Airfield near Weybridge
I forget exactly which year, but it must have been early '80s and it was a Jodel or Robin; certainly it was before they made that film there with a set depicting a town in WW2.(can't remember what that was called either!)
Prior to that (late '70s) there was an atmospheric sampling balloon notified there - something to do with acid rain research.
Prior to that (late '70s) there was an atmospheric sampling balloon notified there - something to do with acid rain research.
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Think the film was 'Gunbus' or 'Sky Bandits' depending on what side of the pond you viewed it. Made in 1986, it apparently had only one thing notable about it:
"The film holds the record (2002) for the largest number of craftsmen and technicians employed on a dramatic feature, with 532. The crew built enormous sets for war scenes, constructed buildings that were to be exploded, and built airplanes similar to those used in 1917."
Love the reviewer comment: "Silly, poor acting, poor effects and daft plot – slightly trashy fun but cr*p"
"The film holds the record (2002) for the largest number of craftsmen and technicians employed on a dramatic feature, with 532. The crew built enormous sets for war scenes, constructed buildings that were to be exploded, and built airplanes similar to those used in 1917."
Love the reviewer comment: "Silly, poor acting, poor effects and daft plot – slightly trashy fun but cr*p"
I think the film you mention (set in WW1) was made in a field about a mile west of Wisley, as I remember seeing a huge marquee (like a circus big top)near the parked WW1 aircraft when I flew over. The aircraft were based somewhere to the north of London and seemed to 'commute' every day round the west of the Heathrow zone. The one I'm thinking of was set in WW2 and they built a mock town on the runway; something like 'Hope and Glory' I think it was called, but it would have been '86 'cos I was flying out of Fairoaks then and I remember re-joining via Wisley/OCK and seeing the set.
Gamekeeper
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Tim,
Marvellous photo of Wisley - thanks for sharing
Bet that runway can tell a few tales
Shame they demolished the old houes that acted as a tower
Oh well born fourty years too late
Marvellous photo of Wisley - thanks for sharing
Bet that runway can tell a few tales
Shame they demolished the old houes that acted as a tower
Oh well born fourty years too late
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You can just see the A3 in the bottom left of Tim's excellent picture; you'll note the western end of the runway is on what looks like an embankment; that's the only bit you'll see from the A3.
If you were to park in the layby on the westbound slip road joining the A3 from the M25, there's a small track off to the left which I presume is the old airfield entrance; it IS private property (I happen to know who administers it - but I've been asked not to let on) however there are public rights of way which cross it, so provided you stick to these, no-one should object.
By the way, the OCK VOR is visible just below the turning pan at the far end.
If you were to park in the layby on the westbound slip road joining the A3 from the M25, there's a small track off to the left which I presume is the old airfield entrance; it IS private property (I happen to know who administers it - but I've been asked not to let on) however there are public rights of way which cross it, so provided you stick to these, no-one should object.
By the way, the OCK VOR is visible just below the turning pan at the far end.
Spoon PPRuNerist & Mad Inistrator
I've had a walk around the old Wisley site a couple of times - I admit to traversing much more than the public footpaths! Fascinating place - a bit sad though. Hard to imagine that VC10s, BAC 1-11s and Viscounts flew in there from Brooklands for fitting out and then flew out to be delivered to the airlines.
The taxiways onto the runway are extraordinarily steep! Not something you appreciate from the air.
I paced out the longest unobstructed stretch of runway available - the western end - and from threshold to Armco is about 900m!! That's longer than Fairoaks!
However there was a fair amount of debris lying around, and the paving is breaking up, so you wouldn't want to land there unless you had an engine failure.
Worth a visit - good exercise as well!!
SD
The taxiways onto the runway are extraordinarily steep! Not something you appreciate from the air.
I paced out the longest unobstructed stretch of runway available - the western end - and from threshold to Armco is about 900m!! That's longer than Fairoaks!
However there was a fair amount of debris lying around, and the paving is breaking up, so you wouldn't want to land there unless you had an engine failure.
Worth a visit - good exercise as well!!
SD
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Hi Guys,
I have had the privilege of being allowed to shoot at Wisley a couple of years back. Sadly this has stopped now, but it is an amazing place, but the runway has seen better days. That said if it all goes quiet whilst your near there, I can think of far worst places to land!!!
Watch out for the locals, I had a minor run in once with a particular lady who lives on the edge of the runway and caught the wrong end of some nasty abuse!! Still I had permission to be there, she didn't.
Make sure you stick to the paths when crossing the fields, the farmers a great bloke, understandably not impressed with people walking over his crop!!
Tack
I have had the privilege of being allowed to shoot at Wisley a couple of years back. Sadly this has stopped now, but it is an amazing place, but the runway has seen better days. That said if it all goes quiet whilst your near there, I can think of far worst places to land!!!
Watch out for the locals, I had a minor run in once with a particular lady who lives on the edge of the runway and caught the wrong end of some nasty abuse!! Still I had permission to be there, she didn't.
Make sure you stick to the paths when crossing the fields, the farmers a great bloke, understandably not impressed with people walking over his crop!!
Tack
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Brooklands scenes (Brookley in the film) for 'Those Magnificent etc' were definitely filmed at Booker; my brother worked near there at the time and gave me a running commentary! In any case, I think several of the aircraft were built by PPS and didn't have the range to fly as far as Brooklands, although they could just about make White Waltham!
The set was positioned north west of the hard runway near where the skeet tower is today.
Brooklands actually still has two 'towers'; there's the one inside the museum compound which was the race track control tower (Barnes Wallis occupied an office there in latter years) but if you go to the south side and take the road north past Tesco(not east towards New Haw), you'll come to a Curry's store on the left, and just past that is a white building which I believe is the old flying clubhouse and which has 'tower' cab on top. As far as I know, this is all that remains aviationwise on the west side of the runway; it appears to be in very good condition though.
The set was positioned north west of the hard runway near where the skeet tower is today.
Brooklands actually still has two 'towers'; there's the one inside the museum compound which was the race track control tower (Barnes Wallis occupied an office there in latter years) but if you go to the south side and take the road north past Tesco(not east towards New Haw), you'll come to a Curry's store on the left, and just past that is a white building which I believe is the old flying clubhouse and which has 'tower' cab on top. As far as I know, this is all that remains aviationwise on the west side of the runway; it appears to be in very good condition though.
Last edited by chevvron; 16th Nov 2006 at 16:15.
By the '60s they'd already chopped a chunk out of the Byfleet banking in line with the runway; a few years back (about '94 or 95? Maybe slightly earlier.) another section on the west side just at the beginning of the majestic curve of the Byfleet Banking was chopped away for acces to M&S and Tesco. You can clearly see the remnants when you visit either of these two stores. (Yes this Tesco does take LVs)
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[quote=chevvron;2972508]By the '60s they'd already chopped a chunk out of the Byfleet banking in line with the runway; a few years back (about '94 or 95? Maybe slightly earlier.) another section on the west side just at the beginning of the majestic curve of the Byfleet Banking was chopped away for acces to M&S and Tesco. You can clearly see the remnants when you visit either of these two stores. (Yes this Tesco does take LVs)[/quote
My mother lives very near Brooklands but had no real idea about the museum until after I'd moved to Norwich many years ago. Will take my lad there when he's old enough to know what an aircraft is! Couldn't beleive it when I saw what they had done to the race banking to get access to bloody Tesco's - disgusting! Progress eh!
My mother lives very near Brooklands but had no real idea about the museum until after I'd moved to Norwich many years ago. Will take my lad there when he's old enough to know what an aircraft is! Couldn't beleive it when I saw what they had done to the race banking to get access to bloody Tesco's - disgusting! Progress eh!
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Went to Brooklands museum today, have to say that the aviation part is looking a bit tired - certainly compared to what Duxford have done recently - and the Mercedes-Benz World is a major contrast too. It was interesting to read about the development of motor racing at Brooklands, but the aviation timeline was less clear. Having said that my 3 children aged 4, 6 and 9 enjoyed sitting in the Harrier and Chipmunk cockpits.
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BAC 1-11 Crash
I came across this site and thread whils trying to find out more of the fate of the Brooklands works, where I was an apprentice more years ago than I care to think about. The BAC 1-11 crashed because Mike Lithgow had a theory about stalls in T-tail aircraft which he wished to demonstrate to the chief aerodynamcist. At the time, work regarding the CoG was going on, and Jock Bryce had given instructions that no flight should take place until the previous flight had been analysed.
Lithgow ignored this instruction, and the aerodynamacist, whose name I forget, took the place of the co-pilot, David Nightingale. The aircraft failed to recover from the stall Lithgow initiated at 11,000 ft, and the crew were all killed, including a friend and fellow apprentice, Gordon Poulter. Unfortunately, Nightingale's name was still on the crew list, and his wife was contacted to tell her her husband had been killed. Shortly afterwards, he walked into his house, having decided to go home for lunch.
It was Nightingale's second brush with death, as he had been an observer on the 8th Blackburn Buccaneer, when the tail came off. The pilot was killed when ejecting, and Nightingale's parachute was damaged because it deployed immediately,the seat having been hit by what was left of the tail when he ejected. He came down at fairly high speed with three limbs dislocated, and landed on an iron fence which put a spike through his knee.- the fence had to be cut away to get him free. He spent two years in hospital, and then joined Vickers-Armstrongs. After the 1-11 crash he gave up test flying and went as a lecturer to Nottingham University.
Lithgow ignored this instruction, and the aerodynamacist, whose name I forget, took the place of the co-pilot, David Nightingale. The aircraft failed to recover from the stall Lithgow initiated at 11,000 ft, and the crew were all killed, including a friend and fellow apprentice, Gordon Poulter. Unfortunately, Nightingale's name was still on the crew list, and his wife was contacted to tell her her husband had been killed. Shortly afterwards, he walked into his house, having decided to go home for lunch.
It was Nightingale's second brush with death, as he had been an observer on the 8th Blackburn Buccaneer, when the tail came off. The pilot was killed when ejecting, and Nightingale's parachute was damaged because it deployed immediately,the seat having been hit by what was left of the tail when he ejected. He came down at fairly high speed with three limbs dislocated, and landed on an iron fence which put a spike through his knee.- the fence had to be cut away to get him free. He spent two years in hospital, and then joined Vickers-Armstrongs. After the 1-11 crash he gave up test flying and went as a lecturer to Nottingham University.
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Fascinating. I remember the deep stall crash. My first encounter with Wisley was when I was taken there by a BAC employee who kindly offered to show me around Weybridge and Wisley. I was 13 then and my father was being interviewed for a flying job on the 1-11, this was just after the collapse and failure of British Eagle at Heathrow.
Years later I went to have a look at the place, it has been levelled of course but I got to wondering what was the history of the airfield. Who built it and why? Was it around during the 2nd WW and did it see any action?
Regards
EM
Years later I went to have a look at the place, it has been levelled of course but I got to wondering what was the history of the airfield. Who built it and why? Was it around during the 2nd WW and did it see any action?
Regards
EM
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Crash of prototype BAC One-Eleven
This comment on the prototype One-Eleven's crash is at least ridiculous perhaps worse. I suggest the author examines the Crash Report rather than inventing some baseless story. He would then have the opportunity to base his views on the facts.
Mercedes Benz World contains an excellent motor racing museum which depicts the birth of motor racing both at Brooklands and elsewhere. If you're brave enough you can book a session on the test track, and if you're rich you can get your car serviced at the same time.
I believe there's now a grass strip available during special events ie STRICTLY PPR.
I believe there's now a grass strip available during special events ie STRICTLY PPR.