I first saw the A340 there when Virgin got their first one. Likewise the E3D doing touch and goes for nearly an hour when the RAF got theirs.
Virgin did a lot of training there with the ‘classic’ 747s. They would first do some landings just using the PAPI lights and then they would ask for everything to be turned off and land without outside aids. There was no ILS at that time. Sometimes a trainee RAF controller got to do a radar talkdown on one.
Then there was the ‘Dover tour’ which guided usually military aircraft round the coastline, about a mile out and 1000′ from Reculver Fort to Dover Harbour while the controller gave a running commentry on a different frequency. Those were the days:)
mmitch

Steve Young wrote.
But the one thing that happened to me that week, which will never leave me, was being spoken to by the Guest of Honour at our Final Parade.
Some of you may recognise the name.

Robert Stanford Tuck.

__________________

Read his biography ‘Fly for your Life’ over 40 years ago on a wet Summer day. Still dip into it sometime during the Battle of Britain weeks.
mmitch.

There is a feature in the current ‘Pilot’ magazine by a pilot flying Twin Otter turbo prop aircraft from Glasgow to the famous beach airport at Barra. He backs out from between two 737s using Beta drive with an engineer walking behind. Not only the other passengers but the flight crews stare at the sight. Just one thing to remember he says “Don’t use the brakes to stop, or you will sit the aircraft back on its tail”!
mmitch.

I am afraid I can remember when the Spitfire stood alone in its own hall while a Gloster Javelin stood outside and rotted.
I was chatting to the stalwarts of the Medway Aircraft Preservation Society last year. They originally restored the Spitfire after it was removed from the gate (around 20-25 years ago ?) They had spotted the occasional rivet on the floor and reckoned it might need some attention!
The History Museum is improving every year. The airframes did shuffle about at first and the Buccaneer nose moved on but it is well worth a visit. I haven’t been there for over a year but must go again soon.
On a civilian note is the airfield still a graveyard for airliners?
mmitch.

Found Martin Bakers page on the Tie club now
http://www.martin-baker.co.uk/ejject_tie_club.html
mmitch.

Around 3-4 years ago I was amazed to see a B747 painted in BOAC colours by the fence on the A30 at LHR. I later read that it was painted up for an advertising campagn and later flown to Wales (Cardiff?) for scrapping. Never saw an advert featuring it, was this true?
mmitch.

I expect the sadest sight we will see is the unconverted BA Concordes being scrapped at Heathrow. Or would they be allowed a one flight permit to a museum somewhere?
mmitch.