Air Commodore Noel Fresson was the younger brother of Captain Ernest Edmund ‘Ted’ Fresson OBE the Scottish airline pioneer who features in a number of our Airfield Focus series from Peter V Clegg, inlcuding the latest on Kirkwall and the Orkney mainland airfields. In his latter years Air Commodore Fresson lived in The Cresent, Bath and had a number of children, including one who became a Captain for British Airways.

I’m digging through the material we have here, but if you wish I am happy to put you in touch with Richard Fresson, Tred Fresson’s son who is the family archivist. Just drop me an IM!

The B-17 N5229V which was at Biggin Hill after filming the War Lover is reported in the Warbirds Directory as having been broken up at Manston.

I saw it less ailerons and elevators – was the directory correct ?

I have always believed that once the principal filming at Bovingdon was completed in November 1961, the three aircraft – 44-83883 (N5229V), 44-83877 (N5232V) and 44-83563 (N9563Z) were moved to Manston to film the over-channel scenes that brought the film to its conclusion. This then begs the question is it certain that the picture location is Biggin Hill?

As far as I am aware, Ian is no longer in that position.

I only had the pleasure of seeing his display once, but I have never forgotten it.

ditto – I saw Hoover at Dayton do his Commander display and was decidedly impressed!

Neil Williams

Shuttleworth Spitfire

(and I know it’s thread creep, but if you want to read someone being cool, calm and collected….. try http://www.aerobatics.org.uk/repeats/zlin_wing_failure.htm

Well… if you do write this book – I hope you note that it was Britannia AIRWAYS not Airlines!

Also – the Britannia 1-11/737 saga is well covered in Geoffrey Cuthbert’s work ‘Flying to the Sun’

I’m going and looking forward to it immensely, about the only thing keeping me going through my university exams is the prospect of lounging on the grass at Old Warden in a couple of weeks’ time!

Hmmm…. this is ‘our’ Old Warden!

Thursday – Check stock list; prepare as required
Friday – load stock boxes – make SURE new titles are loaded; Bristol Brabazon, Concorde Conspiracy, Images of War: Memphis Belle – and with luck if they are delivered in time B-24 Liberator.
Saturday 1000hrs – depart base to cycle four miles to collect hire van
Saturday 1100hrs – drive to Brian Cocks to load his stock and bookcases
Saturday 1400hrs – return to base; load our stock and display stands
Saturday 1600hrs – check that nothing had been forgotten
Sunday 0530hrs – feed cats, check met (pray to the weather gods that it is dry between 0700 and 0830 – all traders know why!) wake wife (carefully)
Sunday 0600hrs – breakfast; check camera bag, airband, binos.
Sunday 0645hrs – check traders pass and till is packed and ready
Sunday 0700hrs – depart base
Sunday 0800hrs – arrive Old Warden; wait for the Le Mans start (or is it Roman chariot race?) to be let into hangars.
Sunday 0830hrs – with luck, let into the hangars. unload van. Set up trading stall.
Sunday 0930hrs – move van to traders parking area; start trading.
Sunday 1730hrs – stop trading; start to pack away
Sunday 1745hrs – collect van from traders parking, load our items first
Sunday 1815hrs – depart Old Warden
Sunday 1915hrs – arrive Brian Cocks’. Unload his items.
Sunday 2015hrs – arrive base; unload stock and display stalls
Monday 0700hrs – breakfast; put bike in hire van; take hire van to re-fill with diesel
Monday 0800hrs – return hire van; remove bike from hire van
Monday 0900hrs – return to base after cycling home.
Monday1000hrs – put away stock and display stall

That’s the plan for our June Shuttleworth Display – the delayed start of our 27th consecutive year of trading there! If my calculations are correct, this will be the 156th time we done this routine!

Time flies at Old Warden – and for us… it’s over five days!

Oh, and before anyone thinks I’m whining – I know that other traders have a lot longer distances to travel – and this is nothing to what the engineers and volunteers at Old Warden have to do – my hats off to them!