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Post by PB on Jun 10, 2023 7:21:02 GMT
"Photo of the Day" 10/06/23It is with a degree of disbelief to find that it's Saturday again, a whole week has been consumed since at this time, 07.15, I had arrived at Blackbushe for the 2023 Air Day. The weather was perfect, the months of emails and seeking aeroplanes were over, the great day had arrived and like all previous Blackbushe events over the years a strong sense of early morning anticipation hung in the air!
Little did I know that this anticipation would lead me to twelve hours or more in Accident & Emergency followed by confinement in the Coronary unit at Frimley Park Hospital, the excellent hospital where both our children were born...This was very different!
Now consuming a powerful drug at a very high dose I have been warned of the varied side-effects so life has a new avenue of anticipation where anything could happen. Stay out of the Sun is a but rich, but apparently I must or my skin will fry. One characteristic that has manifested is the likelihood of nightmares...Last night lead me into something quite awful around 01.30, I won't bore you with the details, but later something more akin to reality was run across my dream screen. My wife and I were taking a walk on a disused section of old Blackbushe Airport and I said to her, "I feel I'm living inside a ghost". "How awful" came her reply, but it was not awful at all. I could see Blackbushe as the full sized busy airport she was at the same time as we were surrounded by the reality of today, the disused end of scrub and overgrowth. Yet, as I looked up some kind of bank there waiting was a mix of Vikings and life long past.
The bank may have come from the view from Cricket Hill that runs to the east of the Airport. A slope would take you to the east end of Blackbushe, you could not see the Airport from the road but aircraft landing left no question as to the nearness of the airfield known as Blackbushe. The now long removed Yateley Hospital was located on Cricket Hill pretty much in line with the main runway. Clearly do I remember at the age of five being taken to Yateley Hospital by my parents for some specialist to see me. The exciting part was when getting out of the car a York roaring overhead, her big old tyres dangling and her three distinctive fins as she disappeared from view onto the 'airport'...known as Blackbushe.
So it is, too many years later, but I have indeed been living withing the ghost of Blackbushe, doing whatever I could to retain the memories and the reality of what the airfield was capable of if only she would be allowed to show it! Another week has now slipped past, bruised and full of drugs, but it has passed leading to a heart that will in due course not go off on its adventures and a heart rate of infinite and great variety!! The 'dream drug' seems to have locked in a slow and steady 49 beats per minute. Bit slow, but better than previous experiences..Far better!! I might have felt cheated last Saturday being dragged off in an ambulance on the day I'd looked forward to for months, but I retain the greatest hope that I WILL eventually see Blackbushe with her new infrastructure, new hangars, and new hope after six decades of interference and delays.
Had AVM Bennett been able to develop Blackbushe as he originally envisaged at the beginning of the sixties, the airfield would have been a fully equipped General Aviation mecca of many years standing, a mecca that would have benefitted local employment and the local economy greatly for decades. But, politics and vested interests!! That mecca is still coming...Yesterday, the "ghost" that lives within!!Today, same place, the "field of dreams".. where memories linger!Wishing you a safe and healthy Saturday, it's a week since the Air Day, time flies when you're having fun....
PB
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Post by PB on Jun 11, 2023 7:08:34 GMT
"Photo of the Day" 11/06/23The magic counter tells me that 544 visits have been made to "POTD" since I signed off yesterday. Not quite up to the Guardian's levels perhaps, but we are aiming at a different market....and each and everyone is appreciated!
Time. Now there's a strange and mysterious subject, the realm wherein we boggle at immensity and time and distance blend into something far more mysterious than the old school sums of time being distance divided by speed. The observable universe spans 46.5 billion light years and with light travelling at 186,000 miles per second that's some journey. This could get complicated so why the mention of time this Sunday morning? Well, simply because a week has evaporated since I was placed into my hospital bed and it's hard to fathom where the time went!! I look forward to returning to normal operations but it may be a few days yet.... meanwhile I'll continue to scratch my head about time and things like the six decades that have been consumed by Blackbushe since that 1st June morning in 1960 when for the first time day would break across an airport void of aeroplanes, staff, passengers, and the magic that made Blackbushe, well... Blackbushe! Certainly to me, and doubtless many others, the old airfield has retained that 'magic' but perhaps the retention is due to the time spent as a young lad wherein with trusty bike many hours were spent simply soaking up the magic of an airport of such variety and fascination that it's charm would last for many decades beyond that day when the government chucked away the front door key and left its fate to whatever the future might hold, anything but an airport.One week ago today this sensational participant in the Blackbushe Air Day was still on the ground at Blackbushe. A little later in the day she departed back home to Biggin Hill, and thanks to the careful placing of Frimley Park Hospital and my bed having a window I caught a glimpse of her winging her way home having been alerted by the sound of an approaching Merlin that pulled her skyward..The Bouchon does not sport the rounded nose of the Me109 with it's Daimler-Benz that was bad news if you found it in your rear view mirror, but the aeroplane tells the story only too well. Very grateful thanks goes to Peter Monk and the Heritage Hangar at Biggin Hill for once again so generously supporting a Blackbushe event.The Hurricane joined the "109" during the Air Day. Ancient foes now happily sharing the day while they both told the story of times when they fought for supremacy of the skies over southern England...It wasn't just aeroplanes that made the Blackbushe Air Day 'different'! This tank strutted its stuff while in the background the dear old 'Annie' had come back to visit us once again!! The Lockheed Electra in the background added grace and elegance to the day!Time's up, hopefully we'll regroup in 24 hours...
Thanks for dropping by!
PB
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Post by PB on Jun 12, 2023 9:01:25 GMT
"Photo of the Day" 12/06/23Think back to what happened on this day in 1965....
Well, an all British aeroplane made its first flight, the very sensible looking BN Islander took to the skies opening a successful page in British aviation's history book.No stranger to Blackbushe, Islanders came through to be fitted with long range tanks ready for shipment to far away places.Here's a familiar view! The Red Devils Islander G-AXDH spent many hours dropping paras onto Queens Parade in Aldershot and popped into Blackbushe many times during her days..The late Mickey Munn at the wheel.The military variant, the Defender, rehearsing for the Blackbushe Air Festival in 1977...Sometimes they'd turn up with a third engine, Trislanders spending years flying to the Channel Isles from Southampton..See what I mean about leaving Blackbushe for faraway places?..or not quite so far away!Piston engined, or perhaps the smooth turbo prop version?The Islander, a very adaptable design. Memories of flying with Doug Arnold in his a few times, a sortie with Neil Williams, and a newspaper run from Manchester to Heathrow are Islander flights still lingering in the memory cells.
A British aviation success story...
PB
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Post by PB on Jun 13, 2023 7:30:30 GMT
"Photo of the Day" 13/06/23One of those days. Having just completed "POTD" I deleted it in a split second of inattention. Zap gone. For now, a view across Blackbushe's eastern acres - as they once were! The end of the once much larger main apron leading to the 32 hold. The Control Tower with its fabulous VCR, the VCR that moved to Edinburgh Airport after Blackbushe's closure. An RAF Comet, some of the many nissen huts and offices that made what had been the RAF Technical area during the war, and that excellent view to the east currently precluded by the growth that has taken place over the past six decades....that's it, zap, and now I'm gone..
PB
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Post by PB on Jun 14, 2023 6:49:49 GMT
"Photo of the Day" 14/06/23Here we are, another beautiful June morning has dawned. At exactly 04.58 the local Rook started its morning din, sounds like someone has trodden on the cat - repeatedly! Judging by the sounds there's more than one of 'em. Since returning from hospital they seem to visit every morning, obviously to make sure I'm still in the land of the living! Which I am...
Now, you may have heard that some under-world sub-life species visited Blackbushe by night and stole an Airport tractor recently..The following is the appeal for information from the Hampshire Constabulary.We’re investigating after a tractor was stolen from Blackbushe Airport at around 1am on Sunday morning (11 June). The vehicle was taken from a hangar area before it was driven through hedges onto the A30 and then onto the A327 towards Eversley. The tractor, pictured, is a green John Deere tractor, with a registration number ending UKA. It also has a big number 5 written above the front wheel, and the model number 6320 written on the bonnet. We are keen to hear from anyone who was perhaps driving in the areas mentioned and caught the vehicle on Dash Cam. We would also like to hear from anyone with additional information that could assist our enquiries. Perhaps you have seen the vehicle since it was stolen, or someone has tried to offer it to you for sale?
Anyone with information is asked to contact police on 101, quoting 44230230903. You can also submit information to us online here: www.hampshire.police.uk/tua/tell-us-about/cor/tell-us-about-existing-case-report/
Alternatively, you can contact the independent charity Crimestoppers 100% anonymously on 0800 555 111, or via their anonymous online form at crimestoppers-uk.orgIt's heart breaking that anyone would attack Blackbushe in this, or any other, way. Hopefully the law will track them down?
A thought occurred to me yesterday as a Blackbushe movement flew overhead home. All through the fifties when I lived in Berkshire we were on the downwind leg of Blackbushe's air traffic, the pattern was always to the north to keep Blackbushe and Farnborough's traffic segregated. In that moment as a light aircraft traversed it struck me after those fifties years when Vikings, Hermes, Yorks etc etc would rumble overhead invariably causing me to rush out and watch - and listen - that after all those years Blackbushe traffic still overflies my home!! You don't have to be at Blackbushe to enjoy her traffic... The difference today is the size of the aeroplanes and the sounds they make. You cannot compete with the Viking's radial sounds that I can still just about remember, or a Hermes, or a York or whatever with gear down trundling overhead... An Eagle Viking takes to the Blackbushe air from runway 08, lifting off across what is now the disused 'east end'. The years have seen many changes!Looking back deeper into the past, another aeroplane that found good use for Blackbushe was the Avro Tudor. It was on this day in 1945 that the type made its first flight. The first British pressurised passenger aircraft. Taken from the late Gordon Wilmer's collection of Blackbushe memories, the owner of the aircraft would eventually acquire ownership of Blackbushe Airport...PB
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Post by PB on Jun 15, 2023 7:32:08 GMT
"Photo of the Day" 15/06/23Had you been around on this day in 1936 - and I wasn't - at least two notably news worthy items would have reached you.
Over at Westland the need for an observation platform that offered STOL performance suited to clandestine operations was answered in the form of the Lysander. 15th June '36 she first flew and her exploits in dropping agents in foreign fields are legend of both fact and fiction. Not the most beautiful aeroplane to take to the skies, the Lysander was nevertheless aerodynamically advanced for the time with fully automatic wing slats, slotted flaps, and a variable incidence tailplane. A true STOL aeroplane. During WW2, Lysanders were seen operating from RAF Hartford Bridge, details of their operations are sketchy, but liked with discrete movements of personnel.Joining Doug Arnold's Blackbushe based warbirds - the Lysander showing off some of her high-lift aerodynamic assets!Staying with 15th June, 1936, there was another first flight of note... Almost 11,500 would be built, the Vickers Wellington first tasted flight over at Brooklands on this day 87 years ago.. With Barnes Wallice's geodetic structure a new concept in aircraft structures took to the air. Today, one example exists and is tenderly cared for at the Brooklands Museum, very well worth visiting with many other aircraft to inspect.The Brooklands Wellington! Lots of TLC, as seen a few weeks ago..Now, thoughts go forward with the end of war and design turning toward peaceful use of aeroplanes. The Wellington gave birth to the concept of a passenger carrying aeroplane, and that aeroplane became known as the Viking. Fuselage had obvious differences, but the wings had much to thank the Wellington for.Those famous wings! Saved by the Blackbushe Heritage Trust and arriving back at Blackbushe on 2nd May, the wings of a Viking that will in due course be on display for all to see.Born of the Wellington that first flew 87 years ago today, one of the many Blackbushe based Vikings from the 'piston powered passengers' era. The future now holds a Viking who will after restoration tell the story of the aeroplane, her ancestry, and of the airport named Blackbushe - at Blackbushe. PB
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Post by PB on Jun 16, 2023 6:59:27 GMT
"Photo of the Day" 16/06/23Here we are, another day of blue skies and agreeable warmth spread across the land, well north-east Hampshire for sure. Almost like being back in those countries where blue sky and a baking sun are the norm, only thing is we know it's just a short time before our anti-cyclone collapses and the Atlantic's moist tongue licks across the land once again..
For weather watching you can do worse than being at Blackbushe. Fronts advancing from the west or the sun descending into the west in a fireball of immensities, Blackbushe on its natural plateau provides a perfect viewing platform - and you see aeroplanes too!The end of the day...Blackbushe style!At the going down of the sun, the awesome might of our solar system, the splendours of Blackbushe at the conclusion of an Aerobility "Picnic by the Planes".Brief recall of days gone by, Dakotas!! A football charter created this opportunity for sunset and sentiment..Fokker by sunset...It's not always blue skies at Blackbushe, the Airport affords great views of whatever nature is sending our way.It's been known to rain sometimes.Contrary to the inference above, one wonders what Blackbushe would have been like if the gravel diggers had gotten their mits on the millions of tons of gravel that lie beneath the airfield?It's amazing what blue skies over Blackbushe can yield..Combined fire fighting capability of Mother Nature and the Blackbushe fire service.. 1970s style.Foggy elsewhere, Blackbushe was the 'go to' alternate!Farnborough Week weather! We filled runways with visiting aeroplanes, and what a joy it was!!There's a pot of gold to be found at Blackbushe...Whatever the weather, have nice day!! PB
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Post by PB on Jun 17, 2023 6:32:24 GMT
"Photo of the Day" 17/06/23It's 2023..63 years have slid by since Blackbushe Airport was supposedly removed from the British airport's equation, 63 years since her days as London's second airport were brought to a close and the honour transferred to an aerodrome in West Sussex... History.
So WHY then do some (many) people go on about Blackbushe and its advantages and benefits to aviation after so many years? Her closure put thousands out of work, airlines went out of business, and a pristine and perfectly maintained asset was left to the ravages of nature and time, but that was six decades ago - we've moved on. Why the fuss about keeping Blackbushe "alive"?
I'll tell you. Just look at the opening screen of our Blackbushe forum - a rolling 'News' banner has for years proclaimed the ten prime assets that without argument are pinned firmly on Blackbushe's chest!
Perhaps a reminder on this Saturday morning as to how the rolling news proclaims Blackbushe's grandeur? Yes...
First. An existing aviation facility, the basis of a prime General Aviation centre awaits...A long hard runway with capacity to spare.
Second. Operational and natural suitability, long clear approaches. Blackbushe is built on a natural plateau - The Hartford Bridge Flats.
Third. Environmental supremacy. No airfield the size of Blackbushe, and within such close reach of London, offers comparable environmental benefits. Forest and Common Land are her prime surroundings.
Fourth. The wheel of catchment opportunities, located at the hub of a commercially rich area, Blackbushe offers easy and convenient access from all directions! Silicon Valley, Slough, Windsor, Reading, Basingstoke, Bracknell, Farnborough etc etc
Fifth. Surface catchment, built on the A30 London-Southampton trunk road, Blackbushe is also just five minutes from the M3's Junction 4a and rapid transit to London one way, Southampton the other.
Sixth. Ease of access to the Capital. 45 minutes to Central London. Rail connections to London or the south coast, Reading or Gatwick, are conveniently close.
Seventh. Space for development. Ample room exists for the provision of hangars and planned new infrastructure.
Eight. Blackbushe 'dovetails' into the local airspace structure with the advantages of her own local Farnborough Radar...
Ninth. What a weather record! Famed in the fifties for taking weather diversions from London Airport, being built on a natural plateau local fog and mist are kept to a minimum, Blackbushe's "good weather " record prevails.
Tenth. Fully funded, Blackbushe Airport offers a superb General Aviation facility for the future independent of public funding, taking nothing from the public purse, she will do everything in providing employment, and support for the local economy.
Ten good reasons why Blackbushe is the right place for today's General Aviation, a business airfield where already business flying thrives and her flying schools provide the most professional of services. Ten good reasons why Blackbushe has prevailed through six decades of obfuscation and delay, ten good reasons why Blackbushe's air traffic is on the increase, ten good reasons why Blackbushe is already placed as a key aviation facility with so much opportunity awaiting in store.
When you visit Blackbushe, think of her noble past in war and commercial aviation, but also think of and envisage what she can do for the future.
She's already here serving General Aviation, Blackbushe is the Airport with a future full of opportunity to the benefit of her users, to the benefit of the local economy and the local population where employment numbers will grow as the airfield's infrastructure grows.
As this month's Blackbushe Air Day proved, her popularity is undiminished, thousands attended and enjoyed the benefits of their local airfield.
Yesterday, today, tomorrow, the airfield on Hartford Bridge Flats has so much to offer....
Wishing you a great weekend.. PB
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Post by PB on Jun 18, 2023 6:01:09 GMT
"Photo of the Day" 18/06/23Humid Sunday with perhaps some heavenly fireworks from the occasional passing CuNim during the day??
Hopefully most will have agreed with yesterday's list of just ten of Blackbushe's Unique Selling Points?
Rob Belcher took some great photos of yesterday's business movements at the Airport, we're getting nearer my long-term vision of Blackbushe handling business flights in numbers throughout the day and becoming the accepted and valuable facility it has the basis of being.. PC-24s of Jetfly, becoming increasingly familiar with Blackbushe tarmac...The Blackbushe apron at work..A PC-12 joins the action, another type becoming increasingly regular at Blackbushe, often from assorted European departure points.Jetfly are Europe's largest 'fractional owner' fleet whereby clients purchase a share or contact in an aeroplane for a period of time. Usually ten years divided into two five years periods giving the option to leave after five years. Jetfly have the largest fleet of PC-24 and PC-12 aircraft in Europe, if you need a flight you simply call up and they'll fix it when and wherever you need. It's an exciting and useful provision of personal air transport. Jetfly currently have 400 'co-owners' and with their ever increasing fleet size provide the perfect solution for the demanding business traveller. Air taxi operators would charge for empty legs and positioning flights, here you only pay for the time you spend onboard!There's surely no reason why Jetfly's operation with the incredibly versatile PC-12 and PC-24 should not become an increasingly frequent user of Blackbushe's affordable facilities? It's going that way!
Have a great day! PB
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Post by PB on Jun 19, 2023 10:02:49 GMT
"Photo of the Day" 19/06/23
A most excellent Father's Day enjoyed yesterday, the kind of day that makes you glad to be alive - even if it rained on the BBQ!!
Blackbushe enjoyed further business jet activity, with at one point a PC-24 departing whilst another was taxiing to the Terminal. More visions of the future!
At White Waltham the Blackbushe Heritage Trust team attending their Fly-in under the leadership of Pete Vickery raised more funds for the Viking restoration project, while at Blackbushe the team were hard at work removing all the old flooring from the aircraft, the long job of getting her ready for return to duty telling the story of Vikings past and how important a part they played in the history of Blackbushe and the Viking's part in post-war civil aviation development is under way!
A busy weekend one way, or another!
Here's a memory from this year's Blackbushe Air Day way back on June 3rd..A day I won't forget for various reasons. You Tube coverage of what was a most successful day!! A great record of our day by Rich Davies..
With that I'll bid you 'good day'... just leaving you with thoughts of Steve Fossett's epic balloon flight that started on today's date in 2002 and concluded on July 3rd!! The first solo non-stop round-the-world flight from Western Australia concluding in Queensland, Australia, aboard 'Spirit of Freedom' his ten story high balloon. 13 days, 8 hours and 33 minutes. Not bad for a solo flight...
PB
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