GOLDEN JUBILEE........
In this the Queen’s Golden Jubilee year, it is interesting to look back upon what we were once able to achieve to commemorate such things. Amongst several old and dusty publications which came my way 15 years ago was the July 1953 edition of ‘Royal Air Force Flying Review’. Here’s what they had to say about what was planned for the 15 Jul 53 Royal Review at RAF Odiham:
‘At mid-day, Her Majesty will inspect a parade consisting of 1125 officers and other ranks drawn from all Commands of the Royal Air Force at home, including the Women’s Royal Air Force, and take the salute at a march past.
After luncheon, which the Queen will take in the Royal Air Force Officers’ Mess at Odiham, in company with the Air Council, Her Majesty will inspect a parade on the airfield of over 300 aircraft, with their crews and maintenance personnel. The aircraft will be drawn from Commands at home, the Royal Air Force element of the Second Allied Tactical Air Force, other Commonwealth Air Forces and the Royal Auxiliary Air Force. Vehicles and equipments representing all branches of the Services will also be paraded. The Princess Mary’s Royal Air Force Nursing Service, the Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve, the Royal Observer Corps, the Air Training Corps and the Combined Cadet Force will be represented.
Beginning at 3.40 pm a mass formation of more than 600 aircraft will fly past Her Majesty in Review Order by types. The leading aircraft will be elementary trainers, flying at less than 100mph. Successive formations will fly at increasing speed, ending with the latest jet bombers and fighters, the last aircraft flying past at more than 600 mph. The stream of aircraft will take about half-an-hour to pass the Queen at the saluting base. The aircraft will operate from more than 40 airfields all over Great Britain and Northern Ireland. The mass formation will start to join up between Hemel Hempstead and Watford in Hertfordshire, and then set course for Odiham, the faster aircraft steadily closing in on the slower.’
So, that’s a parade of 1125 personnel, a static display of 300+ aircraft and a flypast of another 600+ operating from more than 40 aerodromes.......I wonder quite what magnificent display we’ll be able to come up with to celebrate the Golden Jubilee? In 1977 there was a static display, flypast and flying display at Finningley (the Defence Minister Fred Mulley fell asleep during the Harrier display......) – anyone know what sort of thing we’re going to be trying to do this year – if there’s anything serviceable?