Welshpool Bob Jones Memorial Air Show 19th June 2016

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DerekF
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Joined: Sun 07 Sep 2008, 7:54 am
Location: Handforth, Cheshire, UK

Welshpool Bob Jones Memorial Air Show 19th June 2016

Post by DerekF »

I thought I'd better start this albeit a little after the event.
We decided to come here rather than Cosford but sadly I suspect it was afflicted in a similar manner - the weather.

I last came here two years ago and since then a premium parking/park and ride scheme has appeared. Worked well. We drove straight in, arriving about 10am and drove straight out when events came bumbling to a close at 3pm.

The flying programme on the website as of yesterday looked like this:-


12:00 Silver Stars Parachute Display Team - cancelled due tech issues with helicopter
12:25 Aviat Husky - flown brilliantly by Bob Pooler
12:50 Breitling Wing Walkers - good display if a little smoky
13:00 Team Raven - no show
13:25 Battle of Britain Memorial Flight - cancelled due weather
13:42 Lauren Richardson (Pitts Special) - nicely flown but the rain had started by the time she arrived
14:35 Red Arrows fly past - this happened
14:55 Sally B (B-17) - no show
15:15 ME109 - nicely flown and displayed in the 13:00 slot
15:40 Old Buckers - nice display in awful weather
16:00 Fairey Swordfish -no show
16:15 Westland Whirlwind - no show
16:45 RAF Typhoon - vapour filled finale flown at 14:45 instead.

Good:-
Parking and entry and exit
Plenty of loos - nice and clean
First half of show with no rain
All the displays that flew
Staff were very friendly and helpful

Bad
Commentary -not very informative when it came to the cancellations - he wittered on far too much at times as well
Music before show - brass band and Vera Lynn are not everyone's cup of tea (are they anyone's?)
The bloody weather.
The programme even before it was decimated by the weather looked pretty thin with large gaps.
The Buchon display seemed a lot further away than usual - the Brietling team and the Husky displays were very close.

All in all, a decent enough day out if somewhat trashed by the weather.

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Arthur Tee
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Location: Shawbury, Shrewsbury, Shropshire

Re: Welshpool Bob Jones Memorial Air Show 19th June 2016

Post by Arthur Tee »

Derek,

You summed-up the event rather well. :clap:

It was my first time at Welshpool (despite only living about 35 miles away) - and what a pleasant event it was too!

A bargain for £8!!! The P&R Buses were well-run - and despite everybody leaving after the Typhoon - we were back at the car at the Cattle Market about 30 mins later.

I only hope they made enough money for the event to be run next year...

Arthur
Canon PowerShot SX40HS - It's not what you've got - it's what you do with it!

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D200
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Joined: Sun 31 Aug 2008, 12:43 pm
Location: England

Re: Welshpool Bob Jones Memorial Air Show 19th June 2016

Post by D200 »

If I had known you were going Arthur; I would have offered you a lift. ..... and you would not have needed the P&R :smile:

Every UK airshow is having a hard time this year due to a combination of CAA regulation changes that evolve of a daily basis. (I'll be nice because I think in the fullness of time it will all settle down into a safer airshow protocol*) and it being the year AFTER the Vulcan effect. Add bad weather to the fray and all is possibly lost.
(*Although even I cannot see why the Bouchon for example could not do a high speed level pass down the centreline of the runway)

The Ops team at Welshpool knew pretty much to the minute how much of the day would be workable and the FDD did a very good job at shuffling time and displays when the cancellations rolled in to optimise the day with the assets available. The weather across the south of England was warm sector weather of 600' cloudbase in heavy rain and poor visibility, whereas we were worried about the 200' amsl cloudbase at Valley knowing that the weather was coming from the west despite the southerly surface wind. Had Sally B been at Duxford, she probably would have come as the Bouchon made the same journey; however the B17 was in the south of England. I understand that the Wing Walkers did not make Weston Park. I was disappointed that the BBMF fighters circumvented Welshpool in order to complete Cosford and run for home. It would have been more professional of them to do Welshpool and Cosford and nightstop Cosford if necessary.

Value for money? .... I'm not sure it gets any better - and the valleys either side make for some awesome aviation photography.

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