Best Airshow act 2003

[ozplane]

Now the airshow season has finally come to a close, I wonder what your views are on the best airshow act/performances in 2003. I didn't get to as many shows as usual but DamienB and MOTF did an admirable job filling in the gaps but for my money the best were:-
Airshow performance: SAA 747 at Duxford. Runner-up Red Bull Sea Vixen.
Best Formation team: Brietling Fighters. Runners up: Red Arrows in the thunderstorm on the Saturday of the September Duxford show.
Best Show: Air Atlantique's Coventry show.
(Grabs flak jacket and dives for cover...)

[Zlin526]

Why the flak jacket Ozplane? Sounds like a good selection to me, although I will add Paul Bonhomme in his SU26 at the Duxford October show, but delete the Reds. For those who havent yet seen PB, his SU26 display is something else, and this guy really knows how to get the best out of any aerobatic aircraft, and all without any sponsorship painted all over the aircraft:E And he's a bloody nice bloke too!

The Red Arrows flew a very scrappy display, not helped by the awful wx conditions they faced on the day. They performed much better at Southport the next day:ok: The SAA 747 was awesome, and the Breitling fighters were, as usual, welded together as a formation. Shame we'll never see them flying again in the UK.

What I want to see next year is:

OV-10 Bronco
A Gnat 4 ship aerobatic display
More vintage aerobatic aircraft and less flying billboards
A Hunter 4-ship aerobatic display
Maurice Bayliss's Spitfire Tr Mk IX
TFC's P-51C Mustang finally airworthy
No accidents


Z

[BeauMan]

What I want to see next year is: ... No accidents

Hear hear.

Best display act I've seen this year? Clive Denney and A N Other (I think it was his son Glenn, but not entirely sure) in the Cub vs Storch routine at Gransden, not least because my son and I were standing next to the HAC folks, who told me the story behind it all. Absolutely fascinating, and a great little display flown in very tricky winds. :ok:

[Zlin526]

Beau Man,

Agree with you about the Cub/Storch duo, at last something different. I believe the Cub pilot was Dave Evans on that occasion.

z

[fradu]

One display that comes to mind straight away is the Meteor displays at Coventry and Kemble. Nice to see it perform solo this year.

Special mention must also go to three other acts, the late Bill Murton in the RNHF Firefly at Yeovilton in May - super display. Brian Grant at Abingdon in May - a classy display in a Hunter F6A.
Lastly the Breitling Fighters, no words neccessary.

M

[gdenney]

Thanks BeauMan,

It was not me in the Cub. I brought it in and took it out, but it was Dave Evans that flew it in the display for me.

Look out for the act again in 2004 :D

Glenn

[DamienB]

Best airshow performance: Mikael Karlsson in the Tummelisa at Biggin Hill.
Runner up: Chipmunk barn storming at Old Warden. Keith Dennison I think.

Best Formation team: Brietling Fighters, especially with 3 Spits at Biggin.
Runner up: Reds anywhere.

Best Show: For consistent entertainment value (and hospitality!), any one of the Old Warden ones but particularly the evening shows.
Runner up: Waddington

Very difficult to pick just two for each so honourable mentions to Typhoon at RIAT, Sea Vixen at Blenheim (Brian Grant), Meteor at Coventry (Dan Griffiths), Hunter at Abingdon (Brian Grant), French MS 733 pair at Coventry, Jaguar at Southend, La-9 at the last Duxford show. No doubt I've missed out many other memorable ones but these are the ones that spring immediately to mind.

[treadigraph]

Saw some great aeroplanes at the three shows I managed to visit this year, many outstanding displays...

Bit a bit different, the glider (SZD Foka?) at Shoreham... The vertical flick roll was as near to a lomcevak as a glider's likely to get I'd have thought, it looked spectacular!

[hairyclameater]

As a military man in the main, its gotta be the last Viggen displays at Zeltweg - simply awesome, especially on the Friday when it was thundering around giving a vicious thunderstorm serious competition in the noise stakes!!

The home based Draken was also superb - both gonna be sadly missed.

Other eye catchers for me : RAF Hawk, Hunter at Waddington, German Army MBB BO105 (loops, rolls etc) at Bierset, Belgian Magister (again gonna be sadly missed - such a neat display), Canberra, Meteor and F86 at Duxford, Dutch F16, Spanish F18 at Waddington, Flying Bulls team of 4 Zlin 50s at Zeltweg - almost entirely flown in neg G!!

SAA 747 did look fantastic - I particularly enjoyed the final spiral climb.

Cant possibly imagine the RAF Jag being on my list but each to their own and I find the aerobatic antics of the Breitlings both singly and in formation far too hair raising.Dont get me wrong, I love seeing a Spit or Mustang etc going thru' its paces , but weve lost so many unique warbirds and talented crews to aerobatting of late. (I think the latest Ive seen reported was a French Zephyr which went in after a descending series of rolls)I think the crowd and certainly photographers enjoy some nice, close "top side" passes (aka Old Warden) and wing overs to 8 point rolls, multiple loops and inverted runs etc.These invariably take place further from the crowd and at a greater height and the small size of these birds soon takes them away from public gaze without binoculars or long lenses.

As I said, each to their own - whatever the display long may the shows go on!

[Wunper]

Forget your testosterone earsplitting high energy displays!

It has to be the Frenchman with his tight ten ship Geese formation on his microlight as displayed at the RAFA show at Shoreham.

Followed by Guy Westlake' aeros in the Fox glider!

Wunper

[Southern Cross]

Yep, the French guy avec les oiseau - at Middle Wallop Music in the Air - just fantastic.

Best Airshow - Middle Wallop Music in the Air.

Best individual - Jurgis Kairis in the SU26 at Dala Jarna in Sweden - 16 flick rolls in a row, smoke on, in the downwards vertical. Say no more.

Best Warbird. Whoever displayed the Spitfire at Woodchurch this year. Vertical rolls were sensational.

[Yak11Fan]

I believe it was Pete Kynsey who displayed the TFC Spitfire at Woodchurch this year.

[fernytickles]

This isn't so much the best displays, just the best memories I have from this summer...

Mikael Karlsson and his Bleriot taking off over our heads (at least, ooohhh, 30' agl) at Sun & Fun
Watching Mikael Karlsson demonstrating the rotary engine on the Bleriot - first time I've ever seen one in action
Fat Albert taking off at Dayton - it was just so bizarre (and impressive), it made me laugh
Snowbirds at Dayton
Standing on the ramp at the north end of Wittman Field, Oshkosh, as the AN124 landed on Rwy36 - we felt awfully small and hoped his brakes would work...
Boeing 307 Stratoliner - gorjus, inside and out
Watching the Hughes Racer and also the Polikarpov at Oshkosh
Listening to Jim & Steve Hay talk about the engine they have built for the Wright Flyer, and watching their demonstrations of other engines they have
Getting a ride in a 100 year old Ford car, owned by the same Canadian family since it was built, touring with the Countdown to Kittyhawk exhibition as part of the 100th anniversary celebrations
Watching the National Air Tour aircraft arrive and depart at Wausau, WI - fantastic, what beautiful aeroplanes
Visiting Old Rhinebeck and enjoying the Saturday show on the last weekend of the season - castor oil everywhere...

What can I say - I missed all the flying at home, but gollygumdrops, I have had fun... ;)

And what I hope for next summer echoes Zlin 526's words - no accidents

I almost forgot, another two to add ..

The night time display by the glider at Sun & Fun - I'm afraid I don't know the pilot's name - great show tho'
Bobby Younkin displaying his immaculate Twin Beech at Oshkosh

[ozplane]

Thanks for your posts on this topic and just before it vanishes "off the radar", I would like to comment that it seems to be the new/different displays that are getting the votes with the exception of the Reds and the Frightening Blighters. Maybe there's a message for the display organisers in there somewhere. BTW Zlin, the reason I had the Reds in was that the crossover pair must have nearly been IFR round the back and it was nice to see that even the Reds can have an "off" day by their standards. Agree about Paul Bonhomme...awesome. One act I would like to see again is the J-3 Cub four ship that some Lufthansa pilots used to do in Germany in the 80's.
Roll on 2004.

[Philo]

Umm Tough choice,
I would agree with Fradu about Brian Grant in the Hunter at Abingdon, it was classy and reminded me of Hunter displays of the 60's and 70's.Terrible shame that the aircraft came to grief in some bog shortly afterwards.
The other thing that I really enjoyed was the Nord Noratlas at Coventry, it was displayed with gusto, not something you normally associate with a 50's transport.

But overall it has not been a good year and one that had me seriously thinking about what I might do in the future re airshow attendance.
Luckily I went to OW at the end of the season and this restored my faith.

[FBS]

My fave, and I have to declare a personal interest, was Jersey. The organisers always try and get something different but this year the team putting it together worked wonders. With an hour to go before show start most participants had cancelled due to the weather. It cleared and the show started fifteen minutes late with a B52 over the bay. The organisers spent some hectic time calling mobile phones and getting people back to the airport and the show went smoothly. They pulled a good show out of what could have been a disaster.

Fave point? The Junkers 52 over St Aubins bay for the first time in 50-odd years. That is also a very good restoration job.

FBS

[Daifly]

Two from the Southend Airshow win my vote.

Firstly, the RAF Jaguar - superb arrival from crowd left (appeared from absolutely nowhere doing something very close to Mach 1 - from the sound of it!)

Secondly, the RAF Hawk. It's fantastic to see a jet being displayed where you can see the pilot working so hard to get it where he wants it - really hanging it out.

Both superb.

[willbav8r]

:( Hughes Racer :(

And I didn't get to see it. :{

[wagon pull]

The Sea Vixen at Elvington did it for me