Originally Posted by
RileyDove
Scampton must be worth a few quid as building land
When Scampton was 'closed' in the 90s it was planned to sell the land & had already been earmarked as the site of an open prison. Then it was discovered that the planning permission from the 50s for the extension to the runway which altered the course of the road (A19?) that ran past the base required the MOD to straighten it if the place was shut & use of the runway no longer required! Cost approx £4 million.
One of the old bomb dumps was found to be contaminated & the cost to clean it up to modern H&S standards was another £3 million. (Both figures 1990s costs)
This rather spoiled the economics of selling off the place.
I'm not a huge fan of the Reds in the sense that they're all a bunch of egomaniacs. BUT....they're the best close formation military aerobatic I've ever seen, as has already been stated they don't cost the taxpayer much due to all the sponsorship, & they display all around the world as an example of British avaition & engineering excellence.
Therefore it seems entirely in accordance with government policy that such an example of quality & elitism should be scrapped. Until any comprehensive educated halfwit with a GCSE pass in media studies & no flying aptitude can aspire to being a member of the Red Arrows, the team has no place in our society.