Duxford 'Pilot' Magazine Bonus Day Saturday 3rd May 2008

[alphaalpha]

'Pilot' Magazine is hosting the next Duxford Bonus Day on Saturday 3rd May 2008. All light aircraft (radio equipped) may fly in to enjoy the day and benefit from the discounts.

Duxford is home the Imperial War Museum and must be the premier destination for GA pilots in Europe. Most weekends through the flying season, although there are no guarantees, you are quite likely to see warbirds flying – Spitfire, Hurricane, B17, Catalina and other rare types are based at Duxford.

The Bonus days offer substantially discounted prices: qualifying types of aircraft (or pilots) will enjoy half-price landing fees and much reduced museum admission. Single or twin can land for £7; museum entry is £7 for most adults and children come in free. In the case of the some of the Bonus days, all light aircraft will qualify.

On Bonus days only, the Briefing Room and balcony on the first floor of the historic Control Tower is freely available for Bonus pilots and their passengers. The £20+ million ‘AirSpace’ project is now fully open – really a ‘must-see.’

On the 'Pilot' Bonus Day, Bonus Day pilots and passengers will also enjoy discounted food and drink in the restaurants. 'Pilot' folk and contributors will be on hand to meet for a chat and there will be two short presentations around the middle of the day. The 'Pilot' folk also have one or two surprises up their sleeve.

Further information about the Bonus Days and information for fly-in visitors can be found on the web site http://duxford.iwm.org.uk/

The airfield team will be delighted to hear from forumites (PPR is a must -- call to book in and for a briefing 01223 833376) and to see you on the day.

It will be a great day out.

The next Bonus Day following this one is May 31st for all Cessna aircraft.

Just for people who don’t know, I should declare my interest. I’m a casual FISO at Duxford. I’m also a pilot who thinks the place is pretty marvellous.

Alan.

[formationfoto]

Expect to see some DH types doing display practice. Chipmunk and Rapide and possibly Chipmunk pair. Chipmunk solo practice too but you might fall asleep during that!.

Here is to some good weather.

[luigi_m_]

I'm hopefully mkaing my first trip to Duxford on the 3rd, will my Cessna 172 qualifiy for the 'bonus pilot'? Also, can you tell us a bit more about the Cessna day on May 31st?

[alphaalpha]

Hi Luigi:

Sorry for the delay, I have been away.

On 3rd May all light aircraft are welcome. The day is sponsored by Pilot Magazine and, as well as the usual bonus discounts, there will be a range of features -- meet 'Pilot' magazine folk; talks from contributors and one or two surprises.

On 31st May, Cessna light aircraft qualify for bonus discounts. There are no special events on this day, but it's a good day for Cessna pilots to visit the airfield and museum at discount rates and to chat to other Cessna pilots.

Your Cessna 172 will be fine on either day.

In either case, please call for a briefing and for PPR 01223 833376.

Look forward to seeing you.

Alan.

[alphaalpha]

Pilots flying in to Duxford from the north for the 'Pilot' magazine Bonus Day on 3rd May should be aware that the East Anglian Rocketry Society are firing large model rockets up to 10,000 feet from a site about 4nm north west of Bourn on 3rd, 4th and 5th May.

Here's the notam:

NAVW: Q)EGTT/QWMLW/IV/BO/W/000/102/5215N00005W003
FROM 08/05/03 07:00 TO 08/05/05 18:00 H0987/08
D)MAY 03 04 05 0700-1800
E)FLYING OF LARGE MODEL ROCKETS. ACTIVITY WI 3NM RADIUS 5215N 00005W

(NEW FARM, NR ELSWORTH, CAMBS). ON-SITE OPS CONTACT 07762 333197.
AUS 08-05-0181/1080/AS2.
F)SFC G)10200FT AMSL

The danger comes not only from the rockets powering up from the ground, but also from the recovery under parachute.

Don't let it spoil your day. Avoid the area.

If you're coming to the Bonus Day, don't forget to call for PPR please, 01223 833376.

Alan.

[Leezyjet]

Went today - a great day out.

Would have been very easy though for the more unscrupulous to not pay landing or entrance fee's with the lay out. I think a cash desk by the tower would have been a better idea - we of course did make the trek to the cash desk to pay I might add.

:E

[formationfoto]

Hard worked air traffic not helped by some not listening to what they were told / landing despite being told to go round / generally bad airmanship.

Great day though.

As for not paying I guess those who didnt pay landing may well find an invoice heading to the registered owner - dont know but it would make sense!

[SkyHawk-N]

A few pictures of the day ...

http://i145.photobucket.com/albums/r203/Skyhawk-N/Duxfrord03May08_Cessna.jpg

http://i145.photobucket.com/albums/r203/Skyhawk-N/Duxfrord03May08_Chipmunk.jpg

http://i145.photobucket.com/albums/r203/Skyhawk-N/Duxfrord03May08_Jodel.jpg

http://i145.photobucket.com/albums/r203/Skyhawk-N/Duxfrord03May08_1.jpg

http://i145.photobucket.com/albums/r203/Skyhawk-N/Duxfrord03May08_2.jpg

http://i145.photobucket.com/albums/r203/Skyhawk-N/FLSH.jpg

http://i145.photobucket.com/albums/r203/Skyhawk-N/FLSH_2.jpg

http://i145.photobucket.com/albums/r203/Skyhawk-N/4219993.jpg

http://i145.photobucket.com/albums/r203/Skyhawk-N/Duxfrord03May08_B17.jpg

Good to meet and talk to some good people, a thoroughly enjoyable day out.

[Rallye Driver]

Nice pics, but you missed a great opportunity: G-FLSH was parked next to G-HARY. :E

Fun day. I was passenger in the SF260.

RD :ok:

[ChampChump]

Indeed a very pleasant day, seeing some familiar faces from various areas.

Vis a vis the landing & museum fees, we thought similarly. I suppose it's a shock to be treated to simple, old-fashioned trust - and I like to think no one abused it.

:ok:

[Leezyjet]

Hard worked air traffic not helped by some not listening to what they were told / landing despite being told to go round / generally bad airmanship

Couldn't believe the amount of people butting in before the afis guy had even replied leading to a bit of confusion at some points !!

Skyhawk-N,

You weren't one of those guys shooting at a/c with a rather large canon were you ?. :E
Think you might have taken some of us if you were - had a rather dirty tired looking C-152 that was parked next to the 16 y/o's Jungmann.

:)

[SkyHawk-N]

Leezyjet said;

You weren't one of those guys shooting at a/c with a rather large canon were you :E

I believe that was formationfoto, he's got a bigger one than I have. :\

[Leezyjet]

SH-N,

Was he the one in the flying suit ?. He had the biggest one I've ever seen. Even made me gasp at the size of it !!. :ooh:

:)

[BEXIL160]

Yep I enjoyed the day, and nice to meet Mike with the another "classic Cessna" .... his a 185, mine the straight tailed 150...

RT discipline and situational awareness sometimes seemed a bit lacking though....... :(

BEX

[Flash0710]

C'mon it's only May get the cobwebs off and by aug we are all pro's......

Rallye Dude.... we got a pic of both :E

Nice snaps SkyH.

top day.

hugs

xxx
f

[Flash0710]

Was he the one in the flying suit ?. He had the biggest one I've ever seen. Even made me gasp at the size of it !!.

What? the flight suit or the lens.....???

i admit. it was a bigun......

how would i know you ask.....:E:E:E:E


squishes

xxx

f

[formationfoto]

Large lens, small..... aircraft.

It is amazing what you can get into a Jodel.

[Cusco]

Re Landing Fees:

Last time I was at a Legends meeting some poor sod was told by tower just as he was about to depart that they had no record of his having paid his landing fee and made him return and shut down to pay: despite his protestations that he'd paid he did so, only for tower to confirm he had indeed paid.

Much contrition and apologies over the radio by ATC in between issuing clearances.

So: they do have a link, albeit unreliable from cash desks to tower.

On busy fly-in/airshow days it just would not be possible to have hoardes swarming all over the tower trying to pay their fees.

great day though.

Cusco

[alphaalpha]

It was an excellent day. Lots of smiles. There were only about 10 cancellations/no shows due to weather in the west/north west.

Concerning the landing fees -- aircraft are booked in on the tower computer with the correct landing fee entered alongside the reg and number on board. The people in the admissions building see the same screen and know how much should be paid.

Sometimes the admissions staff don't mark off the aircraft as paid, and we are asked to query it on departure. Sometimes, we in the tower get behind with entering the aircraft on the computer and get phone calls from admissions when the pilot comes to pay and there is no entry for his reg on the screen. This normally happens when we are busy, and creates chaos, dealing with the phone call at the same time as busy traffic. However the system works very well under normal traffic conditions, and avoids the need for handling cash/credit cards in the tower.

Yesterday was very, very busy, both traffic and the phones. All aircraft were on the bonus rates, so admissions folk could take the fees without needing the screen, marking them off later. We were well behind entering the aircraft on the computer -- it just wasn't a priority. I actually entered the last aircraft about 17.30 local time, by which time almost all had departed.

The payback is there are a few aircraft still marked as 'not paid.' I hope we will find that the admissions folk have the aircraft details and will be able to mark them off today.

So far as r/t issues are concerned, the two main problems were some pilots didn't listen out before transmitting; and the busy environment caused some pilots to gabble their call signs, requiring repeats. However, the day was safe overall and most of the airmanship was to a high standard.

Some nice photos, thanks for posting.

Alan.

[IFollowRailways]

I wouldnt be surprised if some of the problems are with the check in staff. There did seem to be much confusion at the tills. There were two of us, myself and a senior and the lady who took our money had a couple of attempts, the second one resulting in an admission fee displayed on the till of about £37/38 instead of the £21.00 we were expecting. After pointing out that it was meant to be a discounted rate for entry and landing we ended up paying the expected £21.00, but with entry tickets that say "Tesco Adult Pay". I hope our registration was recorded as paid, but I wouldnt be stunned if it wasnt!

It was a great day out. Many thanks to all those who facilitated it.

[wsmempson]

Alan, yet another really fab day out at Duxford - many thanks. I think Duxford has grown to be one of my favorite days out in the SE of England and being able to fly in is just terrific.

However, once again I found myself queueing behind a line of pensioners and kiddies buying plastic bum-trinkets, in order to pay my landing fee; it really would be so much easier for all concerned if a dedicated outlet could be assigned to visiting pilots? Exactly the same thing happened on the last two occasions that I visited and I wrote to the "management" - who didn't bother to respond...


I genuinely feel that you guys in the tower and on the ground do such a great job that it's a bit of a shame that your hard work is undermined by the logjam caused by having to pay in what is essentially a gift shop.

Sorry for the carp - just frustrated!

Best regards,

WSME

[modelman]

I,too enjoyed my day,been 3 times now to Dux.I ended up going as SLF as my rented plane went tech on Friday:{ but took on the radio and nav.My pilot said he was very pleased to have that extra pair of eyes as the circuit was incredibly busy with some folk at a variety of heights.Had to go around first time and it was quite difficult to get a decent spacing.Was following an a/c downwind who seemed to be taking forever to turn base.Thought about turning inside him as it seemed he might be departing the airfield but he did turn and I found that others had not been so patient and we now had 2 base legs.Thumbs up to the gent in front who must have heard me calling very short final,he announced he would take the grass and vacated it very swiftly.
I usually fly a Cessna and really missed its rear windows (was in a Warrior).
Thanks to Pilot folk for all their hard work,the can of Red Bull was a nice touch.
MM

[alphaalpha]

WSME:

Very glad you and modelman enjoyed the Bonus Day. On the odd occasion that Bill and I got out of the tower, it was good to see smiling folk around the Spitfire and 'Pilot' tent, chinwagging and generally happy.

We know about the problem of paying at admissions. We have a plan to have a dedicated and signed till at the shop (as opposed to the row of entrance tills). This will be much less busy and the staff should know exactly what they are doing. However, it needs some new software and its hard to get a high priority. To be fair to admissions, they had said to us 'just tell the pilots to come to the front of the admissions queues,' but (apart from the impracticality of telling every pilot this on the radio), we may have swapped one problem for another, so we didn't try it.

Anyway, thanks for the feedback. I will pass it on.

Modelman:

As to modelmans comments about the circuit. We had a very mixed bag of aircraft on Saturday, from the Jet Provost, through a Pilatus PC12, the usual range of Cessnas and Pipers down to slow microlights. People in the circuit were courteous, patient and good-humoured without exception and that went a long way to keep it safe. We were very concious of the limitations of FISO-land speak. The ability to 'land after' or to demand a go-around would be very useful, but that's outside our licences.

I hope everybody got their food and drink discounts?

Alan.

[Cusco]

As Pilots are approaching the admissions area from the 'inside', so to speak ie they are already 'in' the airfield, could they not just fix it to use the 'back tills' (2) on the other side of the admisions desk: (the ones one uses to buy stuff from the shop), to pay landing fees?

I go straight to the Friends desk, sign in, get my stick on day badge and just get nodded through (unless I'm flying in), when I do have to queue to pay the (reduced) landing fees.

Sadly didn't get a 'double' reduction on Saturday.

If you visit Duxford more than twice a year, joining the Friends is a no-brainer..........Think of all those 20% reductions at the greasy spoon.

Cusco

[SkyHawk-N]

I don't particularly find paying at the main entrance a problem, that is what a P2 is for. Although it seems that the people taking the money are not briefed as well as they could be.

Alphaalpha, apparently Bill thinks he is better looking than you, I heard him say it. Comment? :E

[Leezyjet]

Thanks to you guys in the tower for letting my friend and I come up and take a few pictures before we left.

We had our discounted food too.

:D

[alphaalpha]

Cusco: This is exactly the plan, but it will take some time to implement -- software priorities, I believe.

He's right about Friends of Duxford. If you're a more than very occasional visitor, you win hands down. FoD had a small recruitment marquee near the tower for the weekend.

Skyhawk-N: Well, he has more hair than me. :) But thanks for not including us in your pics!!

Leezyjet: You're welcome.

The next Bonus Day is 31st May for Cessnas. I'll post a separate thread in a week or two.

Alan.

[Nashers]

to the duxford atc- thank you very much as i know it was busier than heathrow that day for u guys:E. u did a great job.

i know its safty but was just wondering if it would be possable to use both runways in the future? for example, if someone lands on the hard they land long and exit at the end or somthing? that way if someone is landing of the grass there would be alot more space and no conflict. ofcourse aircraft type dependent. also maybe one runway could be kept for the slower aircrafts and the other one used for the faster ones with circuts going opposite directions or at different levels and sizes.

i flew in with a friend and albiet the circut was very very busy, i do belive that some pilots could have done better to help the situation. quite a few people were flying extreamly tight circuts which does not help, and the aircraft that landed before us (on our second approach after a go around) took a long long time to vacate the runway even when we called short final. finaly not jumping in on the radio would have also helped as we got stepped on pleanty of times.

saying that, a very good atmosphere on the ground with pleanty of smiles and great people, not forgetting the aircrafts on show either. great show duxford. look forward to the next one!
:D:D:ok::ok:

[Legal Beagle]

Sorry if this is a daft question but what is the rationale for treating the hard and grass as one runway? They seem far enoughapart to be operated separately and, from my own observations on Saturday, to have done so would have made life a whole lot easier for both the pilots and the guys in the tower!

Great day by the way, thanks to all concerned.

LB

[alphaalpha]

Leagle Beagle:

The grass runway has been moved sufficiently far away from the hard, which has also been downgraded to Code 2, to allow the runways to be used for simultaneous occupation (but not fully simultaneous landings/departures). However, not all the supporting pieces of the jigsaw are yet in place (holds and final CAA approval, I believe), so legally we have to treat them as one.

Alan.