LN Strike Eagle wrote:You do have to wonder about the viability of Duxford as a venue. I said after Shoreham that surely it couldn't continue, and I know that North Weald abandoned their plans to host a proper airshow again in the immediate aftermath because of the M11.
I really don't know what the answer is here. The CAA's reaction has rather painted themselves and the industry into a corner and there's very little room for manoeuvre.
I don't really see what the difference is here between Duxford and North Weald. Both operate vintage aircraft that could, like any aircraft, be involved in a mechanical incident near to a very major road. If you are to shut down operations at Duxford then surely North Weald would have to follow suit, or indeed any airfield that operates a significant number of vintage aircraft. Of course more aircraft movements occur when an airshow is hosted at Duxford but that doesn't necessarily mean the likelihood of anything happening will increase, it's just as likely to happen at any other airfield.
I think therefore the answer has mostly already presented itself. It's about training and planning for a situation like this, that means even if you have very little height and airspeed, the pilot is still trained to know how to make sure the aircraft ends up as far away from spectators and public alike.