There was almost nothing at High Wycombe that could not be seen at any other aeroplane show in the UK, anytime in the last few years.
Very very little changes in this business from one year (or even decade) to the next. At least 90% of the stuff there is exactly the same as it was when I started flying 7 years ago.
It's a good day out for kids, and to meet up a few people.
Aero 2007 (Friedrichshafen) was much bigger but the extra bits were mainly ultralights (hangars full of them) and the usual bizjets. Virtually all the R&D today is going into the non-CofA market. The range of certified GA piston planes is so small these days that you can walk around the whole worldwide product range in a few minutes. All that Cessna/Piper/Mooney have really done in the last many years is bolting in a G1000 - and it does look tacky indeed in a 1950s airframe when they haven't even bothered to re-shape the steam-gauge panel to take advantage of the smaller possible size. Cirrus and Diamond are relatively modern but everybody knows what those two have on offer; no need to go to an airshow to see an SR22 yet again.
I am suprised a Mooney has problems with 700m. Perhaps different models differ; there are a number of old Mooneys based at Wangen-Lachen (LSPV) which is 500m. My TB20 gets airborne in (optimally) about 300m at MTOW, tarmac, sea level, and 500m is fine.