North Weald Diary 2014

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Member for

9 years 11 months

Posts: 6

How fantastic to see the three Gnats together - are they booked anywhere this year as a threesome? I have my Sywell ticket and there's a single display but three would be something to see again.

I know it's now about 35 years but I've never really got used to the Reds with the Hawk - for me the Gnats were the perfect display team aircraft - small and nimble......perfection.

I preferred the Gnat too. I never bonded with the Hawk. Wouldn't it be nice to see this again...

http://www.sacarr.co.uk/warbirds/pics/gnat1.jpg

I guess three is a good start!

Member for

20 years

Posts: 1,628

With Ray Hanna leading them. Now that was special.

Member for

24 years 2 months

Posts: 933

OPeration Crosbow

As there is a repeat of the BBC documentary Operation Crossbow on the fight against Hitler's V-weapons available at the moment on iPlayer

http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b011cr8f/Operation_Crossbow/

Here are some pictures of some of the filming involving the Hangar 11 Spitfire PR XI in March 2011.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v165/YakRider/Crossbow1_zps78c35655.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v165/YakRider/Crossbow2_zps62116118.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v165/YakRider/Crossbow4_zps8a960082.jpg

PR Spitfire Jimmy Taylor and some of the other participants

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v165/YakRider/Crossbow3_zpsa8375fb0.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v165/YakRider/Crossbow5_zps6b0c4608.jpg

The following day, the aerial sequences were filmed by an R44 helicopter and on the ground

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v165/YakRider/Helicopter_zps0d6342dd.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v165/YakRider/Crossbow6_zps8ccb644d.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v165/YakRider/Crossbow7_zps9ced6c4c.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v165/YakRider/Crossbow8_zps95b80069.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v165/YakRider/Crossbow9_zps26182eae.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v165/YakRider/Crossbow10_zps4d6c24c6.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v165/YakRider/Crossbow11_zps7c30a53d.jpg

Member for

24 years 2 months

Posts: 933

The Gnats were out again over the weekend. Saturday's sorties first.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v165/YakRider/GnatStatic1-1000_zpsa19fd2ea.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v165/YakRider/GnatEngineStart-1000_zps9c886072.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v165/YakRider/GnatTaxiOut-1000_zpsa9a6a7ea.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v165/YakRider/TakeOff2-1000_zpsd6b1ee6f.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v165/YakRider/TaxiBack-1000_zpsf3cd8cc3.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v165/YakRider/GnatStatic2-1000_zps8b2a4af4.jpg

Second flight

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v165/YakRider/TaxiOutFlight2-1000_zpsbd03f260.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v165/YakRider/BreakFlight2-1-1000_zps74dea61f.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v165/YakRider/BreakFlight2-2-1000_zps65ab8deb.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v165/YakRider/G-RORIandChute-1000_zps81fd2c87.jpg

Member for

24 years 2 months

Posts: 933

More Gnat action on Sunday too. It started to rain as the first sortie took off, and it came back early because of the low cloud.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v165/YakRider/Flaps-1000_zpsbaa2045f.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v165/YakRider/TakeOff1-1000_zpsa83a3e1f.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v165/YakRider/TaxiBack-1000_zpsc8298298.jpg

The weather improve for their second trip. The take off was shot from the Tower, where I had just finished a stint on the radio.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v165/YakRider/TakeOff2-2-1000_zpsefdad2eb.jpg

WE also had some rather nice red MGs visiting the Airifield. Suitably historic British classics!

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v165/YakRider/MGs-1000_zps57a40c3d.jpg

The final sortie was a two ship which gave us a low pass with smoke on. The engineers did a great job over the weekend so that the six flights all went off without a hitch!

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v165/YakRider/PairTakeOff-1000_zps6ff03f26.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v165/YakRider/PairPass1-1000_zpsd5a4ed77.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v165/YakRider/PairPass2-1000_zps5fd08911.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v165/YakRider/PairPass3-1000_zpsd396a0dd.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v165/YakRider/G-RORITaxi2-1000_zps06bd3430.jpg

Member for

11 years 5 months

Posts: 11,141

Marvellous pictures. Just love those little aircraft, with fond memories of the Yellojacks, pre-Red Arrows days. I hope I manage to see them at one of the shows this summer.

Member for

20 years 6 months

Posts: 7,017

:applause: Lovely looking aircraft,great photos ,thank you. Request entered for video next please :)

Member for

11 years 2 months

Posts: 201

smashing photos, well done.

Member for

24 years 2 months

Posts: 3,208

Soon after the Gnats had finished flying for the afternoon, the occupants of this lovely Biggin Hill-based Miles Messenger dropped into The Squadron for a cup of tea en-route back home from a visit to Sywell.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v718/Mike_Shreeve/IMG_1543_zps8c2edb98.jpg

Member for

24 years 2 months

Posts: 3,415

Absolutely wonderful pictures. Keep up the good work! Do you mind if we share them on my forum?

Member for

12 years 4 months

Posts: 310

Great pictures, thanks all for posting. Loved the Messenger Mike!

Bill

Member for

15 years 8 months

Posts: 102

Wonderful set of photos. Great to see all the activity at NW. And as Roborough says Mike, loved the Messenger.

Member for

24 years 2 months

Posts: 933

On Bank Holiday Monday Richerd Grace flew in ML407 for a welcome visit. Great to see my favourite spitfire again

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v165/YakRider/GraceSpitfirePass1-1000_zps6dc0b32c.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v165/YakRider/GraceSpitfireLand-1000_zps1f85bb2b.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v165/YakRider/GraceSpitfireStatic-1000_zps833fa12f.jpg

The Hangar 11 Hurricane was also flying. It performed a display the the Gunpowder Mills in Waltham Abbey

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v165/YakRider/HurricaneTakeOff-1000_zps19df484b.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v165/YakRider/HurricanePass-1000_zpscb9562df.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v165/YakRider/HurricaneApprocah-1000_zps5e875492.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v165/YakRider/HurricaneLand-1000_zpsfef72c13.jpg

Member for

24 years 2 months

Posts: 933

Some of our Jet Provosts were out too…

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v165/YakRider/G-BKOU-1000_zps637eec98.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v165/YakRider/G-PROV-1000_zps1596e4e9.jpg

The Hunter T7, Fox 1, WV372, didi a couple of sorties too. This is due to display next weekend at the first Shuttleworth show

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v165/YakRider/Fox1Taxi1-1000_zps1f85b33d.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v165/YakRider/Fox1TakeOff1-1000_zps35cc30ad.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v165/YakRider/Fox1Land1-1000_zpsacc5a6da.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v165/YakRider/Fox1Taxi2-1000_zps04bc76d6.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v165/YakRider/Fox1TakeOff2-1000_zpsfc50a047.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v165/YakRider/Fox1TakeOff3-1000_zps07611b69.jpg

Member for

17 years 10 months

Posts: 3,778

Great update, thank you Yakrider.

Member for

13 years 10 months

Posts: 97

Nice to see the Palouste starters in fine fettle :-) Used to look after all the squadron units on HMS Centaur. Mounted on a/c deck tugs. :-)

Member for

16 years 5 months

Posts: 5,998

Looks like NW is now the hub of vintage jet operations in the east of the UK.
Great photos!

Rob

Member for

14 years 10 months

Posts: 556

Thanks for the Hunter pics,, was always a favourite of mine, along with the Lightning

Profile picture for user 1batfastard

Member for

11 years 1 month

Posts: 3,650

Hi All,
To all who supplied the photographs many thanks for taking the time to post on this great thread keep it up :applause:

Geoff.