Vintage Air Show Films

[CMS]

Hi folks, I have been digitising my dad’s 8mm cine films and found a couple of air shows that he filmed. I don’t know where the first was taken or what year but it includes clips showing Vulcan. Victor, Harrier, Shackleton, Lightnings and Sea Vixens in formation. If anyone can narrow down the location and year I would be very grateful. It’s obviously a big show and may be Farnborough. If you have better ideas....



The second film is the Paris air show but I’m not sure of the year. I think it must be 1973 as there is footage of the aftermath of a crash which I think must be Tu-144. Was there another crash late 60s/early 70s that it could be? I wish he were around to ask but sadly it is too late.
My dad worked for de’Havilland and spent a lot of time on helicopters which explains the emphasis on helicopters in the film. Hope this is of interest to some of you.

Now I need help. Can anyone identify two unusual jets One has an engine mounted on top of the fuselage and looks amazing and the other is a huge delta wing fighter. I’ve been Googling but can’t find the identities of either. Any help would be greatly appreciated. Both at 08:34 onwards to save you watching the whole movie!



Thanks for any help with these films

Chris S

[iainpeden]

They are the same aircraft I think - the first thing which came into my mind was the Fairy Delta - but it isn't! It is one of the many experimental aircraft the British Aviation industry put together in the 1950's. Found it - Handley Page 115

[CMS]

Thank you, that's really good information.What a wonderful looking plane. I am now thinking the Paris airshow must have been earlier than 1973 for this plane to have flown. I wonder if they had a crash at an earlier show that the smoke plume belongs to. I can remember dad talking about a crash but can't remember what type of plane it was.

[KC135man]

Hi
Ref: Second Video

Think this could be a combination of Paris and Farnborough. Some shots are very much prior to 1973 as they show The Yellowjacks and Red Pelicans. Brilliant history though. Thank you for uploading.

[CMS]

Glad you enjoyed the film, I wasn't sure anyone would be interested so it is pleasing that the films have some relevance to other people. I hope to find more footage as I go through my dad's old collection of films.

Chris

[iainpeden]

A bit of guesswork here about the first film. It looks like 56 squadron's Lightning team with the red tails, also it's a Kestral not a Harrier and the Sea Vixen team are more likely Simon's circus not Fred's five (count them). The Fairy Delta is also there. In addition you have a Swedish Draken. If you can work out the serial of Westland's demo Wessex and then checkout Farnborough shows in the early to mid 1960's I reckon you could work out which year it was.

I'm not sure the 2nd film is all Paris - looks like the same Belfast at both shows.

[CMS]

That is brilliant Iain your knowledge is amazing. I didn't realise it was the Kestrel rather than the Harrier in the film. I'm amazed the Fairey Delta was captured as well so now the Draken has been identified I'm getting there with most of the fixed wing aircraft. I think the first film is definately one show as Dad only kept a film in the camera for a short time before filming something else. I didn't realise there was more than one Sea Vixen team, what a wonderful era for British aviation. I will have a close look at the Wessex and see if I can work out the serials. Unfortunately the films have suffered the affects of time so may not be good enough. Anyway thank you for your invaluable help.

Chris

[CMS]

That is brilliant Iain your knowledge is amazing. I didn't realise it was the Kestrel rather than the Harrier in the film. I'm amazed the Fairey Delta was captured as well so now the Draken has been identified I'm getting there with most of the fixed wing aircraft. I think the first film is definately one show as Dad only kept a film in the camera for a short time before filming something else. I didn't realise there was more than one Sea Vixen team, what a wonderful era for British aviation. I will have a close look at the Wessex and see if I can work out the serials. Unfortunately the films have suffered the affects of time so may not be good enough. Anyway thank you for your invaluable help.

Chris

[iainpeden]

That is brilliant Iain your knowledge is amazing. I didn't realise it was the Kestrel rather than the Harrier in the film. I'm amazed the Fairey Delta was captured as well so now the Draken has been identified I'm getting there with most of the fixed wing aircraft. I think the first film is definately one show as Dad only kept a film in the camera for a short time before filming something else. I didn't realise there was more than one Sea Vixen team, what a wonderful era for British aviation. I will have a close look at the Wessex and see if I can work out the serials. Unfortunately the films have suffered the affects of time so may not be good enough. Anyway thank you for your invaluable help.

Chris

That first sentence will get a few people laughing. (that's before anybody else can say it!)

[iainpeden]

The 56 sqd Lightnings are at Farnborough in 1963 - the only year the Phoenix sqd. provided a team. In addition Fred's Five added an aircraft for the Farnborough display that year so 1963 it is. (both sets of information thanks to the Christmas 2009 printing of AIRCRAFT).

I also think the 2nd film may be at 2 different shows - I agree the first part is at Paris but I can't see the Royal Navy doing a mass beat up and helicopter assault in France - the traditional enemy may have got a bit jittery. It almost looks like the same Farnborough as in the first film.

Hope that helps.

[CMS]

That's really good Iain, great research. I'll update the Youtube description. Dad did edit his films with splicing things together so it is quite possible that he combined two films to make a whole which would make sense with your observations. I see from Wikipedia that the Handley Page flew until '74 so it may have just scraped into Paris '73. The fact Concorde is there suggests that might be the right date, I know of no other major crash at Paris and remember dad mentioning the fact he filmed the aftermath of a crash so that helps narrow the date down. Thanks again for the information

Chris

[Eelmoor]

Hi, just been looking through the films, it seems a lot of the Farnborough video was taken from the other side of the runway, Im guessing that a lot of the wrecks videoed could of been ex test aircraft at the RAE, the helicopters on the other hand look like they are utillising Tweseledown Race course (just to the west) for the show

[Cimmerian]

I enjoyed the Farnborough film. It's nice to see what I got up to as a lad.

[Wes_Howes]

A great pair of videos, I love watching old cine film

I definitely agree that the second video is a combination of both Farnborough and Paris. The first Farnborough element ends just after the new(!) Gazelle shuts down (4:25) then it cuts to Paris and then it cuts back to Farnborough as the HP 115 is shot from there, with a VC10 in the background (8:21). That would then rule out the Tu-144 crash. The Farnborough footage is possibly post 1969 due to the presence of the Westland Sea King but the only crash at Farnborough I can find around that time, is this from 1968 (taken from Wikipedia so don't shoot me )

September 20 – Farnborough Air Show (Hampshire, England) – Six members of the French Air Force were killed when their Breguet 1150 Atlantic crashed while performing a single engine demonstration

The presence of the RAF Rescue Whirlwind would also suggest that this is Farnborough.

You can tell I'm typing this as I'm looking , I have just found this site with the Sea Vixen display team that appears in the footage and it suggests 1968 too
http://www.seavixen.org/index.cfm?fa=contentGeneric.cwlaojpovqekkrmt&pageId=91425

Hope that helps in some way

[Wes_Howes]

Aha, just found this piece of info

The first of the SH-3Ds was initially fitted with General Electric T58s and, after being shipped from the United States, was flown in October 1966 from the dockside at Avonmouth to Yeovil airfield

So it is very likely the footage is Farnborough '68. Now to try and establish what year the Paris show is

[Wes_Howes]

Ok digging around a bit and I think it's Paris 1967, for two reasons.

1) I have found this photo of the Super Frelon demonstrator, F-BMHC on A.net http://www.airliners.net/photo/Aerospatiale/Aerospatiale-SA-321F-Super/1974065/&sid=17ee131f73821a408aa6f80f1d4b0820

2) In 1967 there was a Concorde mock-up that looked very similar to the one pictured in the video http://www.concordesst.com/pictures/model5.jpg

[st24]

Fantastic stuff!!! I concur with Wes, I think you have the only moving images of the aftermath of the Atlantic crash in '68. Most farnboros' from the mid '60s to early '70s had a big tactical assualt as the finale so it's difficult to pinpoint. The second one appears to have no Belfast but lots of Argosies and more sand and spiansch RN Wessex... I'm sure theres a snippet of 1974 in there, I seem to see a glimpse of the desert camo hunter G-BABM that attended that year only and also theres a view of the quagmire that occured due to truly awful weather that year. Having said that most of the September shows frequently had there share of rain...I'm pretty sure that the 1990 Farnborough show was the first one of the September events from 1947 to have a completely dry 7/8 days... When the B-1A appeared in 1982 it was the first time one had got rained on since first flight in 1974... Any way I digress, fabulous images, oh to be standing next to him with a modern camera...

[CMS]

Crickey, what a puzzle my dad left Guys, this is fantastic work, many thanks. I will re-title the films on Youtube in light of the work here. My father loved to make movies and often spliced together different film clips to make completed movies so it is no surprise we have a composite film. Many had soundtracks but sadly not these air shows. I thought 1973 seemed late for Paris but I was influenced by Concorde and what I thought must be the Tu-144 crash. There may well be more clips to come to light but unfortunately I don’t have access to the original films at the moment, just VHS copies of some of them that were done many years ago. A shame the quality has suffered so much over the years. Once again thank you for all your help and glad you enjoyed viewing them.

[CMS]

Wes, the website with the Sea Vixen display team is amazing, thank you! It was such a lovely feeling to hear Raymond Baxter commentating with that silky smooth voice. At an airshow in the 60's I approached him shaking with fear and asked him to sign my autograph book and of course he was lovely and did so. I think it must have been Fairford or Abingdon, the locations I remember being taken to as a child but there may have been more. Thank you for your help with the film identifications, I have updated YouTube so I hope it is now more accurate. Oh for a better memory!

Chris

[x1x]

Chris,

That Handley page 115 is on display at the Yeovilton air museum. nice place if you were passing pop in and see it in the flesh..

[CMS]

Thank you, really good info - my father worked at Yeolviton for a while and I have never visited but passed by many times on our way to the Sidmouth Folk Festival, how rubbish is that. Half term is near so a trip is now top of the pile well ahead of the usual list of jobs I am supposed to do to stop the house falling down. It will be good to see many of the aircraft he worked on.

[Wes_Howes]

No worries Chris, I enjoyed looking for clues and searching for info. I was at work but had nothing better to do so I'm glad I stumbled upon this thread

[T3MP3ST]

Really enjoyed seeing these - thank you so much for uploading

[DanO1978]

First video, Vulcan pass at 2:26 - THAT is what aviation is all about!

[CMS]

I'm really pleased you found the films interesting. The RAF had so much more freedom from current regulations to show aircraft pushing the boundaries. One of my earliest memories as a child attending an airshow with my father was a hunter at full chat over the crowd from behind and seveal hundred people ducking in unison. Ear drums rattled, I was both terrified and excited at the same time if that is possible. Needless to say I begged to be taken to the next show and have never stopped enjoying the thrill of a good display. Just wish the quality of the films was better!