Excellent photos. Anyone know why Mildenhall was selected as the start point for the Air Race. Just seems a bit odd.

Note the hangars at Mildenhall under construction and a hand painted sign in French on the door of the hangar occupied by Grosvenor House.

You must had lived quite close to me. I was in Austin Place. Does that ring a bell?
I have very few photos of that time. You might look at some on

https://sites.google.com/site/lgarey/beverleys

I was also a member of a PA28 group at Booker. One winter we came back from France in snowstorm and I was kindly talked down by Abingdon radar onto the narrow strip of runway that they had cleared, and was allowed to leave the Cherokee in the hangar next to their Spitfire until I could get it back to Booker. They even took me, my wife and the kids back to Austin Place by RAF transport!

I lived in Larkhill Road – you were slightly closer to RAF Abingdon main gate !

Post 68, a regular feature of Abingdon and other displays was a RAF C-130 demonstrating a ULLA drop – Ultra Low Level ( cant recall the A bit).

This was the dropping of vehicles or equipment from the ramp whilst the aircraft flew at circa 20 ft .

A school friends dad, Mike Nash was the C-130 pilot based with JATE at Abingdon who carried out much of this load dropping development flying.

Dim memories of one ULLA display going a bit wrong and lots of broken bits on the ground!

As an 12 yrs old Abingdonian I was there, and also had my very first flight at the show in a Morton Airways DH Heron pleasure flight -Think is was £1.00

Love the one where what looks like members of the public going up the ladder at the back of the Beverley… todays H & S would have a field day with that one :D.
Cracking shots.

They were exactly my thoughts when I scrolled through to that picture:D:D

This whole archive is just superb.

Are there any plans to publish it in book form?

Any idea how the sole survivor is doing? She was looking good at Fort Paul when I last went there.

Its a pity however she is exposed to the elements?

Great pictures folks!
I was born and grew up a 5 minute cycle ride from RAF Abingdon and spent more time than I care to remember in Barrow Road or Honeybottom Lane watching Bevs, Hastings, Argosies, Andovers and C-130s. The Brits, VC10s and Belfasts from Brize were visible in the their circuit just to the North.
The scene was completed with Abingdon built MGBs, Midgets and Healy 3000s blasting along the road all day being tested before being shpped off to customers all over the world.
I took many photos but sadly they have mostly gone AWOL. Will try to find some and post them.
And yes……..it was sunny all the time 😉

Wonderful images from a more gentle age.
Particularly like the second one – would think those youngsters were genuinely enthralled to be so close to USAF jets and possibly inspired to learn more!

A long long way from PlayStation 3 !

Oh yes……I am also impressed by the SEVENTY SIX RAF Stations!!!