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Military and Civilian planespotting '70s style My interest in aircraft follows a long family tradition of aircraft interests, with distant family members on mums side having piloted a variety of RFC & RAF airborne machines (airplanes, in US-speak!) in both world wars, with dad carrying on the tradition on his side of the family by having aeronautical interests from day 1, also revolving around spending his mispent youth at Manchester, or as was known then Ringway. Back then, plane spotting would have consisted of gazing in awe as examples of lumbering Argonaut, Douglas DC3, DC4 and DC6, Convair, BOAC Stratocruiser and Constellation mixed it with cutting edge, new fangled, aircraft such as the DH Comet, Boeing 707 and DC8, with the occasional Convair Coronado thrown in for good measure. His interest in matters aviation continue to this day, and much of this enthusiasm rubbed off on both my bro and myself. Highlights of my days spent clutching notepad and binoculars in the 1970s and 1980s were the diversion days, when London got fogged out and all manner of unusual airlines diverted to Ringway, the taxiways and piers (which you could still walk along then) being stuffed with 747s and Tristars from (then) rarely seen operators such as Pan Am, TWA, World Airways, and Air Canada, mixing it with regular Manchester visitors such as Sterling Caravelles, Fred Olsen Lockheed Electras, Spantax DC8s and DC9s, CP Air and Wardair 747s (occasionally 747SP), smokey old TAP Boeing 727s and 720s, Heavylift Belfasts (and occasional CL44), British Airtours 707s, British Airways BAC 1-11s and HS Tridents, British Midland 707s and 1-11s. Other regulars were 1-11s from Dan Air, Tarom and British Caledonian, fantastic Tupolev TU134 and TU154 from Aeroflot, Balkan and Tarom, the occasional Aeroflot IL62 and IL72, Saudi Air Force Hercules, and various Shorts 330 and 360s, as back then when there was just the one main runway, and 2 piers (A & B), 747s were a fairly unusual sight, as few if any were on regular flights from Ringway, Qantas being one of the first to introduce regular jumbo flights, as were Singapore with the cool looking 747-300 SUD (Stretched Upper Deck) variants. Many a happy day was spent either sat on the old brickworks that used to be located near the end of the runway (Mobberley end), just down the lane from the former WW2 black hangars, long since demolished to make way for the 2nd runway. Wintry days were spent either at the top of Shadowmoss Rd, getting a fine view as whistly old Tridents with their Rolls Royce Speys shrieking away soared overhead, or nestled in a little caravan situated in someones garden that backed onto the main taxiway, just to the right of the Airport hotel, from where I spied the first ever flight of a 757 into Manchester (G-BIKB if I recall!). But I digress. As you can tell, aircraft featured long before I got embroiled in the oily world of classic cars, although my appreciation for aircraft regularly seen back then has never diminished. The all too-rare whistle of a set of RR Conways whistling overhead (RAF VC10) will still see me stumbling out of the house in a rush to spy the rare survivor, from the days when British aircraft reigned supreme. As with many people I revel in seeing former WW2 aircraft being put through their paces (usually at the Goodwood Revival meeting), but in some ways my all time favourite aircraft, ie those that I can relate to slightly having seen some operate, must be the civilian and military jets of the 1950s, 60s and 70s. To my mind, the sanitised whisper quiet Boeing 777s and myriad Airbuses humming through the heavens, do not invoke the same excitement as the whistling and smoking 1st generation turbojets that I grew up with, living as we did just 4 or so miles from Ringway, and attending annual airshows at both Barton and Woodford, where displays would include ear shattering performances from 'proper' aircraft, such as the Lightning, Buccaneer, Hunter, Vampire, and of course my all time favourite military aircraft, the Avro Vulcan and HP Victor V-bombers. Some of these can still be seen flying with historic / warbird operators, but to see a Lightning in full flight nowadays would require a long haul return ticket to South Africa I'm told, same with the Buccaneer, and sadly there are no Vulcans currently airworthy either. Where I live now I still get to hear the occasional rumble of a passing Air Atlantique DC3 or DC6 on an overnight cargo from the midlands, heading up north somewhere, and I nearly had kittens one lunchtime in October 2002 when, whilst out for a lunchtime stroll one sunny day, a rumble of engines had me gazing skywards, just as a magnificent Lockheed Constellation rumbled over, the sunlight dancing off its polished aluminium skin. Truly a fantastic sight and, as I discovered later, on a ferry flight from the USA over to the Netherlands where it will go in display, repainted in full KLM colours. I don't work in either the motor or aviation industry, but I am keen to maintain my interest in both. Dad & I keep an old aircraft cockpit section, as a long term display exhibit at a local airfield. This section, still in remarkably good condition, originally formed part of a Fairey Gannet, as operated by the Fleet Air Arm in the 1950s and 1960s. It is possible that our cockpit section was used for instructional purposes, as unlike many cockpits that are removed by a scrapmans mechanical digger, this example has been properly removed. We acquired it from a museum down south who no longer had any need for it, and is largely complete, just missing a few instruments which we should be able to locate sometime. Volunteers from one of the vintage aircraft enthusiast groups based at this airfield collected the Gannet for us, which was greatly appreciated, and its arrival at the airfield caused quite a stir with a group of onsite visitors that day. The plan is to restore this cockpit section (not that it needs much) and have it mounted on a trailer, in order that it can be displayed at events throughout the year, raising money for the restoration planned for the former aircraft hangars and peripheral building still to be seen at former-RAF Hooton Park. Collecting old aircraft cockpits is a collecting subject growing in popularity. Most people haven't got the space available to house an entire aircraft, as even something 'small' (in aircraft terms) such as an F4 Phantom or Canberra still takes up a surprising amount of garden space, and not everyone, especially she who must be obeyed, will approve of the garden being filled with an example of the RAF's finest. I've always thought that a Starfighter (the original 'widowmaker') mounted on top of a plinth in the garden would make a great talking point, but not everyone agrees. Therefore an old aircraft cockpit section, whilst still being considerable in bulk, can make a reasonable compromise, especially if still decked out with original switchgear, seating and instrumentation, and would make for an interesting conversation piece. A flick through a specialist magazine such as Flypast can often give examples of cockpit sections for sale, many of which are (handily) mounted on trailers for easy transportation, although a substantial tow vehicle would be needed for anything larger than say the Gannet we have. Don't try and lug the front fuselage of a Vulcan behind your Mondeo, as you won't get too far. Much will depend on how the cockpit has been sectioned. If it has been removed by splitting the front and rear fuselage away from the cockpit, the remaining section could stand quite deep and tall, making entry possibly awkward. Some examples are also sliced horizontally, therefore reducing the depth of the exhibit and lessening the chances of hitting a bridge whenever the section is moved anywhere. This is something we have to watch with the Gannet as the fuselage is very deep in section, and stands quite tall, especially as it is mounted on a purpose built metal frame for, we think, instructional use. Curiously, despite my interest in matters aeronautical, I'm not the worlds greatest flyer, being more keen on keeping both feet squarely on terra firma, or if not that at least planted to the decaying floorpan of some car or another. I did have a helicopter flight around Silverstone racing circuit in 2001 mind you, and that was great, but having had a few attempts at flying in single engined light aircraft a few years ago, leaving me to evacuate the contents of my stomach into the nearest sickbag, one time memorably while circling in a holding pattern directly over Jodrell Bank radio telescope! Despite spending much of my time nowadays fiddling with one of too many old cars, I still keep my hand in with matters of an elderly aviation theme, and attend as many aviation fairs and old aircraft environments wherever possible, my favourite probably being at the Brooklands Museum in Weybridge. If you're interested in photographs of old aircraft in preservation, why not visit my new historic aircraft site here!. If you are interested in postcards that have a period aviation theme, I have scanned a selection and put them on view over at the 'Classic Wheels' Aviation Postcards section. Elsewhere on this site, you'll find links to public information films from the early 1950s that feature the British aircraft industry, London Airport (Heathrow) and other subjects such as the jet engine. Find out more about these films here. |
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