It has been, what, 2 years since the last Biggin Hill Airfair / Airshow.
What saddens me is that it went without so much as an `Oh Well`. So I start this thread for like minded folk to share there comments, views, opinions.
As a South Londoner living in Peckham during the 70’s Biggin Hill was the only airshow I had access to for many years. In fact apart from airliners it was the only chance to see aircraft close up at all! Certainly until 89 when I was able to visit North Weald via the Tube. My parents would take me or, when slightly older and able to travel on my own using the Green Line bus from New Cross.
I can remember getting excited by the newspaper reports leading up to the show or occasionally an act overflying Peckham. I seem to recall the Rothmans Team one year. I also could hear, from my parents 2nd floor flat, the radio chatter on practise day and, would you believe, occasional glimpses of aircraft as they claimed above Biggin. Raymond Baxter or Noel Edmonds on TV would soon have me badgering mum and dad to take me to the show!
What worries me is that Londoners, especially children who like myself, working class and without money or means, may not now get to see an airshow at all. Biggin and Weald were two of the few (only?) airshows people could get to by bus or tube.
Biggin certainly got my interest in aviation and warbirds as a youngster and that enthusiasm still exists today.
Please share your memories of Biggin and lets not forget that we have lost one of, if not `the` airshow for many people.
Regards,
Ted.
By: Arabella-Cox - 2nd April 2012 at 00:03
🙂 so it was! but it was a B-25! 🙂
Touchee……………
Planemike
By: longshot - 2nd April 2012 at 00:00
longshot………..
the B26 “Moviemaker II” taken in 1964 was N9089Z………..
Planemike
🙂 so it was! but it was a B-25! 🙂 (N1042B was the Tallmantz movieship which came to Heathrow)
By: Arabella-Cox - 1st April 2012 at 23:46
longshot………..
Great shots, wonderful reminders of the 60s & 70s. Look at the cars in the first shot !!! One small thing, the B26 “Moviemaker II” taken in 1964 was N9089Z………..
Planemike
By: longshot - 1st April 2012 at 23:29
A few more from Biggin Hill Air Fairs 1964-1978
1964 (a resident for some time N9089Z) …a Brownie127 photo! 🙂
1978…N3710g later lost at a Biggin show
1978 one of 2 N-reg Trojans
1978 Beech Staggerwing
1978 Miles Falcon and DH Rapide
1978 MH434
By: pagen01 - 31st March 2012 at 23:04
More cracking photos (esp the Gannet! – now preserved at Hermeskeil), thanks Longshot.
By: longshot - 31st March 2012 at 23:02
You can see in Jur’s photos the way the Battle of Britain September Display was more centred around the RAF part of the field to the NW of the runway.
I find Jur’s whole neg scans a welcome change from the overcropped shots we get these days from powerful zoom lenses.
It wouldn’t surprise me if one or two of my shots were from the ‘wrong’ airshow!….I had a couple of static shots up on the abpic website captioned as Biggin Air Fair 1970 when it seems they were taken at Lee-on-Solent that year!
By: Consul - 31st March 2012 at 22:24
I’ve only been once to the Biggin Hill Air Fair in 1970. Wonderful show!
Sorry Jur but your (excellent) pictures were not taken at a Biggin Hill Air Fair.
There used to be two annual shows at Biggin. The Air fair was run by JM and was a totally different event from that held in in Sept to commemorate the Battle of Britain. Your pictures were taken at the September Battle of Britain show. The Air fair that year was held in June 1970.
If you want to verify the differences in aircraft attending then please look at the respective reports on the following site: http://www.scramble.nl/showreports.htm
I agree the Air Fairs were superb – I attended from the earliest days and used to provide some of the photos used in the show brochures.
Tim
By: WJ244 - 31st March 2012 at 17:32
My first Air Fair was 1968. I was 13 years old and, after some badgering, my parents agreed to let me go alone on the Eastern National coach from Southend. I remember that it was very muddy in paces as we had a lot of rain earlier in the week and I nearly got mowed down by a french registered Jodel that was taxying (in the crowd!) and skidded through 90 degrees in the mud.
The display was pretty special in those days and included Patrouille De France and the Belgian Diables Rouges with Magisters, Freece Tricolour with Fiat G91s as well as the Red Arrows and the Belgian Stampe Duo who specialised in mirror formation aerobatics. Late 60’s / early 70’s also saw the Formula One air races but warbirds were fairly thin on the ground in those days. I last went in the mid 80’s and my saddest memory of the place is the mid air collision between the pleasure flight Jet Ranger and a Tiger Moth which happened before the display and cast a shadow over the entire day
By: pagen01 - 30th March 2012 at 18:41
Lovely pictures Jur, thanks for sharing.
I’m intrigued by the Vulcan underside photo. Never noticed the section at the rear between the starboard engines before. Is that standard or a trials fitment i wonder!
Hi Rob, it was fairly standard on B.2s (inc on XH558), as DragonRapide says, it was the mounting platform for some of the ECM fit including Red Shrimp and called a Counterpoise.
Some B.2s had a similar panel with other devices under the port engines.
By: Tony at BH - 29th March 2012 at 22:46
I use to cycle, with my friends, from West Wickham to Biggin Hill Air Fairs in the mid 70’s. I moved to Biggin in 1988 when I got married. I really miss the shows. Happy days (even when it rained).
By: atr42 - 29th March 2012 at 22:23
I remember some great days at Biggin. And North Weald now I think about it. It all seemed to start going down hill when the EU rules on insurance started to kick in which seemed to limit the aircraft which displayed on a regular basis. Happy to be corrected on that by someone with better knowledge than me.
Best shows for me now are Dunsfold and Shoreham. Not of the same grand scale but the same feel about them.
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March 28, 2012 at 7:03 pm