (Thomas) p.13; Flypast May 2008 p.20.

Feb 1972 Repainted by 27 MU at Shawbury.

By Nov 1972 Moved to Hendon for Museum opening and displayed in Camm Hall area ever since. This area is now known as the `Fighter Hall’.

1994 Centrepiece of `D-Day’ display – some repainting scheduled.
`Invasion’ stripes applied to wings and fuselage. Photos as latterly displayed – Aviation News February 2014 p.78; Flypast May 2014 p.10.

4 Nov 2013 Dismantling underway for move to MBCC RAFM Cosford for attention.
Removal of the cannon fairings revealed traces of the original wartime paint scheme on the wing leading edge – yellow leading edge band, upper surface grey and even clearly delineated black underside stripes – original Typhoon identification stripes to avoid confusion with Fw190.

7 Nov 2013 By road to MBCC at RAFM Cosford. Photos as delivered – Flypast January 2014 p.7 and April 2014 p.32; February 2014 pp. 90-91; Wrecks and Relics 24th Edition (2014). Repainted in representative markings of a Typhoon of No 440 Squadron RCAF, codes I8-T; fuselage repainted by 10 March 2014. Photos of fuselage and wings; Napier Heritage News 83 Spring 2014-cover; Flightpath Vol 25 No 4 p.27, 2014.

Nov 2013 Excavations by the volunteer Freeman Field Recovery team found the complete missing Typhoon Radiator core and at least one engine cowling amongst other buried aircraft parts, plus a complete Typhoon main undercarriage leg, propeller blades and other spares.
Photo of radiator – Britain at War Magazine Jan 2014 p.12.

8 May 2014 Despatched by road to RAF Brize Norton en route to Canada for loan to the Canada Aviation and Space Museum, Rockliffe, Ottawa. Flown out by RCAF C-17 17 May 2014. Photo being unloaded – Classic Wings Issue 93 p.15.

4 June 2014 Following assembly, towed from conservation hangar to main display hall at Rockcliffe. Formal unveiling on 6 June 2014 – 70th anniversary of D-Day. Photos on display; Flypast August 2014 p.16; Aeroplane August 2014 p.8; Flightpath Vol 26 No 1 (2014) p.6..

12 Apr 2018 Arrived back in UK via Liverpool docks.

18 Apr 2018 Following its return from Canada, to temporary storage at RAF Museum Stafford.

23 July 2018 By road from Stafford – Temporarily on loan to BAE Systems/RAF Coningsby. ‘Rolled Out’ at Coningsby on 27 July. Photos- Aeroplane September 2018 p.8.; Aviation News September 2018 p.22; Britain at War September 2018 p.6. For display in BBMF hangar.

18 Oct 2018 Returned by road from RAF Coningsby to Hendon

26-28 Nov 2018 Re-assembled at Hendon and placed back on public display

www.rafmuseum.org

For its 15th Show, Wings & Wheels is returning to its original 2005 spot in June! The airshow will now take place on Saturday 15th and Sunday 16th June 2019.

The decision to change the date was made following the announcement that the Red Arrows will be on tour in North America throughout August and September and after consultation with exhibitors, participants, volunteers and visitors.

Jamie McAllister, Events Director, Wings & Wheels comments: “We’ve thought carefully about changing the date of Wings & Wheels to ensure that we are able to continue to put on the very best show for visitors. We had to consider a number of things, including what exhibitors and air displays would be available in August vs June and have concluded that a return to the show’s roots in June is a positive step for the airshow. We are now moving forward and planning the show for Saturday 15th and Sunday 16th June and are excited to welcome visitors to the new dates.”

The sensational summer event for the whole family, Wings & Wheels at Dunsfold Aerodrome, will be celebrating its 15th Show with a change in date to Saturday 15th and Sunday 16th June. Famous favourites in the air and on the ground will blow your mind, whilst the attractions and Zones in the Arena will keep you entertained and buzzing with delight the WHOLE weekend.

Eyes to the sky as the ‘Wings’ of the event treats visitors to outstanding and diverse 5 hour air displays which have previously included show favourites the Red Arrows, Battle of Britain Memorial Flight (Lancaster, Spitfires), Chinook, Hurricane, the Tigers Parachute Display Team, The Blades, Jet Provost, Hurricane, Strikemaster, O’Brien’s Flying Circus, the Bronco Demo, Richard Goodwin, The Turbulent Display Team, B-17 Flying Fortress Sally B, NAHF Vampire Pair, NAHF MiG 15 and Fireflies Aerobatic Team, accompanied by witty and knowledgeable commentary from aviation experts and display pilots.

The ‘Wings’ of the event would not be complete without a close-up inspection of all the weekend’s visiting aircraft including Dunsfold’s resident Boeing 747 in the ‘Wings Park’ 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 included displays from Koenigsegg Agera R, 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 popular Monster Truck arena returns offering demonstrations and passenger rides.

The Military Zone & Parade is interactive and explosive bringing re-enactors in a living history zone and our popular military vehicle parade. The Zone has over 80 military vehicles, six 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 go-karts, aviation and motoring simulators, military outlets and displays, static aircraft, fairground and over 60 retail outlets selling a wide variety of products and gifts. Shopping in the arena includes a craft marquee full of tempting tea time treats to take home and craft gifts.

As the last aircraft 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 18 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 15th annual Wings & Wheels will be held on Saturday 15th & Sunday 16th June 2019, at Dunsfold Park near Guildford, Surrey, and is open to spectators from 09:00 until 20:00.

Advanced rate tickets from £24 for adults or £55 for a family. Single child tickets (for children aged 5 – 15) will be £8. Children under 5 go free. Hospitality packages start from £199 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.

Christmas has come early at the Royal Navy International Air Day HQ with news of the first confirmed participants! The Lithuanian Air Force will make its UK flying display debut with an L-39C Albatros jet trainer at Royal Naval Air Station Yeovilton on Saturday 13 July. The eastern European air arm is also reprising its popular 2018 static display contribution with examples of the C-27J Spartan tactical transport aircraft and Mi-8UTV Hip troop transport/search and rescue helicopter.

The L-39 Albatros was a real success for Czech firm Aero Vodochody. During a 25-year production run, 2,900 were built and supplied to almost 50 militaries. Lithuania, plus around a dozen other nations, took delivery of the L-39ZA armed trainer/light attack variant. Its duties include surveying and defending Lithuanian airspace.

The remarkable Mil Mi-8 (NATO codenamed ‘Hip’), winner of the Best Rotary Wing Static Display at Air Day 2018, is the world’s most produced-helicopter: a staggering 17,000-plus examples of the Soviet-origin design having been manufactured. Lithuania only employs three Mi-8s in the troop transport and search and rescue roles.

The C-27J Spartan is a versatile and highly deployable type that can operate from 2000-foot-long airstrips and has a very useful payload capacity of 11,500 kg. One of only three examples operated by this air arm, the Spartan was open to visitors at the 2018 show and proved to be extremely popular.

These very rare contributions get the Royal Navy International Air Day 2019 participation announcements off to the very best of starts and we are sincerely grateful for the support shown by the Lithuanian Air Force. Early bird tickets with no booking fees are now on sale for a limited period only at http://www.store.yeoviltonairday.co.uk/.