Heroes Airshow, RFC Rendcomb and Kemble Battle of Britain Open Day 2008
13th-14th September 2008

RFC Rendcomb Airfield played host to the biggest private airshow of the year, in support of the Help for Heroes charity, dedicated to providing support to service men and women injured in the line of duty.

The airshow line up was the who's who of the display world, with Sir John Allison acting as Flying Display Director, and distinguished displays from the likes of the Red Starz, the Blades, the Red Arrows, Warbirds from Peter Teichman, John Romain and Stephen Grey, and Paul Bonhomme and Steve Jones only SU-26 appearance this year as the Matadors.

Team pilots Peter Wells and Guy Westgate were joined by Martyn Carrington, Director of Flying for Vic Norman’s Aerosuperbatics and on the wing, Tanya "Tinks" Gaze, who has been with the wing walking team since the days of the Cadbury's Crunchie sponsorship.

Our tow plane for the display was Vic's 450HP Stearman with a banner hook and the only Guinot aircraft without engine cowls for improved cylinder cooling. As the 5th aircraft of the Guinot’s five ship display lineup, it had a smoke-tank full of red dye and from our bad experiences with Red Automate IK HF dye in 2006, we were very keen to keep our white composite aircraft white, not pink.

The autumnal morning mist was very slow to clear to hazy sunshine and we squeezed a practice flight in-between arrivals shortly before midday and then opened the show just before 2pm.

Rendcomb’s 500m grass runway meant the Stearman getting airborne with Tanya in the second seat, then climbing onto the wing before the low level manoeuvres for the first part of our display.  The powerful radial engine of the Stearman more than compensated for the additional drag of a wing walker, and our standard flight profile fitted well.

Kemble only 9 miles to the Southwest were busy with their annual Battle of Britain Open Weekend. Peter Wells represented the team there on Saturday with a solo display in the Twister, and several other flying acts flew at both venues on the Sunday.

Thanks must go to Vic and everyone at Team Guinot, Mike Newman who flew the test flights with Martyn Carrington and Wing Walker Sarah Tanner. Also to Paul Johnson who photographed our antics throughout the day.

More pictures from Rendcomb can be found in the gallery

(Photography by Paul Johnson, Mike Jorgensen and Guy Westgate)

Southport, Portrush and Lasham 2008
6th-7th September 2008

Team pilots Paul Moslin, Guy Westgate and Peter Wells staged out of RAF Woodvale for Southport’s 16th annual seaside airshow. The miles of flat sandy beach were badly flooded on Saturday and only just dry enough to land the Swift glider after the display flight, the Twister and Pawnee returning to Woodvale’s hard runways. Even the dryer looking sand on the beach was soft, so the glider was constantly sinking. However, the weather gods smiled and the afternoon’s strong wind dried the surface enough to allow us to retrieve the glider by aerotow in the evening.

The display used the beachfront as the crowdline, with the miles of sloping sea defences providing staged seating for the 20,000 spectators.

Peter Wells made a valiant effort to get to Lasham for their airshow to mark the end of the first UK Glider Grand Prix, but the day was ruined by the stormy weather. Duxford was similarly effected with numerous cancellations but Team Condor did get a ASK21 glider airborne for the Cambridgeshire show.

Team pilot Ian Gallacher's flight in Ulster gliding clubs’s ASK21at Portrush for the 7th NI International Airshow was a little dryer but just as windy.

The Portrush Bay has a curved crowd line,  so only the slowest and most flexible display acts could get in close, Ian finishing his flight by a landing on the beach to 80,000 spectators.

Sunday was a better day across the whole country and Portrush was mobbed with over 300,000 spectators. Notably, the Blades and the Red Arrows were the only other teams to display in both Northern Ireland and Southport. At Southport the beach had dried enough for the team to operate from the freshly rolled and scraped sand runway and we displayed in bright sunshine.

Brendan O’Brien had started a new (unofficial) record claim for the Swift’s roll-on-tow manoeuvre in August, with 6 consecutive rolls at Dunsfold, 8 at Bournemouth setting the stage at Southport for 9 rolls on Saturday, and then 11 consecutive rolls on Sunday for probably our last big public display of the season. Flamboyant commentator George Bacon whipped up the 40,000 strong crowd and it was a remarkable sound to hear the crowds in the beach car parks all beep their car horns on landing.

Thanks must go to the two University Air Squadrons at Woodvale for their hospitality, to Paul Johnson who represented us at Southport and David Beech and the Ince Blundell Microlight Club who helped with ground support at Southport. Finally,Ted Norman and the Ulster Gliding Club for the glider and aerotow in Northern Ireland and Jay Nethercott for organising the operations off the beach with the Coleraine council.

More pictures from Southport can be found in the gallery

(Photography by Karl Drage, Paul Johnson, Andrew Cameron, Ted Norman and Guy Westgate)

Bournemouth, Shoreham, A Wedding and Little Gransden 2008
30th-31st Aug 2008

Saturday was one of those days you dream about, blue skies all day and light winds - the last day of summer. Team Pilots Ian Gallacher, Guy Westgate, Justyn Gorman and Pete Wells flew the first leg to Bournemouth's inaugural Seaside Airshow from Parham via a fuel stop at Lee-on-Solent. We planned an audacious flight profile, an hour on aerotow to a flat glider show with no opportunity for the glider release from tow to land, followed by a second hour back along the coast to our afternoon display at Shoreham.

The Bournemouth Seaside venue was unique, the beach almost black with 350,000 spectators on Saturday and the hotels on the cliffs towering above much of our display. The other odd feature of the venue was the Royal Fleet Auxiliary ship, "Mounts Bay", a huge 16,160 tonnes grey lump moored on the edge of the display line.

Brendan O'Brien was the Chief Commentator and told us that although glider aerotowing had first occurred in Germany it was Dame Barbara Cartland who first thought of long distance aerotowing in 1931 and did a 200 mile tow in a two-seater glider. Her idea led to the troop-carrying gliders of WW2.

Our next display at Shoreham was a more traditional venue and we were blessed with blue skies for our 13th year supporting the RAFA charity show and a record crowd of 50,000. Pete Wells then took The Twister to Bicester for a Private Wedding display supporting Mike Newman in the MDM1 Fox while we flew a RAFA competition winner at Shoreham in East Suusex Gliding Club's two seat ASK21 glider.

Sunday did not inspire much confidence and the rain and low cloud cleared the Sussex Downs only 30 minutes before our departure deadline. The transit from Parham to Bournmouth was thankfully uneventful but there were noticeably fewer spectators on the Beach and Pier.

We fuel stopped at Lee-on-Solent on our return as the cloud descended in light drizzle. The transit further East to Shoreham saw an improvement, but by the time we displayed at 16:30, conditions had deteriorated again with a cloudbase of only 550ft and 5km visibility, the minimum flight conditions for a formation display.

Mike Newman represented us at Little Gransden to a reduced crowd of 3,700. The early rain and mist in Cambridgeshire putting many spectators off the Children in Need Charity show and cancelling many of the display's flying acts.

Thanks as ever go to Paul Johnson who represented us at Shoreham, the Portsmouth Naval Gliding Club at Lee on Solent, Colin McInnes for Mike's Fox tow at Bicester and Gransden Lodge's Andy Jude for the aerotow at Little Gransden. Finally Dave Williams for loan of the Ringmer's ASK21 at Shoreham for the ABTV prize flight.

More pictures from the weekend can be found in the gallery

(Photography by John Harper, Paul Johnson and Guy Westgate)

Clacton Airshow, Headcorn Flying Proms, Sywell Airshow and Dunsfold Wings and Wheels 2008
21st-24th Aug 2008

The whole team were involved in our busy August Bank Holiday air show marathon, with 5 Swift displays in 4 days. Clacton's Thursday/Friday show started the weekend with a short taste of summer. Team members Paul Moslin, Guy Westgate, Pete Wells, Justyn Gorman and Paul Johnson operated from Clacton Aeroclub for the seaside show. Although most of the display aircraft were based at Southend, Clacton airfield is only a mile from the Pier and seafront display-line, so the glider could get back to the grass runways for a safe landing. Big shower clouds brought rain to much of southern England, but the 120,000 seaside spectators were blessed with sunshine for most of the event. Justyn joined the display in the RV4 for his first show since loosing the Extra300L in May.

We fixed Pete's lipstick video cameras and a DSLR on the Swift glider to collect footage for next season's promotional video

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The Swift glider was next taken to Headcorn Aerodrome for Brendan O'Brien to fly in the evening Flying Prom, his manoeuvres choreographed to music performed by the English National Orchestra for his first glider display of the year to a crowd of 3,500.

Ian Gallacher then joined us for the Bank Holiday Sunday at Sywell for their 80th anniversary airshow as a weather front swept across the country, but the timing could not have been more perfect. The 4,500 strong crowd at Sywell enjoyed a dry afternoon with a grand lineup including a squadron of vintage planes from the Great War Display Team and the Edgley Optica, but sadly not the Vulcan flypast or the DC6.

From Northampton, south to Surrey for the last show of the weekend and the 22,000 Dunsfold crowd enjoyed a mix of classic cars and a varied flying display, with some unusual formations including Nimrod and Huricane and Hunter and Sea Hawk.

Thanks must go to Clacton Aeroclub for hangaring our aircraft, Maidstone Model Flying Club who helped with the Swift at Headcorn and John Hoolahan for towing Brendan. Finally to team member Mike Newman who drove through the night to help relocate gliders and vehicles after our logistics went awry at Sywell.

More pictures from the weekend can be found in the gallery

(Photography by Karl Drage, Paul Johnson and Guy Westgate)

9th FAI European Glider Aerobatic Championship 2008
7th-17th Aug 2008

Team Pilot Mike Newman represented UK in the 2008 European Glider Aerobatic Championships (EGAC), held at Radom-Piastow airfield in southern Poland.

The competition had its fair share of wet and windy weather, with a slow start, and great middle part to the week and a very wet finish.

After the opening ceremony and a parade through the town with our national judges and team support, the competition started with a 'Known' program, the same used in our own national championships. This was followed by a free program, showcasing not only the pilots flying skill but also thier creativity and imagination.

The remaining flights were all unknown programs, constructed of manoevres offered by each national team. The Russians were true to form and submitted some very difficult manoevres that unfortunately caught out debutant Mike and many of the 38 European competitors.

Mike's best performance was one of the unknown programs to finish 32nd.

Rougham Vintage Car Show & Air Display
17th August

Rougham airfield hosted their annual weekend show over 16th/17th Aug, with 2,500 spectators attending the main flying event on the second day.

Team members Guy Westgate and Paul Johnson braved the Suffolk summer weather and despite the forecast, were blessed with some of the best conditions of the season. The preceding weeks' low pressure systems, more usual in late autumn had brought enough rain to saturate the carparks and crowd arenas, but the grass runways remained dry and firm.

Rougham's display line is unusual as it has a kink, allowing many aircraft to fly topside passes. Most slower aircraft biased their displays to the main axis however, or centered their activity on the display-line corner.

Our dramas with our wingtip smoke continue, and our very last vintage cartridge suffered a flash fire during a tailslide with spectacular effect.

Most memorable displays of the day were the Auto gyro flown by John Elliot and Ferocious Frankie hunting down CAA pilot Dave Evans in the ME108.

Thanks must go to Rattlesden Gliding Club who provided the aerotow with their Citabria tug, and particularly Terry Slater, CFI Sarah Lee and tug pilot Geoff Avis

More pictures from Rougham can be found in the gallery

On Your Marks - Bruntingthorpe
10th August

Asda supermarket is into its sixth year of hosting the amazing "On your Marks" track day, and with 13,000 invited guests, it is now Bruntingthorpe's biggest annual event.

Team Pilots Guy Westgate and Paul Moslin both broke from the norm, to display the MDM-1 Fox and RAFGSA Single Seat Chipmunk Tug.

The weather featured throughout the day, with strong winds and heavy showers, but kept clear for the hour long airshow featuring the "Duxford Duo" - the OFMC Spitfire and Mustang flown by Lee Proudfoot and Alister Kay, Team Guinot and Tom Cassells in his CAP 232.

The 800m grass strip was alongside the pit lanes, and we found ourselves surrounded by 'petrol heads' in fast cars all day.  The surreal venue topped off by the sight of a fleet of 'ASDA George' lorries rumbling past the air museum's, Victor, Buccaneers and Airbus Super Guppy.

The cheekiest surprise was the airfield's static 747-200, half painted in ASDA green in 2006 and given a false reg G-ASDA. The other side of the Jumbo was still in its original Olympic Airlines livery - fitting as this year's charity day coincided with the second day of the Beijing Games and our 1st GB gold medal

Thanks must go to John Forde for inviting us, Paul Johnson for taking photographs and Steve Jarvis for ferrying the Fox glider from its home at Saltby and for flying trial lessons at Bruntingthorpe.

More pictures from Bruntingthorpe can be found in the gallery

Sunderland, East Fortune and Baxterley
26th-27th July 2008

The last weekend in July saw the team planning displays at venues in Southern Scotland, the north-east coast of England and the West Midlands.

On Friday evening, Pete Wells, Ian Gallacher, Paul Johnson and Guy Westgate positioned to Currock Hill, home to the Northumbria Gliding Club and setup a base camp for the weekend.

Our first display was to be at the Sunderland International Airshow followed by a transit flight upto East Fortune Airshow in Scotland. Sunderland is a special airshow as it boasts the largest airshow crowd in UK, with 1.2 million seaside spectators. The coastal venue has nowhere for the glider to land, dictating our first fly-through display with the Pawnee tug and Swift glider, augmented by some Twister aerobatics.

Saturday's gruelling flying schedule started with a 20 minute aerotow to open the 20th Sunderland Airshow but a thick sea fret hung over Whitburn's promenade and we cancelled our display whilst circling in the overhead, watching the low cloud and sea fog stretch as far as the eye could see.

We then aerotowed the glider an hour north, past Newcastle in deteriorating weather conditions and scraped into Archerfield, a delightful grass strip on the banks of the Firth of Forth where we were treated to tea and cake by the 15th Duke and Duchess of Hamilton, Angus and Kay Douglas-Hamilton. It transpired Angus was the chief test pilot on the Bulldog in the 70s and still owns serial number #001 that was also flying at the East Fortune Festival of Flight airshow.

The East Lothian Murk lifted slightly and by 16:30 we had a 700ft cloudbase at the East Fortune Museum site for our display which concluded with the Swift landing on the now disused airfield, the Pawnee and Twister both returning to Currock Hill in preparation for the second day at Sunderland.

There had been a few cancellations at East Fortune due to the poor visibility and low cloud early in the day but worse still, we learnt that Sunderland had been a dead loss, the sea fret persisting all day.

The synoptic situation changed little for the Sunday and after frantic planning and replanning by the TSA airshow team, we took-off an hour after our original slot, hoping to make use of a window of improving conditions, but were turned back from the holding pattern as the fog rolled back onto the beach thicker than ever. Rather than the hundreds of thousands we had expected on the seafront, we entertained the 25 pilots at the gliding club before the long journey home

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Meanwhile, Mike Newman was displaying the MDM-1 Fox glider at Baxterly in Warwickshire for their Wings and Wheels annual fly-in in glorious sunshine on Sunday afternoon. The event was a tribute to Sir Alan Cobham's flying circus that displayed 5 miles from the site 75 years earlier.

Thanks must go to Frank McLoughlin and Northumbria gliding club for their hospitality and to Phil Walsh for aerotowing the Fox at Baxterly

More pictures from East Fortune can be found in the gallery

(Photography by Paul Johnson/Flightline UK, Derek Pedley/AirTeamImages