Snapshot
Do any of Alex Henshaw's Spitfire aerobatics exist on film? I gather it was breathtaking stuff. What a Man. :)
Aviate 1138

There is film but its usually clips thrown in to other programs!
There was a regular one on some channel that appeared over the years and at the end of the programs they would show in the titles a Spitfire flying low past some hangers and then low over a steam train on a bank! That was the flight sheds at Castle Bromwich! And of course the time when Mr Churchill came to Brum to see Alex display and told his entourage to hold his train that was waiting so he could talk with him afterwards! Apparently, that sort of thing never happend!
http://WWW.AVCOLLECT2.CO.UK/buccanee...hurchill02.jpg
Alex with the PM after the display outside his office at Castle Bromwich
AB

There was a reference to new pilots being expected to fight in Hurricanes and Spitfires with only 30 hours on type. How many hours training on Moths and Harvards would they have received before flying fighters?

Dr. J.

I think that was 30 hours total (including ab initio, Tiger Moth) before they were sent out to fight. Maybe 8/10 hours Spit/Hurricane for some.

Some figures for the Arnold Scheme (WW2 RAF cadet flying training in the USA) are:
Primary Flying Training - 60 hours.
Basic Flying Training - 70 hours.
Advanced Flying Training, for example, took Jack Currie's (Lancaster, Halifax & Mosquito pilot who wrote three books on his wartime experiences) total to 250 hours, including 31 Night and 35 Instrument. Then, on return to Britain, conversion training would be required for whatever types the newly-qualified pilot had been selected for.
Flight training carried out in Britain was fifty or sixty hours less than the Arnold syllabus.

Pre order now.

http://www.bntproductions.co.uk/html/index.html

Does anyone know if any proceeds will be going to the Flt? I have the prog recorded on my hard drive for anyone, if they're not.

Great programme. Could have done with more Merlin sound as well.
I had to laugh when they showed the 'new' pilot trying to land the Hurricane. He bounced it a bit on the runway and his 'instructor' was shown talking to him from the Tower. I almost expected him to say "You can teach monkeys to fly better than that!" :ok:
I was worried that the newbie would bend the prop. He did seem to be tail high coming down and the spinner looked a bit close to the asphalt.
I had the priviledge to attend a Royal Aeronautical Society lecture at Boscombe given by Charlie Brown on flying Spits, Hurris and 109s etc. Charlie said that landing old warbirds was a 'bit tricky', especially on concrete. Ideally they do need to land on grass to allow the main wheels to skid or else they have a tendency to ground loop. Locking the tail wheel is also mandatory, especially on the 109.
Look forward to the repeat.

Hey all,

With regard to the Typhoon training, they initially start with the two seater T1 version, in order to get basic handling squared away, and after a first solo they move on to formation flying with multiple single seaters, usually one instructor at point with between one and three "students" in an arrowhead behind him, depending on their stage in the training programme, whom he then instructs over the radio to perform manouvers / checks / scout and returns etc. This all happens at Conningsby so that there can be anything up to 8 Typhoons in the circuit with a BBMF aircraft, flying at a fraction of their speed - daunting to say the least!

As for the programme on BBC2 - I was only told it was on *after* it had aired, and the link above - excellent though it is - is not the whole programme. Does anyone actually *know* if it will be repeated, or if that DVD mentioned actually carries the whole programme shown? I show a particular interest in this minutiae as I was told I featured briefly in it - anyone who was at Duxford or Biggin Hill may remember me trying to sell them BBMF anniversary booklets!