…….will the CAA let them display it?
Even if the recent restrictions don’t apply, I’d certainly ask about future vintage jet policy before spending a lot of money on an aircraft the authorities may not let fly.
Apart from Hunters, which are currently grounded as a precaution pending the outcome of the AAIB investigation re. Shoreham, no other vintage aircraft which were flying beforehand have been forbidden to fly since. Neither has there been any suggestion that the CAA would forbid any other type from flying. The new requirements centre around safety, and in particular crew currency and experience, and for some vintage aeroplanes that might make life difficult due to the small number of hours that some of them fly (although I am confident that the CAA is open to discussion regarding such circumstances) – the main issue for most operators is going to be the cost of maintaining crew currency.
The flying restrictions currently in place forbid displays featuring an aerobatic element, again there is nothing that suggests that the CAA wouldn’t allow any vintage aeroplane to fly or display – the Canberra in particular is an aeroplane that can be displayed very effectively without doing anything approaching the current temporary restrictions. After the Shoreham investigation is finished, the restrictions are quite likely to be at least partially relaxed.
I think too many people are jumping on the bandwagon of predicting the end of vintage jet flying and death of airshows. The future will probably be more sparsely populated by vintage jet aeroplanes and airshows (mainly down to increased costs for operators and shows which were only just keeping solvent to start with), but I see no particular reasons to be unduly pessimistic.
From their thoroughness and past dealings with the CAA with the Vulcan, I would say VTTS are probably better placed to gain the necessary permissions to fly and display the Canberra than most other operators 😉
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