2025: DDA Dutch Dakota DC-3 / C-47 is to stop flying. Insurmountable problems in the Netherlands….

The maths points to opportunity : with 2 billion more people coming onto the planet in the next 20 years, and 0.5% ‘vintage air minded’, that’s 1 million more consumers ontop of the existing 4 million consumers of live airshow content, a growth story. With the tailend of the WW2 – Cold War bell curve of technical trades reducing competency ratios from one LAME  per 10 Spitfires to one LAME per 1,000 Spitfires, that increases the value of Spitfire competent LAME labour scarcity manyfold, a renumeration growth story. In order to keep excessive LAME renumeration from destroying the viability of airshows, this creates a well renumerated career and training pathway for a 20 year old to learn about repairing constant speed propellers, another growth story. Of course ICE engine lubricants to DTD109 spec need to return to a renewable castor oil base, as they did up to 1930, and lead free SAF to 87-100 Octane needs to be distilled from sewerage fats and renewable pine cone oil, as the Japanese did in 1945 to run high performance aviation engines. So creating specialist SAF suitable for shellac coated cork floats in 100 year old ICE aviation engines that are emissions neutral is another growth story. Just need the old goats to enthuse the young bucks and be patient with them, show them what an oil dipstick is, the right end of a screw driver, the basics. Same way the RAF trained brats in 1935 and Willow Run trained Rosie the Riveter. 

We’ve had the best of everything.

The world will one day realise they messed up big time but it will all be far too late. 

…some of the problems that have arisen are the increasing costs of renting a hangar plus facilities in the Netherlands. Insurance rates have also gone thru the roof. 

Suitably technically qualified volunteers are now increasingly hard to find, as the Dutch Catalina crew found out ten years ago.  

Well this turned into a tantrum pretty quick. Must be a record.

Hi All,

 Tin foil hat time!!!! IMPO 

  I think this will more likely be the way going forward for a lot of historic aviation and not just for the reasons stated in the OP.  It’s as if all these regulations are made to make it harder and harder for historic aircraft to operate,  let alone the scarcity of AVGAS not being produced for piston engined  aircraft.

I mean just look at what they have done with Cars let alone the EU bow trying to stop old car repairs and they are just getting started on Motorbikes.  I can see anything that has an fuelled engine and not powered by electric energy being banned altogether:-  Motor Racing all forms/Motorboat Racing/Tractor Displays/ Steam Engines /Traction engines in fact anything you can imagine they will all be consigned to a static death eventually

Only one problem I can see really:- Where is all this electric coming from ?  The UK just does not have the infrastructure in place to support the electric vehicles at the moment let alone the future that is for Joe public never mind industry etc. etc. etc.

Here’s a thought:-  ( A block of flats anywhere you can imagine,  how’s that going to work ?  Massive network car park full of charging points, let alone being a vandal magnet what if one catch fire you know how quickly they spread from one to another, just as example. )

Back to the OP,  I can envision protests taking place at rather high profile Airshows and it will all be done in the name of progress and for Climate change with the likes of JSO or whatever group etc. etc. etc. deciding to spoil others enjoyment with their ruinous antics.

It wouldn’t surprise me if Airshows become the next target of the Racism warriors just as the Countryside has now become the major in vogue target.

Why can’t people just agree to disagree then move on with your life ?  All people have opinions and they are like noses everybody has one and all different.

So sad really :- (    Taking what is happening all around it makes you think,  these people are rapidly running out of targets a couple have already tried disrupting F1.

But hey I could be totally on my own here.

Geoff.