I was fortunate enough to spend three days at Kemble this year, Friday through Sunday, and came away with a rosy glow, not just from topping up my Cosford sun-tan but as a result of attending a brilliantly organised airshow of the highest quality.
The work carried out by event organiser Glen Moreman and his dedicated team delivered an event that managed to delight the general public and gain approval from that oh so hard to please community of aviation enthusiasts, no mean feat.
With early indications suggesting an attendance figure of around 19,500 across the two days (a record for the event), it has to be hoped that this format is retained for future events, for it surely warrants it.
Star of the show for many was the Sea Vixen. Arriving on Friday afternoon in the hands of an extremely proud Lt Cdr Matt Whitfield, she captured everyone's imagination over the course of the weekend. It was interesting to see the crowd's reaction when the hulking fourteen odd tonnes of fighter they were just looking at on the flight line was then pulling in to loops and rolls in front of their very eyes. It was a sparkling display of grace and raw power which, despite a hydraulic problem or two on Saturday, was undoubtedly the highlight of the weekend's flying programme. Worth noting here that Lt Cdr Whitfield was good enough to grant GAR an interview and this will appear in the not too distant future.
That the Sea Vixen stood out as the outstanding item takes nothing away from a varied display programme with plenty of additional highlights. Sunday was all about the Vulcan and while it felt a little strange for some to be seeing her for the second time in seven days (like an airshow regular!), the hush that fell across the crowd as she ran-in was extraordinary. Sunday's weather was unfortunately cloudy with the very occasional spot of rain and it would have been lovely to see her with the sun on her back again but still, her appearance thrilled the audience and it is to Glen's credit that she appeared at Kemble and I'm sure it did no harm to the attendance figures either. The Vixen edged it for many but to come away having seen both aircraft in the same day was pretty remarkable and is not something that many shows will be able to boast.
For many Kemble is synonymous with historic jets and with the likes of Hunter, Meteor, Venoms and Jet Provosts displaying, the 2009 event lived up to the association. Both days saw the show close with a wonderful formation of Hunter and Spitfire and Sunday also saw Hunter and the Meteor fly together, unforgettable stuff and classic Kemble moments.
Support from the RAF was strong with a VC-10 and C-130 on static display along with Merlin, A109 and a Hawk from Leeming. RAF solos came in the form of Typhoon, Hawk and King Air with a Hercules flying through on Sunday and the Red Arrows displaying on Saturday. Chinook unfortunately was forced to cancel. With the solo display aircraft lined-up on the old runway at Kemble the crowd are able to get a close encounter with these aircraft and their crews both before and after their displays, allowing for some true interaction between them which was great to see and is a huge plus for the event.
Other acts particularly worthy of mention were the Royal Navy Black Cats who ran in for their display on both days in formation with John Beattie in the Wasp which was a lovely sight, a stunning display by the Meteor NF.11 and also a dynamic performance on the Sunday by the Yakolevs formation display team. A first for Kemble was an appearance by a KC-135 from the United States Air Force 100th ARW based at RAF Mildenhall. The venerable tanker made a number of fly-bys on Saturday and Sunday and this will hopefully lead to even closer links between the show and the USAF in years to come.
One moment of concern during the flying programme came during Sunday's Hurricane display when the aircraft appeared to be suffering some kind of engine problem and looked very slow and very low, possibly due to over-heating . GAR has no desire to speculate further but suffice to say everyone will have been glad to see things work out okay in the end, for it was undoubtedly a heart-stopping moment.
Commentary for the weekend was excellently provided by Slipstream in the capable hands of creative director Trevor Graham with Ian Brodie and Sqn Ldr Andy Pawsey manning the microphones. A feature on the art of airshow commentary is forthcoming on GAR but if the comments written after the event are anything to go by then this team sets a high standard by which all others will be judged.
One-thing that should not go unsaid was the event's traffic management. It is an area which blights so many airshows, partly due to unforgiving locations in terms of large numbers of cars and sometimes due to what appears to be poor organisation. Kemble managed to get everyone in and out again with an ease that must be the envy of other events, though there were apparently some problems a little further away from the airfield, not of the event's making however. Kemble certainly deserves a big well-done for this as it ensures a much more positive experience for everyone visiting the event.
Overall then a great weekend of flying and entertainment, Kemble's mark on the UK airshow scene is well and truly made and for many it will be the first event in the diary when they are planning airshow attendance, possibly even over and above a certain other airshow held in the Cotswolds.
