Freeloading at airshows

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Member for

13 years 2 months

Posts: 1,101

I know that many airshows are quite expensive to attend, and that freeloading may be the only way some people can get to see them. But what I don't understand is why the vast majority of the cars that are parked up outside venues such as Shuttleworth during an airshow, appear to be fairly new "less than 6 years old" and in some cases, quite expensive looking. Is it perhaps that the purchase of these vehicles has left the owners somewhat brassic, or are the owners just too tight to buy a ticket and support the venue/museum ?. :dev2:

Bob T.

Original post

Member for

17 years 7 months

Posts: 1,444

Post made me chuckle, reminded me in my local Tesco, a few times at the reduction cabinet I have seen this same scruffy guy just throwing the stuff in his basket, barely looking at it, I thought a few times he must be hard up looking at him. I saw him in the car park the other day in some nearly new 4x4, think it's a behavioural trait that crosses many areas

Member for

10 years 2 months

Posts: 463

Maybe it's more to do with the perceived value of the show. They do seem to be on a sort of linear scale in terms of cost-versus-content these days :)

Member for

16 years 2 months

Posts: 348

Should see all the new/almost new Audi's and BMW's in our local ALDI and LIDL car parks :D - don't get a nice motor by chucking your money away, do you?

Member for

17 years 10 months

Posts: 3,778

They are just all sad tight no life moaning minnies.

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9 years 8 months

Posts: 584

Why do you think such people have a lot of money? They're allergic to spending it.

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19 years

Posts: 2,656

WHY ARE YOU SHOUTING ? and shouldn't this be in General Discussion as it has nothing to do with Historic Aircraft.

Brian

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11 years 11 months

Posts: 549

With little aviation relevance, this thread reminds me of a story told to me by my grandfather. Grandpa was something of a local character, running a jewelers in Golders Green (north London). One of his regular customers lived somewhere near Willesden Green tube station and Grandpa used to go and visit to check the clocks were working properly. At some point, I think in the late 1930s, there was a particular beggar regularly sat outside the station, very scruffy, hunched over and looking very much on his last legs. He always had coins in the cap on the pavement in front of him, but never very many and Grandpa, being a generous man, always gave him something. However, I think Grandpa had suspicions about the beggar before, one day, he had cause to be at Willesden rather earlier than usual, and was in time to watch the man alight from his chaufeur-driven Rolls Royce, walk round the corner to his usual pitch, and 'assume the persona'. He never contributed to that particular cause again.

Now, much as I loved my grandfather, I am aware that he loved a good story, and wasn't afraid of adding little details to make things flow better. I had assumed this was one such. Some fifteen years after he died, however, I moved to a new house and met my new next-door neighbour. She turned out to have lived in Willesden in the 1930s, and without any prompting from me she told me exactly the same story. I tend to believe it is true.

On another note, I don't have a 4x4, so I'm not the scruffy bloke Junk Collector has seen, but I do make regular visits to the reduction cabinets at our local supermarkets. Cheap veggies make very useful additions to the diet of our very fussy rabbits!

Back on topic, I can think of a couple of reasons for being 'on the road' instead of in an airshow. One is that you've happened across it unexpectedly, found it full, and decided to watch anyway. The other is in order to get a different angle for the obligatory photographs - as entry and exit from shows has become more tightly controlled in past years, perhaps that's a contributory factor? For the record, I don't condone either, but I can understand. One might charitably decide to let someone off doing it once. Serial offenders, however, that'd be a different matter. Where's my bulldozer?

Member for

16 years 4 months

Posts: 2,094

Always think those folks outside Shuttleworth must get better photo's than I do!

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17 years 5 months

Posts: 8,980

Probably haven't got the money, what with paying £700 a month for their car or 4x4 and driven down at 13 mpg.

Member for

17 years 5 months

Posts: 8,980

Lazy 8 there were the same sort of beggars in Nottingham spotted getting in his 4x4 and living in a big house on the proceeds..

Member for

14 years 5 months

Posts: 3,447

Don't get the Aldi connection. Shopping at Aldi isn't theft.. but it makes a lot of sense, whoever you are.

Member for

11 years 11 months

Posts: 641

Anyone who goes to see an airshow but is not prepared to put his hands in his pocket and contribute to the cost of putting on that airshow should be looked upon with contempt in my opinion.

Member for

15 years 2 months

Posts: 674

I know Old warden is a rural venue so people go out of their way to view from outside. Sideslip what do you expect the c50,000 inhabitants of Farnborough do next year when most of them will be able to see the airshow from their houses, or from a short walk away? Should we all shield our eyes or stay indoors.
Viewing from the outside is as old as airshows, and has many reasons. The cost is probably not the main one. People are often pressed for time and will just watch for a hour or two on the way to something else. As has been said they may just be passing by. The event maybe sold out. The odd one will be photographers, or spotters but the vast majority will be joe public, and the majority of those will have come less than 5 miles..

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14 years

Posts: 4,996

Is it really such an issue ?

Member for

11 years 5 months

Posts: 11,141

The problem depends on the perspective. From the point of view of the airshow organisers it reflects lost revenue and so indirectly costs those of us who pay to attend more.

Clearly passive freeloading as described above is unavoidable and inevitable. It is a problem without a solution it seems to me whatever steps are taken to minimise it there will always be those who are happy to get something for nothing. That is one of the less attractive facets of human nature.

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16 years 3 months

Posts: 1,813

Is it really such an issue ?

No, it is not.....

Member for

14 years

Posts: 4,996

The problem depends on the perspective. From the point of view of the airshow organisers it reflects lost revenue and so indirectly costs those of us who pay to attend more.

That's only true if you assume that, if it were not possible to gain a decent vantage point outside of an airshow venue,
more people would pay to enter. Maybe they would, maybe not.
If I were to decide to view a display from outside of an airfield, it hasn't cost the organizers anything, as I wouldn't have
paid to go in anyway. What about those viewing the Old Warden display from outside of the airfield ?, it's a sell out ,
so nobody has lost anything.

Good luck to any enterprising farmers or schools (such as at Duxford), who want to make some money.

As long as there are no safety issues (have to get in quick on that one :) )

Member for

11 years 5 months

Posts: 11,141

Maybe they would, maybe not.
If I were to decide to view a display from outside of an airfield, it hasn't cost the organizers anything, as I wouldn't have
paid to go in anyway. What about those viewing the Old Warden display from outside of the airfield ?, it's a sell out ,
so nobody has lost anything.

As long as there are no safety issues (have to get in quick on that one :) )

Maybe maybe not, as you say. I should have inserted the word "potential". But the reality is that my second point is probably the more relevant.

Member for

14 years

Posts: 4,996

Perhaps rather that accusing people of trying to get something for nothing
It should be, people trying to get something or nothing ?

Although as I said before, does it really matter ?
I'm not going to lose any sleep over a few people seeing a display for nothing.