2010 UK Airshows

Yeovilton Air Day 2010 and the crowd has long since departed after a day roasting in the sunshine and enjoying a very full and varied flying display which marked the Station’s 70th birthday. Naturally the Royal Navy provided a number of the performers such as a solo Merlin, four Lynx helicopters for a short role demo, two Jetstreams, the Sea Hawk from the RN Historic Flight and of course the Sea Kings, Lynx, Harriers, Hawks and troops which made up the famous commando assault and closed the show.

But there is only one “official” Royal Navy display team and that of course is the Black Cats – regulars on the airshow circuit for some time now with a pair of Lynx helicopters which always grab the crowds’ attention.

The 2010 season sees the team with two new members, including the first woman to join the Black Cats and a change in the team’s routine. Lt Becky Frater is Black One, the lead pilot, and she is joined by Lt Chris Chambers who will take over as lead next season with Becky moving on to pastures new and, therefore, just about squeezing in one exciting season with the team.

Yeovilton saw the team reach roughly the half way stage of their display season – so how were they finding it, I wondered?

“It’s been brilliant,” says Becky, “great fun and we seem to be enjoying each successive performance more than the previous one! Displaying at your home base is always a little bit special I think and that’s how it felt here today.”

Displaying at your own HQ is presumably not without its own pressures however……….

“Definitely,” smiles Chris.

“As well as a home crowd there was our squadron mates, former Black Cats’ pilots and, although we only found out afterwards, some very high ranking Royal Navy officers in the VIP area!”

To call the Black Cats the Royal Navy’s Red Arrows might be a little tenuous but, in respect of them being their service’s official display team, it remains a valid comparison and one that Becky is happy to go along with. The role of the two teams is broadly similar too as she explains:

“We fly the flag for the Royal Navy when we go out and perform and it’s our job to get out to as many venues as we can throughout the season in order to do that, and hopefully we’ve managed it so far.”

Now, the airshow circuit can be a strange old world where the same faces meet up weekend after weekend; different venues and different hotels but definitely a travelling circus feel. This is something new for Chris and Becky this season so how are they finding it I wonder?

“For me, it has definitely rekindled the same passions I had when I was a kid,” says Chris. “I went to a lot of airshows and it was then that I decided I wanted to fly – that was when it became my ambition if you like.

“With aviation, when you become a professional you tend to lose some of that passion, I think, as it’s now your job. So going back to airshows and meeting other aircrew who fly different types of aircraft from all over the world has really brought back many of those childhood memories and reignited that passion for the aircraft.”

“I was brought up in Southend and that’s obviously home to a major seaside airshow which I went to when I was younger,” adds Becky, “it definitely influenced what I wanted to do in later life and now I’m part of a team trying to do exactly the same thing to the kids who attend airshows now!”

“Mildenhall Air Fete would be the one if I had to pick a particular memory,” laughs Chris, “the massive and legendary airshow where I probably ate too many of those incredible burgers with barbecue sauce!”

Isn’t it incredible how many people remember Mildenhall for the food rather than the aircraft!

Eagle eyed airshow goers will have noticed a relatively subtle, but definitely noticeable change to the Black Cats routine this season. This kind of thing clearly doesn’t happen by accident but is the result of a conscious decision making process and a lot of hard work, as Becky explains.

“It actually started at our allocation meeting. This took place in January and is where we looked at the venues we wanted to take the Black Cats display to this season, and we decided to go and fly at some of the smaller and less obvious events - including some which are non-aviation focussed - in order to spread the word about the Royal Navy to some new areas.

“When we then looked at some of those venues we realised that many of them had smaller or shorter crowd lines than the usual airshow sites and that meant that we decided to design our display routine accordingly.

“In practical terms this means more vertical extent (Nb flying cross-overs a little higher for example means that more people can see them) and also ensuring that we keep it dynamic and focussed on crowd centre as much as possible.”

What has resulted is without question one of the most eye catching and photogenic displays on the circuit this season. Watching and photographing the Black Cats over the Cotswold Airshow weekend was an absolute pleasure, even in the murky conditions which prevailed for Friday’s practice. The famous Carousel remains a thrilling spectacle as the two aircraft face one another and literally dance around, backwards and forwards, nose to nose and, combined with the higher energy breaks and cross-overs, there is much to enjoy and admire.

I say admire as some of that formation work looks very, very close with those spinning rotors to take in to consideration as well.

“A lot of the manoeuvres probably look closer than they are,” admits Chris, giving away some trade secrets in the process!

“We do have tricks up our sleeve and some of that is to do with perspective and also to ensure safety of course. Small differences in height for example mean that we are separated both laterally and horizontally although that might not be readily apparent from the ground.”

“While I could never imagine flying the Carousel operationally,” Becky smiles, “flying formation with one rotor span separation would be perfectly acceptable as part of our day to day work.

“That’s one of the nice things about the display actually. Even though we work very hard to polish and refine the routine, every part of it could be flown by any frontline Lynx pilot so in that way it is representative of the force as a whole."

Use of different marks of Lynx also means that this extremely versatile helicopter and its many roles are represented that way too and the Black Cats will often be seen flying a Lynx Mk.3 alongside a Mk.8 – but does that create any particular issues for Becky and Chris?

“The two are different in terms of avionics and their equipment fit but in terms of flying them there is no real difference in terms of handling,” explains Chris.

“The Mk.8 is a heavier aircraft though so we do tend to carry less fuel if we’re flying it with a Mk.3 to try and ensure that both display aircraft are at about the same weight, but that is the only thing really.”

As I think most of us appreciate now, displaying at airshows for the military is about far more than ‘just’ doing the flying. Engaging with the general public on the ground is of vital importance and some would say, probably more useful in terms of recruitment or, as Becky said earlier, “flying the flag.”

“The flying is obviously what we are known for, but Chris and I probably spend about 80% of our time working on the ground at an airshow. This is meeting the public and fulfilling our recruitment role, which is, after all, the reason we are funded. We don’t have the Black Cats trailer and our merchandise there for nothing and it all plays a crucial part in what we do.

“A lot of time, effort and money is invested to that part of the Black Cats display and we want to meet people to make sure they know about the Royal Navy and also the fact that we have a highly skilled and very effective Fleet Air Arm.”

So, with roughly half the season gone and the second half looming, now that the team is well in to its stride what are they most looking forward to?

“I am honestly looking forward to all of them,” admits Becky, “but the Bristol Balloon Festival should be excellent. To display over the Clifton Suspension Bridge and to a non-airshow audience will be very special, I think. It’s a first for the Black Cats too and it’s always nice to debut at an event and even more special for me as I know Bristol very well and have close links with the city.”

For Chris things are a little different as he knows that he still has the 2011 season to look forward to as well. A slightly different outlook then?

“I think so, but there will be so many exciting displays and events for us in the remainder of this season, I’m sure. I know I’ve really enjoyed what we’ve done so far and I’m positive that I’ll enjoy the rest of it. Only when Becky and I have finished will I allow myself to start thinking about next season!”

The Black Cats are undeniably one of the UK’s airshow gems – we don’t get to see too many formation helicopter teams on our display circuit and we’re not actually blessed with that many rotary acts full-stop when you think about it. It’s refreshing to see that Becky and Chris have approached the job of promoting the Royal Navy with a slightly different outlook, while remaining true to much of what has made the Black Cats one of our most popular acts for many years. With Chris taking over as Black Lead for 2011 this can only bode well for the future and we look forward to seeing them display for the rest of this season and beyond.