Flying Legends: Discuss

Yes, I can hear you all saying “not another Legends thread”, but please do bear with me!

The aim of this post is to open up decent and reasonable discussion about the show, both this year’s event and those previous. I’ve had it in mind to post something on the forum since I came home from the show on Saturday evening, and so this post is not a direct reflection on the unfortunate events of Sunday. I would appreciate it if we could avoid focussing on the Fokker Dr.1 and Skraider/P51 incidents and talk about some other aspects of the show.

To put things bluntly, I’m considering whether or not to attend Legends again in the future. I’ve attended most Legends since ’94, but I’m now starting to feel disenchanted and in some ways seriously concerned about the format of the show. There are a couple of aspects which trouble me, most of them solely relating to ‘spectator enjoyment’, although one aspect merges into a discussion about safety. In the latter case, I realise I’m not qualified to pass judgement on such things, being a lowly enthusiast, but I have a bad gut feeling about some things and I would appreciate the views of others more qualified to comment. I would stress that I am asking questions regarding safety, rather than making accusations.

My main problem is the overall pace of the show. I must admit that over the years I’ve become increasingly uncomfortable with the seemingly relentless pace at which the show runs. From the ‘spectator enjoyment’ perspective, my main gripe is that there is simply too much going on at any one time for everything to be fully appreciated. There are aircraft taxiing, taking off, landing and displaying more or less simultaneously, and it becomes hard to know where to look. On Saturday I watched displays by the Hawk 75, Yak-9, RNHF SeaFury…or atleast I must have done, but I can’t remember much about them, either because the routines were rather brief or because other aircraft were displaying at the same time. Aircraft starting and taxiing blank out the sound of those flying, (quieter aircraft like the P38 and the LeRhone-powered Dr.1 were particularly difficult to hear over other noise on Saturday, for example), and a number of display slots have a decidedly ‘squeezed’ feel to them, with perhaps just a couple of passes possible (Sally B and the BBMF Lanc both gave rather brief displays). It’s rather like having a box of chocolates and downing the whole lot in one go- you feel a bit overwhelmed at the end and you can hardly remember what you’ve had. It would be much better to take it slower and enjoy each at a time. It’s a bit of a corny analogy perhaps, but it illustrates the point.

There is also a point at which, for me atleast, the feelings about show pace cross over into safety related aspects. Putting aside the events of Sunday, which are too fresh, still under investigation and perhaps nothing to do with pace, there have still been numerous other occasions where, from a spectator point of view, things have looked uncomfortable. There was the incident last year where the Seafire had to ‘limbo’ under an oncoming Spit XIX, a few years earlier the Hawker Nimrod had to take evasive action to avoid a head-on collision shortly after take-off, and there are other examples. I understand that airshows in general can be high-pressure environments, and that you can sometimes have a number of aircraft in close proximity, but I can’t think of another show that takes this to the extent that Legends appears to. The pace of the show appears to add an unnecassary element of extra pressure for the participants, with tight display slots, shared display space (aircraft performing solo displays at the same time, at opposite ends of the field for example), and a very busy curcuit at times. It all feels rather tight, even from the spectators’ point of view. For me, this makes for rather uncomfortable viewing, and I end up enjoying the show far less than I might otherwise do. I can’t think of another show where over the years I’ve felt as many pangs of concern. It keeps me on my toes, instead of being the relaxed and enjoyable afternoon that it should be. The above are just my feelings and I would appreciate any informed comment that could allay my worries, I’m not pointing fingers or stating the above as fact.

Of lesser concern, but still significant, is the quality of the commentary. I know this has been discussed at length in various places before, but it is as bad as it ever was. In the last few years I’ve spent alot of time explaining to family and friends who are with me at the show exactly what the commentators are getting at, such is the confused nature of some of the commentary (it’s another factor not helped by the show pace, commentators sometimes having trouble finding the time to get points across). There are those who want to do away with airshow commentary in general, but for various reasons (some H&S related) you have to have an announcer of some sort and they have to be audible throughout the site. If the commentators are going to be inescapable, they should at least be clear, entertaining and educational. Do we have to have two commentators?? I know the French chap is a well-known figure in the warbird scene, and I’m sure he’s a very decent and knowledgeable guy, but in the circumstances he just doesn’t come across well. The combination of alot of aircraft noise and a thick French accent can make it very hard to make sense of what is being said, and I feel particularly sorry for the spectators who’ve come from abroad for whom English isn’t thier first language. If us ‘Britishers’ are having trouble understanding the guy, how are they supposed to decypher both the language and the accent?! Perhaps it would make more sense if the French commentator spoke French, there seems to be a large slice of the crowd from various parts of Europe.

As I headed home at the end of the Saturday show, I was surprised at my feelings of concern and disenchantment. When you walk away feeling like that from a show with fifty-plus warbirds taking part, there has to be something wrong. Perhaps it’s me? Am I getting old and grumpy (I’m 31!)?? I really don’t know, I can only say that I attend various shows throughout the year and enjoy them a hell of alot more. Legends should be unbeatably memorable, given the content, and for me it now isn’t.

I wrote the above a few days ago, and then sat on it for a bit to reflect and make sure I still felt that way and that I was saying what I meant. Almost a week later I still feel the above is valid, and so up it goes for discussion…

Discuss!