Historically, the Duxford Autumn Airshows have been low key, subdued affairs featuring some of the locally based aircraft spreading their wings for the final time before entering their winter maintenance schedules. This all changed mid-way through the last decade, when the Autumn Airshow developed into an almost must-see event on the Duxford calendar, with international participation (including regular Belgian and French military assets in the flying and static displays) supported by strong vintage and classic jet content.
Indeed, reflecting on the last decade of Duxford Autumn Airshows brings back a whole raft of good memories – Belgian F-16, Mustang and Spitfire ‘heritage flights’, La Patrouille de France, eight-ship Spitfire sequences and powerful warbird set pieces orchestrated by the locally based operators.
The 2011 event, therefore, had a lot to live up to – and that it most certainly did! Heading the bill, the last public display by Cdt Mitch Beulen in the Belgian Air Component F-16 Fighting Falcon and the public debut of the Meteor Flight’s gorgeous Gloster Meteor T7; two bonafide star attractions. Supporting them, and effectively illustrating the Autumn Airshow’s ‘Remembering the Korean War’ theme, a host of relevant allied types (and a lone Yak-18 representing the North Korean forces) ranging from the F-86A Sabre to the likes of L-4 Grasshopper and Beaver.
Arriving at Duxford fairly late in the morning (for me, anyway!), I found the ‘tank bank’ at the western end of the airfield strangely deserted, with ample room available practically until the flying display began shortly after 1pm. The weather conditions at this time of day were simply glorious, with luscious blue skies and radiant autumnal light bathing the flightline – perfect conditions for shooting the south-facing aircraft on the flightline walk.
The minimised crowd (an Autumn Airshow tradition) made it far easier to take time setting up shots on the ‘walk, with none of the rushed feeling you often experience at the July and September Duxford shows. Indeed, the smaller crowd made the whole day feel very relaxed and enjoyable, with plenty of room to spread out on the crowdline where I was and no delays getting in and out of the show.
Opening the flying display was B-17 Flying Fortress ‘Sally B’, an old Duxford favourite and an aircraft I think we’ve all become a bit blasé about seeing. She’s been around for 26 years now and has appeared up and down the country for most of that period. It’d be very easy to take her for granted, but it’s no secret that ‘Sally B’s’ days are unfortunately numbered, as described by owner Elly Sallingboe at Flying Legends.
One has to wonder how long this hugely expensive aircraft will be kept in the skies over the UK, with operational costs perpetually increasing – Elly herself has said that they estimate that ‘Sally B’ will likely be grounded in two to three years. For that reason alone, we simply cannot take the B-17, or any warbird, for granted anymore. History has shown that things can change irreversibly in an instant. Enjoy these machines while they last, before they become but a happy, fading memory from years past.
The B-17 was the first of the participants marking the 60th anniversary of the Korean War, and each aircraft’s connection to the conflict was expertly identified by the commentary team of Ben Dunnell and Colin Wilsher, drawing on interesting stories and anecdotes (some of which I had never heard before; always the sign of a team that has done its research) to inject some life into the facts and figures. A superb job from all involved.
The flying programme showcased numerous aircraft representative of types that served with distinction during the Korean War, including a pair of Piper L-4 Grasshoppers, Justin Needham’s scarcely seen Cessna L-19 Bird Dog, Mark Miller’s Auster and the Aircraft Restoration Company’s de Havilland Beaver, making its public airshow debut in the hands of John Romain.
These lighter liaison types could easily be forgotten in amongst the heavier metal piston engine warbirds, and in that respect Duxford certainly did well to look beyond the norm in order to present a wider selection of very important, albeit less glamorous, types not always associated with the conflict.
That isn’t to say that the War’s ‘heavies’ were not strongly represented. Both the Skyraider and Meteor provided two of the individual highlights of the Autumn Airshow, with Rod Dean and Dan Griffith offering terrific accounts of these Korean War contemporaries. The Skyraider was demonstrated with grace and vigour in equal measure, with flowing aerobatics complemented by storming low passes and vapour-squeezing vertical manoeuvres to produce a masterful display of heavy iron.
Dan Griffith would have been forgiven had he flown a simple routine in the Meteor T.7 – indeed, there was some discussion on the morning of the show as to whether we would see a full display or merely a few passes. Thankfully, the Meteor’s public debut will be remembered for a positively awesome and lengthy solo display that perfectly demonstrated the aircraft’s capabilities.
Other classic allied aircraft of the Korean War were demonstrated by the governor of The Fighter Collection, Stephen Grey, in TF-51D Mustang ‘Miss Velma’ (representing the F-51 Mustang variant that served during the conflict), two North American Harvards, Chris Gotke in Naval Aviation Limited’s Hawker Sea Fury T.20 (formating with the Skyraider for two passes), the Duxford-based Catalina and, closing the show, Mark Linney in Golden Apple’s F-86A Sabre.
A memorable set piece at the Autumn Airshow was the duet of C-47 Skytrain and Beech 18, the latter flying at a Duxford show for the first time since the VE-Day Airshow in 2005 in the hands of John Dodd. These two Korean War-era transports flew a tight formation sequence that afforded the photographers in attendance with some unique opportunities to shoot these two aircraft, hitherto unseen in the air together over Duxford, in the same frame.
The honour of being the sole ‘axis’ participant in the flying programme fell to the Real Aeroplane Company’s Yak-18, a recent acquisition of the Breighton-based organisation. While the Yak’s display was comparatively high and distant to other displays in the flying programme, there’s no denying that it was a tightly flown display which really showed the Yak’s aerobatic capabilities.
It goes without saying, given the aircraft and pilots involved in the programme, that the flying was all an absolute pleasure to watch, but the flying at the Autumn Airshow would certainly rank as some of the smoothest I’ve seen this season. Take, for example, Pete Kynsey’s display in TFC’s Spitfire MkXIV, restricted from performing vertical aerobatics due to the sudden onset of a band of low cloud but exhibited with tremendous flair and verve nevertheless, the display flowing beautifully from one manoeuvre to the next.
The remainder of the flying programme was made up of vividly contrasting displays from the likes of the Old Flying Machine Company’s Spitfire MkIX and P-51D Mustang, with Paul Bonhomme and Alister Kay doing the honours on this occasion, the very precise RV-8tors, an eight-ship Tiger Moth formation sequence from the Tiger Nine Team and, as already mentioned, Cdt Mitch Beulen in the Belgian F-16 Fighting Falcon.
Mitch’s final public display in the UK was one to remember as he shattered the sky with relentless noise and power, keeping the aircraft firmly in front of the crowd at all times with no ‘down time’ during repositioning manoeuvres. The release of flares on two occasions during the display further added to Mitch’s routine and he drew a well-deserved round of applause from the crowd for his superb effort. Next year’s Belgian F-16 pilot certainly has some big boots to fill.
Also flying their final public displays were the Royal Navy Black Cats and Flt Lt Dan Hayes in the Short Tucano. The Tucano’s routine was particularly vigorous; a fine end to a good season for the Tucano team that has seen the distinctly marked display-ship appearing in flying displays across the UK and Europe.
At the other end of the spectrum and in complete contrast to the F-16’s aggression, the OFMC pair really are a delight to watch, with a display seamlessly transitioning from close formation aerobatics to a tailchase and back into formation, all the while keeping the routine flowing and elegant. Their poetic displays are a true testament to the skill of the pilots in demonstrating these classic fighters to maximum effect.
It was up to the Mustang’s successor and the F-16’s 1940s' predecessor, the F-86A Sabre, to bring the curtain down on the Autumn Airshow in style, with the Sabre’s end-of-season farewell comprising a high speed pass and zoom climb into the clouds, followed by a second high speed pass at low level over the grass before breaking into the circuit – terrific stuff!
And so Duxford’s 2011 airshow season came to a close with a safe and highly enjoyable finale. There was just about time for a last glance around the hangars before the obligatory Duxford boot-out though, to be honest, on this occasion, it was fair enough – it was nearly dark when I left, after all!
If you would like to discuss using any of our imagery or feature content please contact us.