The words “snowball” and “hell” spring to mind – unfortunately.

A far more worthwhile project would be to try and get a Halifax or even Wellington into the air.

Regarding tax allowable donations in the UK, these are, of course possible. However, it is the recipient of the donation who benefits rather than the donor (which is only right, in my opinion).

First of all, the recipient has to be a Registered Charity. Secondly, the donation has to be paid under either the Gift Aid provisions or a Deed of Covenant. If these conditions are satisfied, then the charity can claim back from the government. 28p for every £1.00 received from the donor.

One factor which is often forgotten is that a donation has to be just that, a “donation”. In other words, the donor cannot expect to receive anything in return for their payment. If they are allowed soimething in return, such as admission, membership, a booklet (or even a ride in an aeroplane) it won’t be considered a donation and tax relief will be blocked. Many charities appear to have forgotten this and encourage their members to pay their subscriptions or entrance fees under “Gift Aid”. The UK Treasury is currently looking into this as it appears to be an incorrect interpretation of the basic legislation. So far, they have been reluctant to make a fuss on this topic because it is poltically sensitive but they have sent out warnings to a number of charities.

Finally, if the individual making a Gift Aid or Deed of Covenant donation to a charity pays tax at the UK Higher Rate (40%), they can personally claim back the tax at the higher rate on the donation. To do this they need to make the relevant entry on the UK Self Assessment tax return form.

Lovely shots.

Was a dog compulsory in every personnel photo I wonder?

Very much a film of its time I guess. As a ten your old child at the time I actually thought it was rubbish too. I knew even then that nobody talked like that in the 1940s and that it had a definite “hippy” slant totally out of keeping with the setting. To be honest, I never really believed that WW2 was that funny a subject and most attempts at comedy based on WW2 fall flat (in my opinion) with the notable exception of “Dad’s Army”.

For the record, I never rated “Where Eagles Dare” much either.

And Clint was willing to try his hand at anything back in those days. These are his pre “Dirty Harry” days so I guess he hadn’t quite achieved the iconical status he did later. Other examples of his “comedic” work at the time are “Two Mules for Sister Sarah” and the dreadful “Paint Your Wagon”.

I thought the plot was cheesy from the very beginning, but the aerial sequences are just gorgeous (as is Kelly McGillis). Of course, the dogfight with the “Russian” F-5 is based on Cunningham and Driscoll’s dogfight against Colonel Toon in 1972.

The aircraft involved was a Short Sunderland and it flew into high ground.
Don’t know much else.

BBC ran a documentary in the 1970s or early 80s about the withdrawl of the RAF from Hendon called “Goodbye London Aerodrome”. It featured film of the Beverley flying in.

The documentary was narrated by the late Glynn Wursnip.