First
of the series of major events at the Cotswold Air Centre this
year was the Great Vintage Flying Weekend in early May. This
event is not an airshow as such, but is one of the biggest fly-ins
in the country with up to 400 aircraft arriving and departing
over the weekend making for a very busy time for Air Traffic
Control. They don't have it easy in this part of the world do
they as they'll be doing all over again in July twice for the
PFA Rally here at Kemble and of course the Royal International
Air Tattoo! In fact on Saturday things got so hectic that Lyneham
Control became swamped in vintage aircraft and was unable to
accept any more aircraft for a while. A tribute to the popularity
of this event, not only with enthusiasts, but with pilots too.
It's not hard to see why either; this is a relaxed and friendly
event where you can wonder without having to bag your spot on
the flight line and mingle amongst the aircraft and other people.
You can get close to the aircraft at lunch too as the parking
areas are opened up so you really appreciate these aircraft,
some of which are not normally seen on the airshow circuit either.
This year too was important for G-VFWE as it is the centenary
of powered flight and the aircraft at the show represent an
important part of those 100 years. The event managed to bring
in a contigent of 10 Miles aircraft (the biggest ever seen)
and numerous Bulldogs and Chipmunks to name but
a few. However he biggest contribution came from the Air Atlantique
Historic flight who sent their Twin Pioneer, DH Dove, Percival
Prentice and their Percival Prembroke. They gave
a brilliant formation departure on the Sunday too. A big thumbs
up to the organisers and the pilots who braved the less than
perfect weather to bring us another fantastic event. There was
too much to write about, so here is a selection photographs
of the event.
First
of the series of major events at the Cotswold Air Centre this
year was the Great Vintage Flying Weekend in early May. This
event is not an airshow as such, but is one of the biggest fly-ins
in the country with up to 400 aircraft arriving and departing
over the weekend making for a very busy time for Air Traffic
Control. They don't have it easy in this part of the world do
they as they'll be doing all over again in July twice for the
PFA Rally here at Kemble and of course the Royal International
Air Tattoo! In fact on Saturday things got so hectic that Lyneham
Control became swamped in vintage aircraft and was unable to
accept any more aircraft for a while. A tribute to the popularity
of this event, not only with enthusiasts, but with pilots too.
It's not hard to see why either; this is a relaxed and friendly
event where you can wonder without having to bag your spot on
the flight line and mingle amongst the aircraft and other people.
You can get close to the aircraft at lunch too as the parking
areas are opened up so you really appreciate these aircraft,
some of which are not normally seen on the airshow circuit either.
This year too was important for G-VFWE as it is the centenary
of powered flight and the aircraft at the show represent an
important part of those 100 years. The event managed to bring
in a contigent of 10 Miles aircraft (the biggest ever seen)
and numerous Bulldogs and Chipmunks to name but
a few. However he biggest contribution came from the Air Atlantique
Historic flight who sent their Twin Pioneer, DH Dove, Percival
Prentice and their Percival Prembroke. They gave
a brilliant formation departure on the Sunday too. A big thumbs
up to the organisers and the pilots who braved the less than
perfect weather to bring us another fantastic event. There was
too much to write about, so here is a selection photographs
of the event.
