In an effort to keep this thread open, mostly because the suggestions are keeping me entertained, I would like to add the views of many of those at Waddington.
At last, at least the runway rebuild will give us a year off. A year when we don't have to deal with the uneducated and the unwashed. A year when we don't sacrifice our airfield to traders desperate to recover their costs from the despicable rates the airshow charge them. A year we don't have to have the public assume we plan the show when in fact those of us on uniform have almost nothing to do with the running of the show. A year when we don't lose yet another weekend (in reality nearly 2 weeks) when I have better things to do like run a very busy and manpower critical deployment plot or spend one of just a limited number of weekends at home with the family.
A year off from pretending the whole thing is for charity when it raises so very little compared to the effort of staging it. A year off from all the unappreciative ppruners who don't understand that the rules have changed since their day in the sixties and that obeying the current ones means a boring fly through or months of work up, not a criticism of previous air displays just a fact of current life. A thorough work up is impossible when the only real flying is in theatre and the rest is the bare minimum for currency. Also, the rules have changed for a reason, no one likes to see dead spectators on the news.
I standby for the reactions of the current generation not understanding the need to promote the forces. Of single force thinking when it comes to airshows. If the navy want to run an airshow I am all for it and will turn up with an aircraft to support it. If the RAF wants a show the entire strength can do their bit. As it is it is the RAF Waddington show with a lot of generous civilian volunteers, an amazing number if RAF Waddington personnel who go above and beyond in helping out in every way they can and a whole host of display crews doing, in effect, what is their day job for 2 years.
If it is an RAF show then if/when the next one happens I assume I won't spend Monday morning picking up used nappies on the FOD plus because RAF Lossiemouth personnel will be on site for that joyful task. Unlike the last 6 years.
Or we could just pay for a civilian field that was sold long ago or open a closed airfield. Just man it for the weekend. Just setup appropriate radio aids and an ILS. We barely have the resources to run the fields we have, take a look for spare cash in the budget and if there is any let's spend it on sensible things like an extension to Waddington to make it suitable for the Rivet Joint, or an ILS for Waddington on 02 to make it suitable for ops rather than an airshow. Perhaps a perimeter track instead of having to drive across the active to get to a normal working environment on the opposite side of the airfiand. We could even go crazy and maybe have a maritime capability or a tanker with a boom so it can refuel the multiple types the RAF that are boom capable.
Or we could just delay the desperately needed runway rebuild and continue the status quo for another year.
Rant off.