PHOTO of the DAY...

[PB]

"Photo of the Day"
21/07/22

If I get up much earlier this'll become 'Photo of the Night'...

Not a good night, the met system on the roof showing 13C and 86% humidity, must be the 86% that woke me rather too early..or perhaps possibly eating too much when celebrating our wedding anniversary last evening? Two more years and we strike gold..




The event known as Farnborough International has two more days to run, including today, it's a very different animal to the all British air shows of the fifties. Different in many ways, in particular what display pilots are allowed to do now compared to days gone by. Fail your validation flights and you ain't flying, in the fifties no such stringent requirements. The photos above and below from Barry Burford reminding of Blackbushe's vast influx of aeroplanes during Farnborough Week when some of us was young...




Nuclear capable aeroplanes just across the ditch bordering the A30. Blackbushe was without doubt an exceptional place for a free view of aeroplanes from far and near, civil and military.




French Navy anchored by the A30. The background a humble Auster and the tell tale fins and wingtips of an airfield covered in visiting flying machines..




Luftwaffe Convair 440, Farnborough Week, 1959.




US Air Force taxi on by, a C-124 Globemaster, is parked on the north side of the airfield. At the time the world's largest aircraft.



Blackbushe carries some amazing ancestry, for some of us that ancestry burned a place in our minds for life! Days that will not come back, but days that reflect how life could be at an airport not just well placed to assist Farnborough long ago, but so well placed for general aviation today with its superior environmental qualifications, ease of access, availability to London, good weather records, and room to develop - if only she could!

This year at Farnborough the name BLACKBUSHE has blasted over the Air Show's public address system. The commentator having read my briefing written for him regarding the Blackbushe Heritage Trust and our efforts to return a British historic aeroplane, the Viking, to the UK and her rightful home of Blackbushe. All being well it will happen again today!

From the history books another paragraph, or two, from Stuart's "The Wartime Years"...

"....April, 1944.

The month was to see the continuation of strikes against transport and V1 sites by the squadrons, with daylight raids being carried out early in the month against the marshalling yards at Monceau and La Louviere and engine sheds at Charleroi where V1s were being stored.

On the 7th there was a nasty accident when Cpl Cook of 3126 Servicing Echelon was killed instantly when the guns of one of the based Mitchell bombers were fired in error.

The same day 140 Squadron left for RAF Northolt, Middlesex. Although by this time 34PR Wing had departed for RAF Northolt to be nearer to SHAFE headquarters, the mobile photography unit and support wing remained at Hartford Bridge. [SHAFE - Supreme Headquarters Allied Forces Europe.]

More raids were carried out by the squadrons on the Charleroi marshalling yards on the 8th and 10th of the month although the operation on the 10th had to be abandoned due to bad weather. During the operation on the 8th one of 88 Squadron's aircraft had been forced to crash land in Romney Marsh due to engine problems.

On the 11th a new strategy commenced when 226 Squadron started single aircraft 'intruder' missions on selected targets and other squadrons started offensive operations against known enemy gun emplacements. This was in addition to their tireless efforts against enemy transport and the V1 sites. Although their time was being taken up by these varied operations, at regular intervals the squadron still had to undertake refresher training and testing of smoke-laying equipment - often at tree-top height. There was no let up".

Back tomorrow..

PB

[PB]

"Photo of the Day"
22/07/22

"Farnborough Week" as it once was called ends today and it's only Friday. From a variety of events associated with "Farnborough Week" a couple come to mind that have not materialised this year, the first "Farnborough" for four years. Visitors arriving by their own means of air transport are greatly diminished, long gone are the days when Blackbushe would be saturated with Farnborough visitors' aeroplanes, while at the commercial end of "Farnborough" the anticipated announcement of airliner orders failed to leave the ground. The asia-pacific market had great expectations for news of orders, especially with Indian carriers being earmarked for positive news. Airbus sound content with 500 orders this year to date, and Boeing have signed Delta for 100 737 Max 10 jets. As happens most Farnboroughs, some of the big boys pull out early leaving the public days bereft of significant players. Although today is the only 'public' day it's one in the eye when players such as Boeing go home early taking their magnificent 777 and 737 with them. Happily Airbus will still be flying the equally magnificent A350 today.

This week, "POTD" has once again bent your ear on the future virtues of eVTOL flight as technology moves toward producing practical working models. We reported on American Airlines who have placed a significant order for a fleet of eVTOLs for the US domestic market. The move toward net Zero puts much pressure on developers to find effective answers to the need for green machines.

The Mail's report from Farnborough Airshow yesterday included a lengthy article on Joby Aviation's plans to introduce flying taxis to the USA to be followed shorty after with a similar introduction to the UK market place. By the "end the decade" Joby states the industry will be moving "millions" as transport adopts another means of getting around.... Joby is aiming to have its US authorisation by the FAA validated concurrently with the CAA following agreement between the regulators for a bilateral safety deal. Initial projections for the UK market are for operations from central London connecting to the city's outlying airports followed by city pairings such as Manchester-Birmingham. Joby is just one of the companies at Farnborough making their pitches toward the inevitable 'net zero' future.

As "POTD" has mentioned on more than one occasion, Blackbushe is well suited in its position to perhaps carry the net zero flag and be a launching ground for operations such as visualised by Joby Aviation? eVTOls will be extremely quiet compared to helicopters, although Blackbushe is already well known for its environmental qualifications, but the airfield's location would provide an easy catchment point for the markets envisaged for a city commute by eVTOL.




Taxi? Will craft such as these become familiar to those who watch the skies today?



There's one other item relative to 'tomorrow' at Blackbushe, and that is a week today..29th July at 19.00 the Blackbushe Heritage Trust hold their second public meeting at the Pathfinder Cafe at Blackbushe. You are very welcome to attend, please come along!! More will be revealed as to the project to recover and return a bit of aviation history to Blackbushe in the form of a Viking airliner. Our plans will be put before you, you will see and have a chance to purchase BHT merchandise, while you might wish to join our list of volunteers and get involved in promotional activities or restoration work on the aeroplane.

It's an exciting venture that will become a part of our - and Blackbushe's - aviation heritage for today, tomorrow, and for generations to come...we'd love you to become a part of it too....




Can't say you didn't know about it!! See you on Friday 29th........


We'll continue our Blackbushe at war in 1944 story tomorrow.

PB

[PB]

"Photo of the Day"
23/07/22

Late start this morning, various issues to attend to, but hopefully better late than never?

This weekend, the beginning of the 'summer holiday period' kicks off with massive traffic queues as the nation seemingly is intent on crossing the Channel, while in Farnborough the roads will be empty compared to the days when "Farnborough Air Show" was the jewel in the crown of air shows. Hampshire roads on this Saturday as Farnborough week neared its end would have been supporting their own traffic build-up. Alas, 'tis history, the great institution that for years was revered as the citadel of the air show world has transformed into a somewhat different animal.

Sadly, the wonders of social media have given license to one and all to vent their negativity toward the Air Show, negativity decorated with unseemly language and often lack of appreciation as to the facts. It is very obvious to all that the Air Show is now no longer the massive flying event it used to be. A combination of modern economics wrapped up in the 'post-Shoreham' risk averse nation we have become. There is no doubt a strong appetite exists for an air-show somewhere in the south-east, the nation's prime catchment area for such an event, an event more flying than exhibition focused perhaps? Farnborough remains an excellent shop-window for aerospace and the global market place - it's tragic to see it quite so liberally slagged off. Perhaps trying to combine the intentions of today's "Farnborough" aerospace exposition with an all-flying major air show is pushing the boundaries too far? Past experience, and this week, have shown some exhibitors abandoning ship come the public days..

If corporations such as Boeing pack-up and go home before the public day then my next aeroplane will have Airbus written on the side... No doubt Boeing had good reason to leave early, but it leaves an uncomfortable feeling when a corporation with such massive investment in aerospace cannot hang around for Joe public? One could go on, but what I do dream of is another 1977 Blackbushe Air Festival type event when a suitable budget was available, the airfield was much larger than now, restrictions were sensible and adhered to, we all had our responsibilities and attacked them with due fervour, and enjoyed a result that some happily still remember! It cannot happen, the world has changed, new laws, bureaucracy and restrictions, the airfield has shrunk drastically, and would we be so lucky next time round gathering the input of airlines who happily flew to requests for their assistance back in '77? Much has changed!



Some of the more noticeable changes inflicted on the 'airport' since 1977! In the sixties local politicians objected to Blackbushe being reinstated as an airfield as traffic on the A30 would be detrimental. In their worst nightmares they could never have envisaged such a monstrous development on the airfield and mainly on Common Land...But!!




To mark the end of Farnborough Week, some shots I took from G-FOTO while Arthur Gibson was in the back seat shooting more official Red Arrows material. We loitered at an exact 6,000ft promising not to drop an inch below! This was the last day of Farnborough, a Sunday, back 1986.




Some 1986 traffic variety. You'll probably note a few other changes to the Farnborough scene too!




Farnborough Air Show '86...The then temporary exhibition area, car parks full to bursting in all directions..and the Red Arrows doing their full display. Looked good from up here!




Great turn out again...Farnborough was incredibly popular. I was down there when the DH110 broke-up, seven years old, the engines flew over our heads killing spectators behind us. No amount of 'safety precautions' would have changed the situation, a terrible tragedy the images of which will never leave me..




Priceless, flying 'with' the Reds was unforgettable even if they were a bit faster than dear old G-FOTO! The speed their aeroplanes transitioned from near ground level to almost our height was quite educational...repeatedly.



Back to 1944, and another extract from Stuart's gathering of memories from RAF Hartford Bridge - at war.

"...342 Squadron attacked a concentration of enemy vehicles in the Mezidon-Canon area on 12th April, 1944, and on 14th were in action again, this time against a filed fuel dump at Conde sur Vire, south of St-Lo where only weak flak was encountered. Another operation on the 16th saw them going back to Mezidon-Canon, his time to attack the railway marshalling yards where they once again only encountered weak flak.. 16 Squadron finally left for RAF Northolt on the same date.

General Eisenhower, Supreme Commander Allied Expeditionary Forces, was met at Hartford Bridge by a very high ranking delegation when he visited the airfield in very foggy conditions. To met him when he drove up were Air Vice Marshal Leigh Mallory KCB,DSO,MC,DFC,AFC, Commander in Chief 2nd Tactical Air Force, with General Breteton, Commanding General 9th USAAF, and Air Vice Marshal Embry, Air Officer Commanding No 2 Group, with G/Cpt MacDonald, Station Commander. Personnel who had been assembled in one of the large hangars to await his arrival wee impressed when his car appeared from the gloom and on getting out he very informally greeted them with "Hello Boys" and invited them to fall in around him. He then proceeded to thank them for their efforts with the noball raids and outlined plans for the build-up to D-Day, the invasion of Europe. He showed an interest in a collection of photographs illustrating the work being carried out by the base and was then taken outside to see a demonstration of FIDO at work. As thick fog was very much in evidence, it was a very appropriate time to demonstrate the fog clearance properties of this newly-installed system. Hew a very impressed by the working of the system but on assking how much it cost to operate he expressed horror at the expense and the amount of valuable petrol being used for the demonstration. He promptly ordered that it be stopped immediately and that the valuable commodity be saved for future emergency use".




General Eisenhower, Supreme Commander Allied Expeditionary Forces, meets RAF Hartford Bridge personnel on 17 April, 1944, within one of the airfield's superb and large hangars.



That wraps it up for today...

PB

[PB]

"Photo of the Day"
24/07/22


As Chairman of the Blackbushe Heritage Trust your scribe is part of a team dedicated to returning a piece of British aviation heritage back from the brink. A taste of our heritage will be experienced at Blackbushe, a milestone in British commercial aviation, a milestone in British independent commercial airline operations, and a very familiar taste of Blackbushe Airport's glorious post war civil airline development, where the Viking airliner was so very much a part of the sights and sounds of Blackbushe life, when G-AGRW is finally brought back to roost at the old airport she knew so well...




Just some of the thirty plus Vikings who made Blackbushe their home until 1960 when the government elected to close Blackbushe Airport for all time...



Intent on returning and restoring a Viking to the 'ancestral home' of the type, the Blackbushe Heritage Trust obviously will require assistance from volunteers while also raising capital to finance the operation.

If YOU wish to be a part of this historic project here are two opportunities to be a part of the Trust's venture that will serve to tell a story to generations now and long into the future. We hope that if you're one of the people who claim to have strong feelings regarding Blackbushe, her history and her future, you'll feel compelled to join us and/or help in some way..

FIRST...


Join us next Friday evening at the Pathfinder!! Easy..

ALSO..


Purchase for yourself some of our Raffle tickets.. they make good gifts too!!

1st Prize, a unique Flight Simulation experience on a modern airliner type courtesy of a major British carrier... It is unique, it's where their pilots are put through their paces!!
2nd Prize, a flight aboard a light aeroplane flying from Blackbushe Airport.
3rd Prize, a Blackbushe Heritage Trust framed print and one of our cherished BHT baseball caps!

Raffle tickets are available at the Pathfinder Cafe, every ticket you buy goes toward our goal, our goal of putting that once familiar shape back on Blackbushe tarmac, each ticket sold a step nearer the restoration of a one familiar sight..

Driving past Blackbushe yesterday I noted one of the big Falcon jets parked on the old cross runway, not far from the A30. Seeing an aeroplane of that size in that position instantly triggered recall of days gone by when Vikings, or Dakotas, or DC-4s, Viscounts, Bristol Freighters, you name it might have been parked in just that position - except in the fifties the Airport had such aeroplanes in whichever way you looked.. Can't wait to see a Viking on show once again!



A typical "A30" view for motorists passing by long ago..


Back to the more distant past, a couple more paragraphs from "The Wartime Years" series...



An image from Stuart's book, as mentioned in yesterday's "POTD", Dwight Eisenhower visited RAF Hartford Bridge in April, 1944. Here's another image of him in one of the airfield's large hangars inspecting photos taken by our home based squadrons in the run-up to D-Day.


"... On the 18th April 88 Squadron was involved in an attack on Le Plouy Fermeand on the following day attacked another noball site in Beauvoir. On this occasion there was a lot of accurate flak and Boston BZ255 was badly damaged but eventually made it back to an emergency landing at RAF Friston in Sussex. Another Boston was sent to ferry them back to base but when landing back at Hartford Bridge this Boston has a tyre blow-out; not their day!

It was the 20th when Boston BZ305 (H) of 342 Squadron crashed as it ran off the runway when similarly landing at RAF Friston following another noball raid. Two members of the crew died in the accident: Sgt Petiot and Sgt Simon, while the other two onboard were injured. On the same day 88 Squadron had to abandon their attack on a V1 site at Ligescourt due to bad weather but 226 Squadron's Mitchells pressed home their attacks against noball targets with the aid of their 'Gee' radar system.

88 Squadron were in action on the same day when they were involved in a circus operation against Le Plouy Ferme with good bombing across the target. The following day made a similar attack on Flixecourt, north-west of Amiens, where due to heavy flak accurate flak Boston BZ258 was badly damaged".


To remind, if necessary...."noball" raids were operations connected with V1` flying bomb sites. "Circus" raids were those bombing operations with fighter cover.

Time for a peaceful Sunday breakfast..

PB

[PB]

"Photo of the Day"
25/07/22

While not having the full details, an interesting and encouraging story was told to me during a trip to Blackbushe at the weekend. A business jet operator in Europe when questioned as to why they didn't fly into Blackbushe claimed that they wouldn't fly into a "Mickey Mouse" airfield when Farnborough was available. Apparently, the owner of this business agreed to visit Blackbushe to get the facts and having actually seen the operation and realised the dramatic cost savings offered by Blackbushe has agreed that when suitable trips come up Blackbushe will now be the airfield of choice. The story passed to me second -hand but I can fully believe it!

Fire broke out on Yateley Common late afternoon yesterday, a fire not far from the main runway. Again, this is based on reports, but the Airport Fire Service was on the scene in minutes and had the blaze under control. Eye witness reports confirm that Hampshire Fire Service attended by which time the Airport's professional fire fighters were well in command of the situation. This comes within days of "POTD" questioning the responsibility and 'duty of care' demonstrated by Hampshire County Council by allowing their Common Land adjoining the Airport to grow rampant, unmanaged, and out of control. The outbreak of fires around the south recently indicates how tinder dry the countryside is at the moment, the uncontrolled scrub that borders Blackbushe's main apron must be a liability? No doubt yesterday's fire will have sent the Common's incumbent adder population wriggling in all directions. Blackbushe's old east end is not a happy place, the gorse bushes and brambles adding fuel to the fire... Confirmation of Blackbushe's inherent adder population follows in today's memories from Stuart Marshall's book, The Wartime Years'....

As if I need to remind you, the Blackbushe Heritage Trust's next volunteer meeting is happening at the Pathfinder Cafe this coming Friday, 29th July, starting at 7pm. We do hope you'll be able to attend to either add your name to the volunteer list or just learn how things are going toward the recovery of G-AGRW, the Viking that hopes to come home to Blackbushe and show the world something of the Airport's past... A new Blackbushe Heritage Trust section is now open on the Forum for all to subscribe to, ask questions or make suggestions....




From the depths of the vaults comes this photo of Nord 1002 F-BFKA down at the far west of Blackbushe in the fairly early sixties. Now taken over by BCA, the area is today a vast used car auctioning site, but at this stage the AVM and his team had built desperately needed 'lock-up' hangars giving shelter to twelve lucky aeroplanes. As with all councils associated with Blackbushe, the best you could get was temporary Planning Permission.. as it was the hangars survived quite some time beyond their 'sell-by' date. Not pretty perhaps, but they showed how the AVM got things done under adversity, and how his team joined in working under the most horrendous conditions to 'get the job done'. The mud was like the images we see of trench warfare.


Back to 1944, April....Another paragraph from Stuart, and snakes adding to the excitement of living on Blackbushe, or RAF Hartford Bridge as it was known at the time..

"...Later in the month on the 24th, 322 Squadron moved into the airfield from previous base at RAF Acklington in Northumberland with Spitfire XIVs. This was a Dutch squadron which was tasked to stop the enemy taking high-altitude photographs of the English coast. Their area of patrol was to cover the Isle of Wight and Hampshire coastline and was of particular importance due to the build-up of equipment to be used in the invasion. Their aircraft carried the letters VL. Their two flights, 'A' and 'B' were separated along the A30 at the eastern end of the airfield [abandoned today and overgrown under the care of Hampshire CC] On arrival their personnel were put in tented accommodation which they found very uncomfortable and carried a high risk of snake bites as numerous adders seemed to take a liking to their new sleeping accommodation!




Prince Bernhard of the Netherlands during a visit to RAF Hartford Bridge and a chance to see the Dutch 322 Squadron Spitfires and be briefed on the aircraft's cockpit layout - plus dog!!


There we have it, the adders resident on Blackbushe 'east' are a clear and present danger to all who venture upon the Council's land, they were in the war, they still are today. The County Council could at least place warning notices as to the reptile population on their overgrown bit of old Blackbushe, they surely have a duty of care?

PB

[PB]

"Photo of the Day"
26/07/22


Whichever way you look at Blackbushe, history exudes from her pores, and it's pretty certain that most people aware of the airfield's history will wish for her to continue making aviation history far into the future. The Blackbushe heritage Trust is very much about respecting the airfield's past and saving some of it for the future, hence our objective of returning a precious Vickers Viking home to Blackbushe as a banner for the heroic independent airlines of the 1950s when many were Blackbushe based and the Viking was their staple fleet equipment. Don't forget our next Heritage Trust meeting at Blackbushe this Friday evening, 7pm at the Pathfinder, where more detail will be revealed as to the project and also how you could get involved...

History and aviation go hand in hand, for example, take today 26th July... Take the English Channel, today proving hard to cross if you're a holiday maker heading for the Continent, on this day in 1909 a certain French aviator, inventor and engineer, wheeled his elementary but high tech for the time monoplane into the air of a French day and planned to ascend into the air and not return to the security of mother Earth until he had arrived in England. Louis Bleriot made aviation history on this day. It was another 33 years until aviation took off at Blackbushe, or Hartford Bridge as the airfield was first known.

On this day, 26th July, 1955, Capital Airlines in the USA adopted the Viscount, the first American airline to select a British airliner. Boeing, Douglas, and Lockheed no doubt had a surprise when Capital went British opting for the elegant Vickers Viscount, an aeroplane from the stables from which the Viking had emerged. Capital were the first American carrier to introduce 'no frills' service, something we are all familiar with today..

Sadly within the POTD photo vaults no photos are available either of Bleriot crossing the Channel or of a Capital Viscount. Capital Airlines Viscounts were seen at Blackbushe as they were used for crew training and some delivery flights originated from here, Capital were to be seen from time to time at Blackbushe between 1955 and 1958. The presence of Vickers at Weybridge assured Blackbushe of many Viscount flights crew training, deliveries, etc etc..


A bit of Youtube video of Capital Airlines Viscount introduction.




Not Capital, but another American Viscount operator getting to know their new aeroplane at Blackbushe Airport. A Northeast Viscount September, 1958, is seen just leaving the southern end of runway 32 as it enters the then full size main apron.



The sound of Viscount engines became very much a part of Blackbushe operations until the 1960 closure.




G-ATDR. The last Blackbushe Viscount movement. She arrived to be unceremoniously broken-up.




The end of the story...



Hopefully tomorrow will permit time for another slice from history and Stuart's account of life at Hartford Bridge under war conditions.

PB

[PB]

"Photo of the Day"
27/07/22


Today is one of those days where health issues and domestic commitments place demands on precious time..05.30 always feels a bit early but such is the POTD editorial commitment to the faithful band who consume the morning's reflections with that cup of tea and bowl of cereal - or breakfast at the Pathfinder - now there's a great way to start the day.

Time being short, another paragraph from 1944 and "The Wartime Years"...


"...Leslie Valentine joined 88 Squadron as a pilot during April 1944 and remained with them until February, 1945. During this time he completed two tours of operation back-to-back, comprising 36 operations on the first tour and 24 on the second. He commenced duty with the rank of F/Sgt Pilot and ended up as a Flying Officer. He told me that he was commissioned in one of the nissen huts at the airfield by none other than Air Marshal Sir Basil Embry and was the only one to have that privilege. At the end of his service career he was awarded the Croix de Guerre.

It is reported that 24th April an 88 Squadron Boston crash-landed in the Eversley area but all on board survived the accident.

The target for 332 Squadron on the 25th April was Blangy-Le-Chateau where surprisingly they encountered no flak as they pressed home their attack on the target, which was the German Noball Headquarters.

Varied targets attracted 88 Squadron's attention to the end of the month. On the 25th one of their machines returned with over 300 flak holes after a noball raid on Bois De La Justice while another of their machines landed at RAF Friston with two crew on board who had been injured by flak fragments. They were later named as P/O Street and F/O Jacob, who had a compound fracture to his jaw".




Here's the "Photo of the Day"....



It was on this day in 1949 that the DH Comet airliner first took to the sky from DH's Hatfield works. The world entered the era of the passenger carrying jet aeroplanes that would transform the size of our planet and reshape how its people travelled in the future. The Comet story had its bad times amid the triumphs, but for a while Great Britain lead the way into jet powered passenger flight. Blackbushe had a generous share of the action as BOAC crew trained here with the type logging many take-0ffs, landings, and repeated circuit bashing. All variants of the Comet flown by BOAC crew trained here.

On that positive note I'll bid you a good day, perhaps if you look across the airfield today you'll remember the wartime crews and civil post war airline pioneers for whom Blackbushe offered her all important runways.....

PB

[PB]

"Photo of the Day"
28/07/22

Brief and to the point this morning.

First, thanks to "AJL" for his observation, second editorial gratitude to 'Rocky14' for his support once again!! Positive feedback is a rare bird and very welcome when it arrives!!

Third item this morning is tomorrow. Starting at 7pm tomorrow evening, 29 July, in the Pathfinder Cafe at the airfield, the Blackbushe Heritage Trust are holding their second public gathering to which you are most welcome to attend. A brief account of where we are in the process of returning a Viking aeroplane back to Blackbushe, a token of our British aviation heritage and a flag to the great history of Blackbushe Airport when she was a leading London airport.. We'd love to see you!! It will also be a chance to join our volunteers upon whom the success of the Viking's return will so much depend.

Some words from Pat Marchant, one of the founding fathers of the Heritage Trust, "If anyone has any questions or requests for Friday’s meeting, please feel free to raise them here so we can try to accommodate.

Hopefully everyone who’s expressed an interest via our website “Sign up” tab has received the second newsletter/update on the team’s progress.

www.blackbusheheritagetrust.com

We have a small amount of merchandise which will be available for purchase Friday but can be bought online anytime at logothatpolo.co.uk/store/bbushe/
We will also have more BHT mugs for sale in the Pathfinder cafe from Friday.

Plans to bring the Viking to Blackbushe are in place, our focus now is raising the necessary funds, we need help! We have several opportunities for key volunteer roles which we will discuss and the recently acquired hospitality unit will be open so come and take a look if you didn’t get to see it at the 80th Anniversary Airday".


Pat's words are copied from the Forum's "Blackbushe Heritage Trust" section where details of the Trust's activity will be posted.




Two ambitions for Blackbushe. (i) A Viking, (ii) Hangars.... Not necessarily in that order!


Have a nice day, hope to see you tomorrow evening 7pm?

PB

[PB]

"Photo of the Day"
29/07/22


Sometime after 05.00 this morning there came from the sky the familiar "gobble, gobble, squawk, squawk etc etc" of a passing squadron of Canada geese. Second time in the past day or so. Familiar because this early warning of mass fly-past is usually heard in September as the mellow fruitfulness of autumn marks the passing of the seasons. I guess the seasons are on flexi-time nowadays and the morning and evening spectacle of mass 'V' formations of Canada geese has been brought forward accordingly. Whatever, it's an impressive sight if one is beneath the many flapping wings as they appear to navigate north-east Hampshire along the Basingstoke Canal route...



Last warning!! TONIGHT the Blackbushe Heritage Trust look forward to welcoming YOU to our second public meeting at the Pathfinder Cafe! Starting at 7pm we look forward to welcoming you and all others who wish to learn about the project to return a Viking to Blackbushe. Even better, you might be so keen to get involved you could sign-up with the others who have already added their names to our register of volunteers. A whole variety of opportunities await enabling you to play a part in the recovery of a part of our aviation heritage for now and generations into the future... See you tonight at 7!!


Another trip back to 1944, and a little more from the history of Blackbushe in her very early days..


"...During May the bombing raids continued as the build-up to the invasion intensified, especially along the south coast. Marshalling yards received repeated and intense attention as a great deal of the German war machine was being transported by rail. Targets included Le Havre, Mantes-La-Joile, Gassicourt and Arras.

An interesting new arrival at the airfield was 226 Squadron 'C' Flight which started immediatly on arrival to practice night flying. They flew very little during the daylight hours. The Flight's work was top secret and even to day some 60 years later it has proved difficult to find anyone who could readily give details. Their aircraft were kept separate from the squadron's other aircraft and were dispersed to the south of the A30. The Flight was in fact tasked with gathering espionage from the French Resistance who worked under cover in extremely dangerous circumstances. The information they gathered had to be transmitted back to this country and the Germans were of course well aware of this. They had specialist units sent out to listen for the agents' reports being transmitted. By means of taking cross-bearings on the signals they were able pin point the position of the agents and find him or her with relative ease. Too many of these brave agents were being intercepted and it was considered of the utmost importance that their security was improved. To overcome this problem the agents were provided with new updated radio sets which transmitted on a much narrower beam and at lower power output directed almost vertically. It was then possible for an aircraft flying overhead the agent's position to receive the messages with far less risk of the sender being found. It was 'C' Flight's job to fly out and collect the transmitted information. In order not to give away the agent's position it was decided that the aircraft would fly a straight course or large triangle of many miles to pass directly overhead the agent at a point somewhere along the flight path. Magnetic tape was used to record the reports and a resistance worker would usually be carried in the aircraft when necessary to make contact with those on the ground. An additional run would sometimes be required to make sure that all the information was collected but usually the aircraft would head for home making sure that the course flown would give no indication of where the agents were positioned. The aircraft used by the Flight were also used for other purposes such as listening to enemy radio transmissions and signals from which it was possible sometimes to gather a piece of vital information on troop movements etc.. They also dropped leaflets to keep the French people advised of aspects of the war effort which would be of interest and use to them. Normally crewed by NCOs, the aircraft could be recognised, in addition to their black colour scheme, by having been modified to carry a camera in the nose and various non-standard aerials".


We'll continue in the very near future, but the above indicates how Blackbushe was involved in the very earliest of 'electronic counter measures' and stealth operations arose from this superbly chosen location on which to build an aerodrome!!

PB

[PB]

"Photo of the Day"
30/07/22


A BIG "Hello and Thank You" to all who attended last night's Blackbushe Heritage Trust meeting. Held outdoors on a fabulous calm warm July evening culminating in a spectacular Blackbushe sunset..




The sunsets on a Viking at Blackbushe for the first time in 62 years... The fabulous scale model Viking presented to the Trust by Phil Johns, photographed by Margaret Flo McEwan!!




Phil's Viking takes the evening air at Blackbushe. The model will now be a permanent feature of the Heritage Trust's road show..



Delighted to have Capt Mike Bennison join us last night. He used to fly "our" Viking G-AGRW, his tales of flying Vikings endlessly fascinating. He has written a book on his flying days "Aviation in the Raw", When Flying Was Dangerous and Sex was Safe....





Capt Bennison's book with a discount code too!!




45 years ago today PB's "Blackbushe Air Festival" took to the skies... for two days Blackbushe had an unusual variety of air traffic in her circuit and on her precious tarmac!






POTD running very late today, three year old grandson staying and one or two editorial department health issues, but all is good and a fun day lies ahead.. tomorrow we'll hopefully take another look into 1944.

Have a great Saturday and thanks again to all who attended last night's gathering at Blackbushe, and thanks to Pat, David, Phil and Pete V for their so valuable contributions..

PB