Russia marks VE day with 75 aircraft flypast
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Russia marks VE day with 75 aircraft flypast
Looking at today's events , apart from the Reds and a Spit , I saw 2 ship Typhoons overhead Edinburgh/Cardiff/Belfast . Is the RAF so short of jets that they cannot muster even a lowly 4 ship at each venue ? I know triumphalism is not in order , but I think Joe Public ( in lockdown mode ) would have appreciated a rather more substantial view of where all that defense money is going .
Whether you approve or not , VE day needs to be marked properly as yet another reminder of past mistakes never to be repeated . All the old timers I heard stressed this point .
Whether you approve or not , VE day needs to be marked properly as yet another reminder of past mistakes never to be repeated . All the old timers I heard stressed this point .
Looking at today's events , apart from the Reds and a Spit , I saw 2 ship Typhoons overhead Edinburgh/Cardiff/Belfast . Is the RAF so short of jets that they cannot muster even a lowly 4 ship at each venue ? I know triumphalism is not in order , but I think Joe Public ( in lockdown mode ) would have appreciated a rather more substantial view of where all that defense money is going .
Whether you approve or not , VE day needs to be marked properly as yet another reminder of past mistakes never to be repeated . All the old timers I heard stressed this point .
Whether you approve or not , VE day needs to be marked properly as yet another reminder of past mistakes never to be repeated . All the old timers I heard stressed this point .
Share your sentiments on a missed opportunity to remind more of us that we still have an RAF, but what and whose "past mistakes" are you referring to?
I've been expecting some sort of VE day flyover from the nearby Paine Field (four aircraft museums there, two of which (Flying Heritage and Historic Flight) have large collections of WWII flight worthy war birds. But the only thing so far has been a couple C-17s taking off (very unusual to see C-17s there, but I doubt there is relationship to VE day).
Too bad - the weather is beautiful today, and normally it would be common to see a few WWII vintage war birds flying around during nice weather such as today.
Too bad - the weather is beautiful today, and normally it would be common to see a few WWII vintage war birds flying around during nice weather such as today.
In the context of the thread I think VE day has (almost) been ignored in the UK until recent years. OTOH where I am now (France) it has for the last two decades I have been here and no doubt before marked by a small quiet commemoration at the local war memorial attended by a few locals of various nationalities and local politicians...
Scratch the surface and look at the local family histories and you find out (if you can get people to talk about them) that they are very complex with often a mix of grandparents/great grandparents who were French, Spanish (where we are we apparently had thousands of refugees from that Civil War), and yes, there's the odd German ancestor in the mix.....so it's seen as a day of European reconciliation/peace rather than Victory..
Just a thought - given the that you folks invested a lot of effort in the Pacific Theatre wouldn't the celebration of VJ Day be perhaps more widely celebrated in your part of the world?
In the context of the thread I think VE day has (almost) been ignored in the UK until recent years. OTOH where I am now (France) it has for the last two decades I have been here and no doubt before marked by a small quiet commemoration at the local war memorial attended by a few locals of various nationalities and local politicians...
Scratch the surface and look at the local family histories and you find out (if you can get people to talk about them) that they are very complex with often a mix of grandparents/great grandparents who were French, Spanish (refugees from the Civil War), and yes, there's the odd German ancestor in the mix.....so it's seen as a day of European reconciliation/peace rather than Victory..
In the context of the thread I think VE day has (almost) been ignored in the UK until recent years. OTOH where I am now (France) it has for the last two decades I have been here and no doubt before marked by a small quiet commemoration at the local war memorial attended by a few locals of various nationalities and local politicians...
Scratch the surface and look at the local family histories and you find out (if you can get people to talk about them) that they are very complex with often a mix of grandparents/great grandparents who were French, Spanish (refugees from the Civil War), and yes, there's the odd German ancestor in the mix.....so it's seen as a day of European reconciliation/peace rather than Victory..
8th of May in Montigniac the road was closed so parked and walked to the memorial in advance of a small parade. Local gendarme (in his 30's I reckon) walked along and each lady he came to he removed his hat to say hello and speak with them. Judging by his manner and behavious it was something that did not look contrived or makey up just the normal politeness I have seen in rural France
I have seldom eaten as well on such a short break.
8th of May was not the end of the war everywhere as St Nazaire pocket did not surrender until 11th of May.
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However my intention is not to debate politics or philosophy , but to ask a simple question about numbers ; not enough aircraft ? Pilots ? Funds to run the show ? Maybe somebody knows .
Today is the 75th Anniversary of Victory in Europe (VE Day). We know so many of you were planning to be in Washington DC to watch the Arsenal of Democracy Victory Capital Flyover which has been postponed until September 25th. Despite not having the National flyover today as planned, WWII veterans around the world were recognized for their service on this momentous anniversary. A significant number of events (both physical and digital), along with news coverage, ensured that VE Day was acknowledged.
Wish I'd know about the Sept 25 flyover sooner - I had plans to go fly to Washington DC for vacation in April. I rescheduled everything to mid-September due to Covid, but I'll be leaving a week before the flyover...
Admiral King was no Anglophile, and during his term on the combined staffs his battles to get more assets assigned to the Pacific Theater are well documented. VE Day and D Day are and were a big deal. Both were ETO events.
VJ Day was also a very big day - it's not an either / or deal, it's a both - since it meant that the War was over, rather than extending what some had projected to be at least another year if the home islands were to be invaded and occupied. By then the Soviets and the other Allies were already giving each other the needle in Europe. (And a few years later, my dad was in Berlin during the Blockade) .
Chris: ooh, thanks for that tidbit.
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( p.s I thought Russia had no money / was under severe sanctions....)
I thought Russia had no money / was under severe sanctions
Makes you wonder how much of the flyby in the cilp is genuine.
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Was under the impression that Russian helmets were white, especially the type with 4 holes above the forehead
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I did, as did millions in Moscow and suburbs on the route. Even know some guys who were REALLY up there in cockpits.
