What do members feel is the worst airshow(s) they have attended my two are woodford 1997 and woodford 1998, a washout with the former and with the latter the weather was bad the bbmf D,S,L and H were weathered in at coningsby huge gaps in the programme and generally bad organization in the ground and in the air.
By: Plazz - 16th July 2003 at 18:54
Philo,
I am married, but to a very understanding and tolerant wife!
To be honest I sometimes think she’s glad to get me out of the house:D
But this will probably be my last year of acting like a spoilt kid at air shows as she’s now pregnant and expecting twins!
Regards Plazz
To all those going to Faiford this weekend, Have a good one.:cool:
By: EHVB - 16th July 2003 at 11:05
Ramstein 1988. Nice show, nice weather, interesting aircraft but with a massacre as a finale. I left just in time to avoid the traffic jam, so the inpact was some 300 mtrs behind me. Bw Roger
By: Arabella-Cox - 16th July 2003 at 10:21
Originally posted by DOUGHNUT
Why have all the replies so far centred on the bad weather and traffic jams?DOUGHNUT
Good point, and to be honest, while I’ve been mulling this subject over, the only ‘bad’ airshows I can think of relate entirely to those two factors. Duxford’s May show last year was the coldest I’ve ever been to – poor little Haydn arrived home looking like an eskimo! – and the traffic problems at RIAT year after year have meant that I’ll never attend that on a Saturday or Sunday again (hence my question about Friday). Life’s too short to spend such large chunks of it sitting in a traffic jam!
But as for content, layout, standard of flying, safety arrangements, etc, both Duxford and the RIAT’s referred to above were fine in those respects. In fact, there are very few shows I could openly criticise for those areas, if any.
By: philo - 16th July 2003 at 07:56
You are clearly not married Plazz. !!!!
By: Plazz - 15th July 2003 at 19:36
Worst Airshow (No such thing)
Its interesting hearing the same complaints about weather and traffic etc… but you could always do what I do and set off very early for the show or if a long distance is involved go the day before. Fairford is only an hours drive from my house but I shall still be there from 7:00am on Friday morning followed by stopping locally overnight and then you’ll normally find I’m out side the gate by 6:00am the next morning, last yeah I was lent against the gate watching the firemen try to cut the lock off, by the time they had succeeded the queue had stretched out off sight! also, I never leave until after dark, at last years Waddington I over did it and managed to get myself and my car locked in the base, the police weren’t to happy so I’ve learnt my lesson from that one. My point is if you by your tickets in advance, make a full day or days of it even if its raining then you can have very little reason to complain and you get extreme value for money, e.g. Waddington two weeks ago: 11 quid in advance vs. 7:30 in the morning on the base time until 8 in the evening leaving time = approx 90p per hour. What a bargain, 90 pence an hour to watch planes, walk around the static, talk to aircrew, check out the stalls and of course take photos, granted the barriers and cones can be a pain but a suitable mini zoom like my 28-75mm can over come this and with my digital photos I just crop out the annoying bits and resize them. Job done!
Why sit in traffic complaining when you can be enjoying your passion? after all you’ve paid for it.
Rant over
Regards Plazz
Remember: Airshows are what you make of them!
By: robbelc - 15th July 2003 at 18:33
Weather is pretty much beyond anybody control. I remember going to Middle Wallop a few years ago where the MATS connie made its debut? Cloud was about 200ft in drizzle. Only fixed wing that attempted flight was a Tornado which was heard flying past!
Personally I hate the Biggin shows. As a spotter they used to be brilliant when I first went in the late 70’s. Interesting static line up, loads of visiting aircraft parked along the crowdline(in the days when the tower side was RAF only) and all the hangars open. I last went about 7 years ago with almost no static, visitors parked miles away and all hangars shut.
I am going to RIAT this year for the first time in about 8 years. This is because of all the non modern mil aircraft they are having. As for sitting in the car park for hours I will be gone to Kemble by two. I am one of those strange beasts-the spotter. The only aircraft that would make me stay for the flying would be the Vulcan-as for the rest you have seen one F16 fly you have seen tham all.
By: DOUGHNUT - 15th July 2003 at 17:44
Why have all the replies so far centred on the bad weather and traffic jams? Surley all out door public events suffer from these promblems, and there is very little that the organsiers can do about the weather and if large numbers of people turn up then the show can have been judged a success.
What really does make a bad airshow is the totla lack of consideration show by teh organsiers when parking aircrfat in the static, I can think of very few major show over the last twenty years which have not suffer in this way.
Why do IAT insist on placing blue and white cones in front of everthing.
Why did Mildenhall always park spare aircraft out of sight on the far side when there was ample space in the static.
Why does Waddington always park aircraft so close together and have rope and barriers so close to the aircraft taht you can touch them.
DOUGHNUT
By: Yak 11 Fan - 15th July 2003 at 14:29
Can’t say that I’ve ever been to a really bad airshow, but I guess the last Mildenhall show a couple of years ago would be the worst. It took an age to get infrom the A11 roundabout and the display had some massive gaps in it, however it was sunny and the beer was cold so I sat about soaking up the sun and having a sociable drink.
By: Moggy C - 15th July 2003 at 14:22
The Mildenhall when the 2 x F15s did a fly-by above the low cloud.
Sounded OK mind you.
Moggy
By: philo - 15th July 2003 at 13:29
RIAT Saturday 2002.
By: Steve Bond - 15th July 2003 at 07:59
Worst air show
Tiger Club display at Radlett in about 1963/4. One Turbulent, that was it. They gave up at about 10 a.m. and chucked the small crowd out because it was raining.
By: paulc - 15th July 2003 at 07:52
Many years ago I went on a trip to the French AF show at Chadeaudun followed by a French Navy show a Landviseau.
Problem 1 : the ferry had a technical problem which delayed us by approx 6 hours meaning that we got to Chateadun about 1 hour before it closed but at least the weather was good.
Problem 2 : because we were so late arriving and therefor departing, by the time we got to the overnight hotel it was very late and there was nowhere to get anything to eat.
Problem 3 : woke up to find the weather had turned very nasty but we went to the show anyway only to spend 8 hours huddled in a hangar trying to keep warm and dry. Few static exhibits and the flying aircraft were parked a long way from us. Not that anything flew during the entire day!! – even the birds were walking.
By: Seafuryfan - 13th July 2003 at 22:24
I persuaded my Mum to go to West Malling one year assuring her it would be a good mix of fairground, bric-a-brac, old planes etc..
All the ingredients were there and the day went well, UNTIL IT CAME TIME TO LEAVE. I’m not kidding, must have been almost static in the car for about 2-3 hours which is a long time after a show, as we all know.
She was great about it, but I had egg on my face after that one.
BTW – used to love West Malling, a real personal feel to the show.
By: pierrepjc - 13th July 2003 at 21:49
BAE Sytems own the site. They also provided a great big back up to the event. Enough said.
By: redtop - 13th July 2003 at 21:48
not the worst show interms of content (although it wasn’t that great either), but definitely most frustrating was last years RIAT. Five hours waiting to get out of the car park can become a little tedious, especially after you’ve read your paper, car service logbook, back of the coke can & anything else to stave off the boredom 😮 ! Still, can’t have been that bad as i’ll do it all over again on saturday. Got a really BIG book to take along this time.
By: eddywinch82 - 13th July 2003 at 21:19
why was the show stopped after 2000 ?
By: pierrepjc - 13th July 2003 at 20:55
Eddy
Dont even go there, I’m sorry mate but you don’t know what you are talking about.OK so you attended possible not the best airshow at WOODFORD, however to say that their organization was bad would be an injustise. I attended most of the Airshows there and got to know some of the people in the background who worked dam hard to give ‘US’ a good day out whilst also raising money for the RAFBF. Which I must point out is the exercise of the event.
I’ve been there on many a show and got wet through but had a dam good day, the weather and availability of A/C is in the lap of the Gods.
Just make the most of what airshows you can get to from now on because I dont know how many will be on the calender in ten years time.
By the way if i come across my old logs from the early shows I’ll e-mail them to you, but dont hold your breath as my filing system at the moment is a bit screwed.
Paul.
By: robbelc - 13th July 2003 at 19:12
Been to a few duff shows back in the days before the net took the anticipation out of what was there.
A show at Benson in the late 80’s was one. Only good thing was the Me109 later G-USTV when it was still being restored by the RAf and first time it had seen the light of day in years. The static was Me109,Andover,Chipmunk,Bulldog, Tornado,Puma and a Wessex.Flying 3 tornados, Andover and 2 Hawks.
Went to one at Upper Heyford around 1982 that only had about 10 static,mostly F111’s didn’t stay for the flying.
The ones I have enjoyed the most were the TVS shows at Hurn the the 80’s, Greenham Common and the small shows at Fairoaks in the late 70’s. All before comercialisation and when shows like the IAT were a real treat that you eagily waited two years for.
By: Flood - 13th July 2003 at 14:42
Not strictly speaking bad, but not good either!
Not sure if this counts as a ‘bad’ airshow, but…
I even forget the year but it was definitely the first time I attended Mildenhall – probably in the mid eighties.
A local coach company had a trip going – great! 6:00am start – not so great! A mate and I were literally first ones aboard and then had to endure a trip around our area picking up other travelers from various bus stations. Boring.
Then came a journey around the M25, up the M11, etc. I forget now where we went but do recall passing through Peterborough town centre, and maybe Ely too, before our amiable coach drivers admitted they were lost.
Result? A near seven hour mystery tour but with a lovely and quick(!) straight-in arrival to the coach park.
Then…
‘Sorry, folks. We are going to have to depart by 3 o’clock!’
Can’t remember if it was due to the fact that we were last ones in and therefore had to be first ones out, or maybe the drivers on duty hours were fast approaching.
Quite sure we left two passengers behind as well!
When the hat was put around for the crew I don’t recall there being a thing in there.
And when I went to collect my slides from the processing house I discovered my camera had an over exposure problem…
And they say it never rains!
Flood – who is still upset about the RNHF Firefly. Very sad.
By: Plazz - 12th July 2003 at 22:41
There’s no such thing as a bad air show especially if you love aircraft as much as me and some of the other plane nuts on this forum.
I’ve been to loads of shows every year since my first IAT at Greenham Common in the seventies right up to Waddington two weeks ago and I can honestly say that I’ve enjoyed everyone of them even when the rain is totally drenching me. I have of course endured my fair share of disappointments but surely that’s a hazard of the hobby!
Regards plane crazy Plazz
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July 12, 2003 at 7:41 pm