King’s Birthday Flypast
I should think flying over Central London in any single engine aircraft is a little bit twitchy. The pilot must be constantly updating his/her plan for if it all goes quiet - "what do I do now......and now.......and now" etc. At low level over the countryside I guess ejecting (for those equipped) would be Plan A, but over the city? Any pilots with experience care to elaborate? Maybe it's something they don't like to talk about.
I should think flying over Central London in any single engine aircraft is a little bit twitchy. The pilot must be constantly updating his/her plan for if it all goes quiet - "what do I do now......and now.......and now" etc. At low level over the countryside I guess ejecting (for those equipped) would be Plan A, but over the city? Any pilots with experience care to elaborate? Maybe it's something they don't like to talk about.
Mog
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Years ago I flew from Luton to Biggin a few times via the London City overhead at 2000 in a PA-28 and it's surprising how much green space there is if you fly an aeroplane that lands slow enough.
I should think flying over Central London in any single engine aircraft is a little bit twitchy. The pilot must be constantly updating his/her plan for if it all goes quiet - "what do I do now......and now.......and now" etc. At low level over the countryside I guess ejecting (for those equipped) would be Plan A, but over the city? Any pilots with experience care to elaborate? Maybe it's something they don't like to talk about.
How big is the Buck House lawn? 
https://www.forces.net/services/raf/...ay-celebration
A few pics down the page - perhaps good for a Chinook - and empty on the day
Was occupied for the Coronation
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Only since the 100th Anniversary of the RAF flypast, which was routed over LHR, and ever since the Trooping one and any otehrs have followed suit.
Prior to that for many, many years only the helo's and BBMF would peel off pdq and helo's would turn south and follow the river, and BBMF would turn north and head out over RAFM and the rest of the formations would turn over Fulham and head out to the NW and fly over RAF Northolt.
Prior to that for many, many years only the helo's and BBMF would peel off pdq and helo's would turn south and follow the river, and BBMF would turn north and head out over RAFM and the rest of the formations would turn over Fulham and head out to the NW and fly over RAF Northolt.
The Spitfires and Hurricane are expected to ditch in the Thames which with the Spit apparently means a pretty quick trip to the bottom; have to hope the tide is out and land in the shallows, I imagine landing on the mud might not end well.
There was a time when the only single engined jets in the flypast were RAFAT, and the argument went that their pilots were talented enough to be able to deposit an ailing steed into the Thames at any stage of the flypast and bang out just in time. All other ejection seat equipped aircraft in the flypast had the benefit of at least two engines. I stand ready to be corrected, but I don't recall ever having seen a Harrier in a Buck House flypast. (The EIIR Tucanos were over Windsor Castle, before anyone cites them.)
These days: black Hawk T2s, Texans, F35s, all over London. What's changed? Don't say engine reliability... at least not in the Hawk's case...
These days: black Hawk T2s, Texans, F35s, all over London. What's changed? Don't say engine reliability... at least not in the Hawk's case...
There was a time when the only single engined jets in the flypast were RAFAT, and the argument went that their pilots were talented enough to be able to deposit an ailing steed into the Thames at any stage of the flypast and bang out just in time. All other ejection seat equipped aircraft in the flypast had the benefit of at least two engines. I stand ready to be corrected, but I don't recall ever having seen a Harrier in a Buck House flypast.
However, I seem to recall there were RAF/RN Harriers taking part in the Falklands Victory flypast over London in Oct '82, as well as there being a Harrier formation element in the massive 50th Anniversary of BofB flypast in Sept 1990, that continued out to Abingdon for the BofB airshow....??
Yep, don't ever recall seeing Harriers in any Trooping flypast....?
However, I seem to recall there were RAF/RN Harriers taking part in the Falklands Victory flypast over London in Oct '82, as well as there being a Harrier formation element in the massive 50th Anniversary of BofB flypast in Sept 1990, that continued out to Abingdon for the BofB airshow....??
However, I seem to recall there were RAF/RN Harriers taking part in the Falklands Victory flypast over London in Oct '82, as well as there being a Harrier formation element in the massive 50th Anniversary of BofB flypast in Sept 1990, that continued out to Abingdon for the BofB airshow....??
October 1982 'Falklands' flypast included two Harrier GR.3s and two Sea Harrier FRS.1s;
1990 BoB flypast, formation #4 included three 'box 4s' of Harrier GR.5s and 1 'box 4' of RN Sea Harrier FRS.1;
in August 1994 there was a VJ day flypast which included two RAF Harrier GR.5s;
in June 1997 the Queen's Birthday Flypast included two 20 Sqdn GR.7s;
in June 1998 the Queen's Birthday Flypast included two GR.7s;
I am reasonably certain that this is all the times that Harrier (of all marks) have taken place in flypasts. I'd still like to identify exactly which aircraft flew. Does anyone out there have these flypasts in their log-books?
Interesting set of dates. Looks like someone was prepared to make an exception to the norm for the "special" flypasts in 1982, 1990 and 1994. More understandable than the 1997 and 1998 birthdays, never to be repeated. With 2 years being roughly the length of an air marshal's tour, I wonder if the holder of the relevant "risk-holding" post at the time was uniquely determined to see Harriers taking part even in "routine" flypasts, and if their successor's return to the previous norm was made easier by the run of Harrier losses in the mid-90s!
("Risk holding" in inverted commas as there would undoubtedly have been some wriggling off the hook after a crash in those pre-Duty Holder days...)
("Risk holding" in inverted commas as there would undoubtedly have been some wriggling off the hook after a crash in those pre-Duty Holder days...)
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Looking at Geezer's post and thinking about it, that must actually have been the BoB 50th, 1990... Recall several desert pink Buccs which got a particular cheer?
Edit: apparently this list includes the aircraft in the 1990 London Flypast: https://www.scramble.nl/database/sho.../abingdon-1990
Edit: apparently this list includes the aircraft in the 1990 London Flypast: https://www.scramble.nl/database/sho.../abingdon-1990
Last edited by treadigraph; 22nd Jun 2024 at 13:21.
Looking at Geezer's post and thinking about it, that must actually have been the BoB 50th, 1990... Recall several desert pink Buccs which got a particular cheer?
Edit: apparently this list includes the aircraft in the 1990 London Flypast: https://www.scramble.nl/database/sho.../abingdon-1990
Edit: apparently this list includes the aircraft in the 1990 London Flypast: https://www.scramble.nl/database/sho.../abingdon-1990
Various enthusiast groups were invited to send representatives to almost all the departure airfields to record the comings and goings; for my sins I was despatched to Wattisham to see all the Phantoms depart. It turned out to be a blessing as all the fixed wing formations flew just to the south of us on the run-in. My instructions were 'take lots of photos', but sadly the developers were not quite so careful with my efforts. I'd love to have a time machine and a digital camera
