Spitfire & Hurricane

[AVB]

Both just flew low over my house and on the route they were on would have taken them directly over Stansted Airport (which wouldn’t have happened in normal times).  Great to hear. 
 

I bet somebody on our local Facebook page questions whether it was an essential journey though. 

[JKD]

Down at my GF's in deepest Kent, we see them regularly, and it usually causes great excitement and awe,,,, WOW with strained necks 😃 The last time I saw them, they were enacting a dogfight directly above the house,,,, stunning and just WOOOW !!! And the sound of the engines,,,, what can one say 😃😃😃

[oldypigeonpopper]

hello, are they still doing anything for VE day May 8 ?

[old man]

Nothing quite beats the howl of a Merlin? Music!

[AVB]

31 minutes ago, old man said:

Nothing quite beats the howl of a Merlin? Music!

On my bucket list is a flight in the two seater Spitfire. A mate of mine did it. £3K I think. 

[hawkfanz]

allways nice to see,this shot from barton,manchester.

[London Best]

1 hour ago, old man said:

Nothing quite beats the howl of a Merlin? Music!

Trumped by FOUR Merlins on a Lanc!

[Cheshirelad]

I was at several fetes in East Sussex that had a flypast by a Spitfire. A lot of the grounds where the fetes were held were surrounded by trees, so all you could hear was the gradual increase in noise from the Merlin, and then suddenly the Spitfire would appear above the treetops at a couple of hundred feet.

It's a sight and sound I will never get tired of hearing. 

 

[Townie]

When I was a young lad, they filmed The Battle of Britain near us in 1968 I think it was. As a 10 year old, it was the most exciting thing I’d ever seen or heard. Not sure that my dad was so keen.

[old man]

2 hours ago, London Best said:

Trumped by FOUR Merlins on a Lanc!

Not for me personally. a single singing is bliss.

They occasionally go overhead when Cosford Air show is on.

[London Best]

I’m biased. My dad was rear gunner on a Lancaster.

[Old farrier]

5 hours ago, JKD said:

Down at my GF's in deepest Kent, we see them regularly, and it usually causes great excitement and awe,,,, WOW with strained necks 😃 The last time I saw them, they were enacting a dogfight directly above the house,,,, stunning and just WOOOW !!! And the sound of the engines,,,, what can one say 😃😃😃

You can take part in the dog fight reenactment if you have a large wallet approx 10 k 😊👍

[AVB]

Just had a quick look 

30 minute spitfire flight - £2,750

15 minute Lancaster Taxy run £375  

The Lancaster run looks good value. Not sure I can justify the Spitfire flight yet  that’s a good few days shooting  

 

[Old farrier]

3 minutes ago, AVB said:

Just had a quick look 

30 minute spitfire flight - £2,750

15 minute Lancaster Taxy run £375  

The Lancaster run looks good value. Not sure I can justify the Spitfire flight yet  that’s a good few days shooting  

 

Go for it 😊

who knows what the future will bring 😂

[gsalmons]

I did the Lanc taxi run a few years ago with my dad - was lucky enough to have a Radio Operator on the same day who served on Lancs in the war.

Highly recommended, however East kirkby is worth a trip any way as they have an excellent small museum and you can stand so close to the Lanc when they start and rev the Merlins

They have a Mozzie now but that's really expensive 

We also did a static tour of the Lanc which was quite a bit cheaper than the taxi run

[The Heron]

If you get chance go to the shuttle worth collection in Bedfordshire they have a merlin engine there along with the aircraft that you can get up close to, if you go in autumn or winter make sure you have a warm coat with you it's extremely cold in those hangers. 

[JKD]

2 hours ago, Old farrier said:

You can take part in the dog fight reenactment if you have a large wallet approx 10 k 😊👍

Yup, I investigated all options for my GF's 'special' birthday 18 months ago,,,, could buy a nice little old car for those prices 😲🤣 She gets regular 'free' views across the open fields that surround her house as they do their thing,,,, the vertical loops are amazing 😃 She's quite happy with that 👍

Although, she did have a 'flypast' by a lone Spitfire while she was in the tower at Dover Castle 😁 There was a German fella in the visiting group,,,, he muttered something along the lines of "Crikey, no wonder we lost the war !!!" 😂😂😂 Everyone giggled a tad 🤭

[Rob85]

I was lucky a few years ago to hear the sound of 8 Merlins flying over. Was the first time in over 50 years I think that 2 lancasters had flown together at an air Show and it just happened to be at the international air Show in portrush NI. The British one and the Canadian one together. The commentator literally said he was going to shut up for that special moment as they first flew directly over us when they came in. Was a sight and sound that could bring a man to tears! Seeing then coming low over the countryside was like a clip out of the dambusters film. My only regret is that to this day I still haven't seen the hurricane flying. My personal favourite aircraft.

[redial]

My uncle who was RAF during the war always rated the Hurricane above the Spitfire. 

I wasn't old enough to ask him why , just remember him saying. 

Wish I could have that conversation now.

[London Best]

I took Dad (ex Lanc rear gunner) to East Kirkby. They offered him the chance to sit in the rear turret. He wouldn’t get in. He said,” too many bad memories”. When they finished running the engines I said, “bet that takes you back”. Dad replied, “what makes you think I would want to go back”.  I never knew Dad scared of anything, but fifty years after the war that visibly phased him. Only then did I really realise what he had been through.

[Sha Bu Le]

Mrs SBL's grandparents lived next to an aerodrome in the Stockton area (may have been Thornaby), her grandmother made great friends with a lot of the aircrew who called her Ma. Wife vaguely remembers Lancs flying over after the war probably by 3 or 4 years.

She also remembers a flight of an early jet fighter, no idea what it was. Anyhoos she playing in the garden at about 5y.o. when a jet flew overhead quite low and flat out.

She was found hiding under the kitchen table say oh burgger oh burgger over and over.

Oddly she loves flying now.

[Eyefor]

One of our neighbours pilots for Duxford and the Shuttleworth collection and is regularly over our house in Spitfire or Mustang - lovely to hear and watch.

This is my favourite Spitfire clip

 

[kevin55]

My wife is Indian and her dad (I never met him as he died in an aircrash before I met my wife)  was a Spitfire Pilot in the then Royal Indian Airforce

He trained at Little Rissington and I think flew over Burma with No 1 Squadron "The Tigers"

There are a few photos about and a cartoon sketch titled "The Tiger or the Hog" as when he was Squadron Leader he was supposed to have hogged all the test flights

 

 

 

[wymberley]

12 hours ago, redial said:

My uncle who was RAF during the war always rated the Hurricane above the Spitfire. 

I wasn't old enough to ask him why , just remember him saying. 

Wish I could have that conversation now.

One possible reason could be its structure. Being made of wood and fabric, the airframe could withstand a lot of damage but still get you home. Also, it was easier/quicker to repair.

[old man]

On 06/05/2020 at 16:59, London Best said:

I’m biased. My dad was rear gunner on a Lancaster.

Mine was a Navigator in a Hampden, the rest of the crew were a Canadian and 2 Kiwi's. Bristol Pegasus radials I believe?

Shot down over Denmark and became guests of Adolf after a very long walk. Plenty of time to write his diary.