I hate regional broadcast reporters

On the subject of the “Bomber Command veteran” who is complaining about Gunther Rall’s appearance at Legends, I’d just like to reproduce here the exact text from Teletext page 334 here in Cambridgeshire at this very moment:

“MUSEUM DEFENDS LUFTWAFFE INVITE

The Imperial War Museum has said it will still invite German war veterans to its shows despite criticism over an event at Duxford near Cambridge.

Luftwaffe pilot Gunther Rall, 83, will join British veteran pilots at the Flying Legends air show.

Museum officials were criticised for entertaining Mr Rall by Walter Parsons, 72, an ex-member of RAF Bomber Command.”

Right, two points.

1 – The media seem to have conveniently forgotten Gunther Rall’s post war role in the West German Luftwaffe, where he (along with others such as Johannes Steinhoff) developed the Luftwaffe into a valued member of NATO’s front line defences, thereby acting with Western European (and therefore British as well) interests uppermost in his mind.

2 – “Walter Parsons, 72, an ex-member of RAF Bomber Command.” Do the maths. Mr Parson is just as entitled to express his opinion as any of us or any of the veterans who actually served. I don’t dispute that. What I do take issue with though, is the fact that the media have decided that because he served in Bomber Command, he must therefore have been there and seen it all. Wrong. The man is EXACTLY the same age as my father, who was aged 14 at the war’s end, and who’s memories of the conflict are thankfully very vague due to the fact that he was too young to have seen action. The fact that the media have sensationalised this story, I feel does a huge disservice to those who DID serve, regardless of the uniform they wore or the side they fought for at the time.

And as for Aeroplane and THAT picture… I’m pretty sure I’m not the only one who felt physically sick when I saw it… 😡

On London region TV they reported on a demo by former Diageo Garcia (sic?) people who were moved off the island so that “a B52 base culd be built by the US” this was acompanied by a shot of B17 Sally B flying by!
mmitch.

Totally agree with you Moggy…this sort of reporting really gets on my wick…these reporters are more interested in selling their papers than looking at things from a rational and sensible point of view.

Also in total agreement with Ant regarding ‘Aeroplane’ publishing the Coventry pic…they’ve gone right down in my estimation now 🙁

Ashley

Ant – correct, the was little respect in showing the picture as I am sure the events within was a person in an incredible amount of distress. Sadly everyone can picture the events surrounding a crash . As for the detail of the strut fairing – well the interim report tells a different story.
These are of course my views.

“Having witnessed the devastation caused by the Third Reich one might find it understandable that he is bitter.”

I saw Belsen and Neuengamme. Friends were amongst those who liberated Belsen. I understand his view. Rall was converted onto jets by an RAF S/Ldr though. One Roy Payne (ex-609 Sqdn, of course). I dunno – Galland seemed a good bloke, Rall probably is, Johnson was, Beamont was. Different uniforms – but then who was fighting for the vanquished? Who was fighting for an evil regime?

If I fought for my country under Blair, would that make me one of his scum-sucking toe-rags? Just thoughts, no answers.

“On the subject of the Coventry accident (which I unfortunately witnessed), does anyone else think that it was in poor taste for Aeroplane to publish a photo of the wing collapsing in their news section this month.”

Very much agreed.I am pretty disappointed in Aeroplane for printing that pic as it’s such a good magazine otherwsie.I was so displeased with them that I wrote an email of complaint to them as soon as I saw the pic,only to be told that in an automatic reply that everyone is out of the office and emails won’t be dealt with for a week.Oh well…

“Apparantly, a local former Bomber Command veteran has complained to them about Gunther Rall being invited to the show, and, being a slow news day, they decided to make it front page news. Among his rantings, he is quoted as accusing Duxford of ‘cashing in on the macabre sense of historical curiosity’, and he considers it ‘an insult to my ex-RAF predecessors of Bomber Command and victims of the Third Reich’. He also says that Rall is’ a man who tried to subjugate the world'”

Interesting. 60 years after the war ended his comments may seem to be ‘outlandish’ but they are coloured by his experiences. The majority of us on this forum have been fortunate in not having to experience war first hand. Having witnessed the devastation caused by the Third Reich one might find it understandable that he is bitter. I don’t agree with him, but I find myself understanding his point of view.

“A shame that the ‘CEN’ have nothing better to put on their front page than such racist nonsense.”

He may indeed hold a simplistic view but it is a view he and countless others fought for the right to hold. Without knowing more of this man’s background it is difficult to criticise him too deeply. We, largely, respect each other’s diverse viewpoints on different topics. I think we have to respect his. It sounds like he’s earned that respect.

“On the subject of the Coventry accident (which I unfortunately witnessed), does anyone else think that it was in poor taste for Aeroplane to publish a photo of the wing collapsing in their news section this month.”

Yes, gratuitous and sensationalist. There are even images showing possible damage to the aircraft while at rest. If that is significant to the events later that afternoon it’s a pity something wasn’t done about it then.

Regards,

kev35

Well, lets see what the Great Yarmouth Mercury and Lowestoft Journal (and perhaps the EDP) chose to do tomorrow.

Perhaps a nice spread on Johnny Wiseman and Alan Haddon’s memorial do on Monday at Grange Farm, Martham (10:30 am).

Followed by more of the same next week perhaps.

And a Radio Norfolk telephone interview with yours truly about it all on Monday’s breakfast show (7-9 am? Are they sane?)

The gist being that I want as many people as possible to come and honour the sacrifice of two ordinary guys aged 20 and 23 who are having a memorial unveiled to their memory, with a 41 Sqdn jaguar flypast, an RAF Chaplain, RAFA, RBL, ACA, FOWM, 609 sqdn and 609 Sqdn Association representatives.

Ahem. Shameless plug. My apologies. Thats 10:30 just past the A149 / B1152 junction.

Yeah strange that we used to call the Germans ‘the Hun ‘ – I guess sixty years is a good length of time to heal the rifts.
Having said that my uncle was shot up whilst in his MTB
and I guess he doesn’t have a good word for them.
It’s interesting that we now choose to consider this former
RAF member ‘racist’ – I guess if he didn’t have this view of ‘his enemy’ in the last war he would have been judged to be ‘Lacking in Moral Fibre’.

I agree with you entirely Moggy,regional news people seem to be the worst.I was up in the Midlands around the time that the AAIB issued it’s report on the Spirit of StLouis crash at Coventry. Not only did BBC Midlands Today slander the historic aircraft movement as per usual,but they also saw fit to show the entire crash sequence again.There I was thinking I was watching some archive library footage of the aircraft,and suddenly ‘snap!’ went the wing.Every last second of the wing fold,spin and impact were shown.What tasteful folks these media types are…

Glad I went up to the airfield tonight now.

Not the sort of publicity Legends needs, have a good safe weekend everybody.