Comments On Fairford 2003
Join Date: Jul 2003
Location: Lincs
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Reggie, my dear chap,
1 Is RIAT a good day out? Yes, I would agree (provided you have never been another airshow in to world)
2 Is it expensive? Yes it is very expensive. Face it, £30+ per head, cost of food etc - yes, it's damned expensive
3 Value for money? marginal for the first timer
4 Was this year the best? absolutely not, and compared to past IATs, it was pi$$ poor!
5 Do the volunteers do a good job? Some do a great job, others - not so sure. I asked about lack of toilets and rubbish bins - reply, don't ask me mate, I'm movements!
6 Do they give a surprisingly small contribution to the RAFBE? Absolutely! They give a pathetic amount to the Ben Fund. Why? too many freebies maybe eh?
7 Will I miss it if it's gone? Yes, you and me too, but for different reasons I think
8 Can it be improved? Without a doubt. Take a look at Waddo
9 Will I go next year? Not a hope!
10 What one thing would I change? Get rid of ALL the freebies for everyone - from the cadets at the bottom, to the airships at the top. Give ALL the money to the Ben fund.
Numbers this year, well I was at both days and I didn't think there were as many on the Sunday as there was on the saturday - sorry.
Fairford is now a victim of its own success. It is too big, there are too many 'hangers on' too many airships being paid vast amounts of money for doing very little. It is time to clear out the dead wood and start from scratch quite frankly.
I know my tone is severe and will not go down well with many, but lets face facts; millions and millions of pounds pass thru RIAT, and very little ends up in the Ben fund. Why is that??
Come on RIAT, publish the facts for us. How much is the wages bill for a 2-day airshow at Fairford these days?? mmm, don't expect we will get a reply some how.
Sorry chaps, Fairford has almost become another of Britains 'Rip Offs'
Kind regards
The Swinging Monkey
'Caruthers, fetch me a tin hat, I fear some $hit is on it's way!'
1 Is RIAT a good day out? Yes, I would agree (provided you have never been another airshow in to world)
2 Is it expensive? Yes it is very expensive. Face it, £30+ per head, cost of food etc - yes, it's damned expensive
3 Value for money? marginal for the first timer
4 Was this year the best? absolutely not, and compared to past IATs, it was pi$$ poor!
5 Do the volunteers do a good job? Some do a great job, others - not so sure. I asked about lack of toilets and rubbish bins - reply, don't ask me mate, I'm movements!
6 Do they give a surprisingly small contribution to the RAFBE? Absolutely! They give a pathetic amount to the Ben Fund. Why? too many freebies maybe eh?
7 Will I miss it if it's gone? Yes, you and me too, but for different reasons I think
8 Can it be improved? Without a doubt. Take a look at Waddo
9 Will I go next year? Not a hope!
10 What one thing would I change? Get rid of ALL the freebies for everyone - from the cadets at the bottom, to the airships at the top. Give ALL the money to the Ben fund.
Numbers this year, well I was at both days and I didn't think there were as many on the Sunday as there was on the saturday - sorry.
Fairford is now a victim of its own success. It is too big, there are too many 'hangers on' too many airships being paid vast amounts of money for doing very little. It is time to clear out the dead wood and start from scratch quite frankly.
I know my tone is severe and will not go down well with many, but lets face facts; millions and millions of pounds pass thru RIAT, and very little ends up in the Ben fund. Why is that??
Come on RIAT, publish the facts for us. How much is the wages bill for a 2-day airshow at Fairford these days?? mmm, don't expect we will get a reply some how.
Sorry chaps, Fairford has almost become another of Britains 'Rip Offs'
Kind regards
The Swinging Monkey
'Caruthers, fetch me a tin hat, I fear some $hit is on it's way!'
Join Date: Sep 2000
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Is RIAT a good day out? Yes (but really hard on the old pins)
2 Is it expensive? The entrance fee is not in my view but the sundry other items are. (Completely agree, the food and drinks stalls are an absolute rip off) Mildenhall (sadly missed) should be used as an example, they insisted on astandard relatively cheap price across the board
3 Value for money? Yes, its got to be, 10 hours of flying, no where beats that, I dont know what it costs to get into Siverstone but I bet its close to 3 figures if you want to get near the action. (not the case at RIAT)
4 Was this year the best? No way (BUT NOT FAR OFF), but that's testament to the great shows in the past and everything looks good in hindsight anyways, again I agree, but RIAT does suffer from late cancellations quite badly.
5 Do the volunteers do a good job? Yep, (AGREED, I,m one)
6 Do they give a surprisingly small contribution to the RAFBE? Yep ( BUT DO WE EVER SEE THE TRUE FIGURES)
7 Will I miss it if it's gone? Absolutely, (AGREED)
8 Can it be improved? Yes, (IT NEEDS TO REFLECT ON THE EARLY YEARS, AND REDUCE THE HANGERS ON AT THE VERY TOP, there,s far to many but RIAT probably need them to smooth out the problems).
9 Will I go next year? Yep, (20TH NEXT YEAR ALREADY BOOKED THE TIME OFF)
10 What one thing would I change? (REDUCE THE SO CALLED MANAGERS LIST..HAVE A LOOK IN THE PROGRAMME AT THE STAFF LIST, THEN LOOK IN THE RIAT HANDBOOK, THE LIST IS DOUBLED) DO THEY REALLY NEED A "VIP BBQ MANAGER"
REMEMBER IT IS AN AIRSHOW...SO THE AIRCRAFT SHOULD BE THE STARS....SOMETIMES I THINK AIRCRAFT ARE THE "EVIL NECESSITY"
AS FOR THE WADDINGTON SHOW, I DONT AGREE, I,ve been as both punter and crew, they get pretty good aircraft but its not as profesionally produced as RIAT everything is son cramped, VFM is probably better but back room support is crap, so much so my skipper once sent a really nasty bitch to the Staysh.
And if you want a rip-off go to ALTON TOWERS, no way is RIAT a rip off
BLUE TAIL...WHO IS ALSO KNOWN (AND HAS UPSET MANY )
2 Is it expensive? The entrance fee is not in my view but the sundry other items are. (Completely agree, the food and drinks stalls are an absolute rip off) Mildenhall (sadly missed) should be used as an example, they insisted on astandard relatively cheap price across the board
3 Value for money? Yes, its got to be, 10 hours of flying, no where beats that, I dont know what it costs to get into Siverstone but I bet its close to 3 figures if you want to get near the action. (not the case at RIAT)
4 Was this year the best? No way (BUT NOT FAR OFF), but that's testament to the great shows in the past and everything looks good in hindsight anyways, again I agree, but RIAT does suffer from late cancellations quite badly.
5 Do the volunteers do a good job? Yep, (AGREED, I,m one)
6 Do they give a surprisingly small contribution to the RAFBE? Yep ( BUT DO WE EVER SEE THE TRUE FIGURES)
7 Will I miss it if it's gone? Absolutely, (AGREED)
8 Can it be improved? Yes, (IT NEEDS TO REFLECT ON THE EARLY YEARS, AND REDUCE THE HANGERS ON AT THE VERY TOP, there,s far to many but RIAT probably need them to smooth out the problems).
9 Will I go next year? Yep, (20TH NEXT YEAR ALREADY BOOKED THE TIME OFF)
10 What one thing would I change? (REDUCE THE SO CALLED MANAGERS LIST..HAVE A LOOK IN THE PROGRAMME AT THE STAFF LIST, THEN LOOK IN THE RIAT HANDBOOK, THE LIST IS DOUBLED) DO THEY REALLY NEED A "VIP BBQ MANAGER"
REMEMBER IT IS AN AIRSHOW...SO THE AIRCRAFT SHOULD BE THE STARS....SOMETIMES I THINK AIRCRAFT ARE THE "EVIL NECESSITY"
AS FOR THE WADDINGTON SHOW, I DONT AGREE, I,ve been as both punter and crew, they get pretty good aircraft but its not as profesionally produced as RIAT everything is son cramped, VFM is probably better but back room support is crap, so much so my skipper once sent a really nasty bitch to the Staysh.
And if you want a rip-off go to ALTON TOWERS, no way is RIAT a rip off
BLUE TAIL...WHO IS ALSO KNOWN (AND HAS UPSET MANY )
Join Date: Mar 2001
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"VIP BBQ Manager"
There is a VIP BBQ
Someone needs to manage it!
What's in a title anyway? You could call him VIP BBQ Director and he will still be a volunteer earning nowt!
There is a VIP BBQ
Someone needs to manage it!
What's in a title anyway? You could call him VIP BBQ Director and he will still be a volunteer earning nowt!
Hi
I have been to WADDO & the RIAT and perhaps if Messrs Bowen and Co visited Waddo to see how they do it (and make a very nice profit for the RAFBF) they might get back a lot of the missing people??
I have been to WADDO & the RIAT and perhaps if Messrs Bowen and Co visited Waddo to see how they do it (and make a very nice profit for the RAFBF) they might get back a lot of the missing people??
Personally I think the USAF did a great deal of damage to RIAT by insisting on ridiculously OTT security measures last year. Individually searching every punter caused enormous waiting times, and you can't blame families who queued for 3-4 hours in baking heat, then got ripped off for drinks and food, for giving the event two fingers this year. This years security seemed to have a more thoughtful and flexible approach to it, but did things appear better simply because of the smaller attendance?
As an Eng Team member for a long time now, I've felt for some years that RIAT (except at Cottesmore) has become too big for its proverbial footwear, seemingly complacent regarding its "No 1 Airshow" status, but also by seeming to give off a vibe that they are more interested in giving high-powered executive types a good hoot, rather than providing VFM to their lesser-earning customers. From what I heard service for arriving crews wasn't that great - these are the people they rely on to come back the most!!!
All-in-all, we need to get the quality back to where we were in the mid-90's. RIAT leadership needs to get its finger out sharpish if it wants to drag the missing punters back. Otherwise it'll be permanently replaced by Waddington as the UK's premier airshow; more importantly, the Ben Fund loses out. So cut down the corporate crap and get back to the old IAT ethos of pleasing the punter and the people who crew the attractions.
As an Eng Team member for a long time now, I've felt for some years that RIAT (except at Cottesmore) has become too big for its proverbial footwear, seemingly complacent regarding its "No 1 Airshow" status, but also by seeming to give off a vibe that they are more interested in giving high-powered executive types a good hoot, rather than providing VFM to their lesser-earning customers. From what I heard service for arriving crews wasn't that great - these are the people they rely on to come back the most!!!
All-in-all, we need to get the quality back to where we were in the mid-90's. RIAT leadership needs to get its finger out sharpish if it wants to drag the missing punters back. Otherwise it'll be permanently replaced by Waddington as the UK's premier airshow; more importantly, the Ben Fund loses out. So cut down the corporate crap and get back to the old IAT ethos of pleasing the punter and the people who crew the attractions.
Join Date: Dec 2002
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Truth of it is, for someone like me who was there for his first air show, it was great ... all I need to do is come back next year, and you start getting returning visitors... this is the market that needs to be tapped to ensure that numbers stay high, as returning visitors tend to bring new people with them.
Jordan
Jordan
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I see on another forum that RIAT made a substantial loss this year. Does this mean the total donation to the RAFBF for this year will be zero, and for our 30 quid + entrance fee a grand total of 0 pence went to charity?
Join Date: Oct 2003
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Worth it ...?
Ok, let's have a laugh ...
What are your best guesses on the salary of one of the aformentioned RIAT Directors ???
Without being too personal (!?).
(As a starter, I'd give you that two of the other major airshows' organisers both earn well under £50k pa) ...
Start your guessing now!
What are your best guesses on the salary of one of the aformentioned RIAT Directors ???
Without being too personal (!?).
(As a starter, I'd give you that two of the other major airshows' organisers both earn well under £50k pa) ...
Start your guessing now!
