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Post by PB on Jan 4, 2024 7:16:15 GMT
"Photo of the Day" 04/01/24Hello once again dear 'Blackbushe people', and welcome to what might be the most important, significant, long-awaited, hope-generating, "POTD" of all time....
We all enjoy games, so how about this one where everybody wins, and YOU as a player can make the moves leading to the conclusion that each and everyone with any feelings for Blackbushe Airport will be wanting - and has wanted for six decades!!! Some of us have.....
WHAT, HOW, WHEN?? On Tuesday 2nd January 2024 Blackbushe Airport submitted an application to the Planning Inspectorate (PINS) to deregister from Yateley Common 35.3 acres at Blackbushe Airport, and to offer as replacement an equivalent area at Cottage Farm.There it is, the cards are on the table, now it's your move that'll take us to the winning post...THIS is where our moves will lead to the result hoped for for so long... Please help the Airport by supporting the application. You can read more about it and submit a response directly to PINS at: www.blackbusheairport.co.uk/consultation
Well, you've now had a chance to absorb the details and plans for Blackbushe Airport's most important and determined effort to turn our historic airfield into so much more than it's current restricted facilities permit.
Six decades have passed since AVM "Pathfinder" Bennett saved 365 acres of Blackbushe that otherwise would have been lost for ever. His ambitions of creating the south's most oustanding and well located General Aviation centre were continually dashed by varied and agressive adversity. Today Blackbushe has become a well accepted centre for flying training and business flying, BUT it can do so much more!!
Granted the opportunity to rebuild, and restructure, Blackbushe Airport will be unique in providing an altogether new GA airfield in the UK!! A refreshed Blackbushe Airport that provides an affordable, new, well equipped facility benefiting General Aviation, plus providing a fabulous local amenity for all to enjoy - not to mention enhanced employment and support to the local economy. Environmentally, Blackbushe is the leader of the pack, combine that with easy access to London and we WILL have an airfield that goes from strength to strength.
Your opportunity to play a hand in all this is to provide the necessary support and sentiment to the Planning Inspectorate as outlined in the Blackbushe notification of the Section 16 Application to de-register 35.3 acres of the airfield's Common Land by means of a land exchange. Everybody wins!!!
Now it's YOUR chance to make a very big difference.. Thank you in advance, now grab that pen, hit that keyboard, the game is on!!!
Please - and thank you!!Extraordinary consultative committee meetingOur consultative committee usually meets twice a year. To allow a forum for local councillors to ask questions about the application, we have organised an Extraordinary Consultative Committee meeting on Tuesday 23rd January 2024 at 19:00. As we expect a larger public turnout than at regular meetings, we have booked the function room at The Ely, London Road, Blackwater, Camberley, GU17 9LJ.
The dream heads toward reality! Please study the entire documentation via the links below...
www.blackbusheairport.co.uk/common-land-deregistration
www.blackbusheairport.co.uk/consultation
www.blackbusheairport.co.uk/movements
www.blackbusheairport.co.uk/common-faqs
Again, thank you, Blackbushe Airport have submitted a master plan that is designed to suit the needs of all the players.
Your move... Send a letter of support direct from the Consultation page.. www.blackbusheairport.co.uk/consultation.
Simple!
PB
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Post by PB on Jan 5, 2024 7:19:57 GMT
"Photo of the Day" 05/01/24The time to say "Goodbye" comes to us all, yesterday we said it with sadness in our hearts as one of the Blackbushe faithful took his leave... "Baz" as he was known, Barry "Baz" Harris's funeral service was held at Easthampstead Crematorium on a particularly wet and gloomy afternoon. The funeral was attended by a group of his Blackbushe friends and associates in recognition of his life, a life wherein all things 'Blackbushe' he had kept in sharp focus. The service featured his aviation based life and in particular his association with Blackbushe, he leaves many friends who will be saddened by the absence of his cheery nature and devotion to Blackbushe. Following the service attendees were invited to inspect the coffin, a coffin clad in aviation photos and images of Baz at work at Blackbushe.. Photo courtesy Pete Vickery Happier times, "Baz" refuels a visiting aircraft during the Doug Arnold era...along with the irrepressible 'Baz smile'Farewell dear Baz, fly into the great beyond in peace, you take with you the lasting love and warmth of so many friends at Blackbushe, until 'next time' we meet - God speed.
PB et al
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Post by PB on Jan 6, 2024 8:08:34 GMT
"Photo of the Day" 06/01/242024 is not yet a week old, yet Blackbushe Airport has already taken a giant step toward the realisation of the 'new' Blackbushe, the well equipped General Aviation facility dreamed of for sixty years - but seemingly forever thwarted! With YOUR help this trajectory toward the Blackbushe conceived by AVM "Pathfinder" Bennett as a high quality fully equipped GA centre has every chance of reaching the long awaited goal.
Now, it's the weekend and hopefully - if you have not done so already - you'll be able to devote a few more minutes to Blackbushe other than reading these lines. Simply write that letter supporting Blackbushe Airport during the vital public consultation period that started on 2nd January and goes on until Friday 16th February, 2024. www.blackbusheairport.co.uk/consultation
If you have any questions or uncertainty as to the proposed future improvements to the Airport I suggest you spend some time with the "Vision" documentation. This will really clarify the intentions and bring assurance as to the Airport's future, and of great importance how it will benefit and support the local community.
static1.squarespace.com/static/6411a9e275ba0f3570c27692/t/6592afd90837e021349095f3/1704112110775/%2808%29+Blackbushe+Vision+Document+for+Web.pdf
Common Land has been of great significance in the Airport's long struggle to build the necessary infrastructure. This will help clarify the exact situation should you have any uncertainties. www.blackbusheairport.co.uk/common-faqsResponding to this Consultation
Once you’ve reviewed the draft application materials, any representations in respect of the proposed deregistration and exchange should be sent in writing ON or BEFORE Friday 16th February 2024 to:
Common Land Team
The Planning Inspectorate
3A Temple Quay House
Temple Quay
Bristol
BS1 6PN
or by email to: commonlandcasework@planninginspectorate.gov.uk. Please copy any representations to consultation@blackbusheairport.co.uk.
Representations sent to The Planning Inspectorate cannot be treated as confidential. They will be copied to the applicants and possibly to other interested parties. To find out more about how the Planning Inspectorate uses and manages personal data, please go to the PINS privacy notice. Likewise, any representations sent directly to Blackbushe Airport may be shared with PINS. Representations sent to Blackbushe Airport but not also sent to PINS may not be considered by the planning inspector.
Remember the accurate and salient points when responding.. Today Blackbushe has become a well accepted centre for flying training and business flying, BUT it can do so much more!! Granted the opportunity to rebuild, and restructure, Blackbushe Airport will be unique in providing an altogether new GA airfield in the UK!! A refreshed Blackbushe Airport that provides an affordable, new, well equipped facility benefitting General Aviation, plus providing a fabulous local ammentity for all to enjoy - not to mention enhanced employment and support to the local economy. Environmentally, Blackbushe has no equals in the south of England with an excellent runway close to London whose noise footprint traverses mainly open space and forest.
General Aviation in the south requires a new 'built for purpose' airfield, Blackbushe offers every necessary qualification to become that facility. The "Great Re-opening Air Display" of October, 1962. The shapes of the future were already on display - with your help we are ready to hopefully step into that long awaited "future"..Thank you. PB
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Post by PB on Jan 7, 2024 7:38:31 GMT
"Photo of the Day" 07/01/24Sunday, 7th January..our New Year is almost one week old, the first week of what could be one of the most decisive years in the history of the one and only Blackbushe Airport....
Time will tell its story as the year progresses, a story that will in part depend on your actions between now and 16th February, 2024. "Photo of the Day" focused yesterday on the Airport's consultation regarding the proposed land exchange that would make possible the construction of the Airport's currently missing infrastructure. "Photo of the Day" also gave the same focus on Thursday just gone, the importance of your input was again stressed in considerable detail.. Your input by writing a letter of support regarding the proposed land changes cannot be stressed enough as to its importance. "POTD" was viewed on those two days alone almost 600 times by our Members and guests combined. From those numbers we look forward to the positive results achieved by your respected submissions.
Meanwhile, life forges ahead at the Blackbushe Heritage Trust, fund raising to support the Viking's progress remains a high priority amid the many tasks that lie ahead. On Thursday NEXT WEEK, January 18th, our very own Trustee and Trust Secretary, David Payne, will be conducting the next in our series of aviation talks. The 18th promises to utterly unmissable as the subject is 'propliners' as we go back to the days when Blackbushe was indeed home to many such aircraft. Dave will take us to Northolt and Heathrow with some surprises along the way.. Really an evening NOT to be missed. Tickets are just £10 and every penny goes toward G-AGRW's return to being a Blackbushe propliner with her wheels safely on Blackbushe tarmac. Pathfinder Cafe, 18November, door open 18.30 for 17.00 start. Tickets at the door on book online here www.blackbusheheritagetrust.com/store/p/david-payne-those-propliner-yearsThe days of big props at Blackbushe, the very sight stirs up aged but deep rooted emotions.. Two things for you to do. Today, write to the Blackbushe Consultation as now mentioned a number of times..and second make a note NOT to miss Dave's talk on 18th January where many fabulous images of the prop driven era will be waiting for you.
"POTD" returns tomorrow, hopefully you will all by then have written your submissions to the Blackbushe Consultation...
THANK YOU!!
PB
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Post by PB on Jan 8, 2024 7:24:12 GMT
"Photo of the Day" 08/01/24Regret "POTD" must stay in the hangar today, a rather unwelcome early morning hospital visit awaits...
Huge thanks to the team who took Blackbushe Heritage Trust to the Princes Mead "Charity of the Month" opportunity yesterday. More funds, more contacts, more opportunities.. Well done guys!!
Hopefully back tomorrow, meanwhile time to complete your Consultation letter if not already done. www.blackbusheairport.co.uk/consultationSee you tomorrow...
PB
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Post by PB on Jan 9, 2024 8:03:29 GMT
"Photo of the Day" 09/01/24Here we are again, January looks like it's trying to bite weather wise? Wind chill around -2.5 last night and a few snow flakes yesterday...Memories of the great freeze of 1962/63 come out of hiding, it all started with a chilly day and some light snow. The thaw came three months later! Large icicles hanging from gutters were quite the norm, but of recent they seem to be more reluctant to show up?
Just hope the winter doses not interfere with some January dates that should hopefully be in YOUR diary..
18th January. Dave Payne's fantastic talk on the big props of days gone by. Starting at 19.00 in the Pathfinder Cafe at Blackbushe, doors open from 18.30. Just £10 and every penny goes toward the BHT Viking restoration. It'll be a great evening packed full of nostalgia - do not miss it!!
23rd January. Ely Hotel, just east of Blackbushe on the A30..As you know by now, Blackbushe Airport is subject to a Consultation at the present where the public are invited to comment Blackbushe's fantastic plans regarding a land exchange following which the Airport will hopefully start essential restoration and subsequently offer things like hangars, new offices, and the facilities that are expected of airports. On 23rd January, starting at 19.00 there will be an 'extraordinary' meeting of the Blackbushe Airport Consultative Committee, a meeting you should not miss!!! The Consultative Committee meeting will allow a forum for local councillors to ask questions about the application, and the public are expected in significant numbers. we have organised an Extraordinary Consultative Committee meeting on Tuesday 23rd January 2024 at 19:00. As we expect a larger public turnout than at regular meetings, the function room at The Ely, London Road, Blackwater, Camberley, GU17 9LJ, has been booked.
A significant presence of Blackbushe support will be an entirely good thing, if you can attend please do, it will help make a big difference!
A further public meeting will be held at The Ely on 31st January, without council representatives, this will be for all who were unable to attend the previous meeting on 23rd January.
As you must know by now, a public Consultation on the new Blackbushe plans is running from 3rd January until 16th February... This is our chance to have a say and express our support for the Airport's plans. "POTD" has stressed the importance of your contribution to the Consultation and will continue to do so.
Please take a few minutes, if you have not already done so, and complete and send your Consultation response. Go the end of this page, www.blackbusheairport.co.uk/consultation and you will find the necessary Consultation response form. Could not be easier, will take a minute or two, and could make so much difference to the future outlook for Blackbushe... If we all join together we will get the Blackbushe Airport hoped for for the past six decades!! Photo shows Troops preparing to leave Blackbushe during the Suez Crisis in 1956.PB
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Post by PB on Jan 10, 2024 7:59:27 GMT
"Photo of the Day" 10/01/24The Post Office never seems to be far from the news of recent, not always in perhaps the most glowing terms... An illustration of modernised postal delivery is recalled from this day, 10th January, 1978 when it took on an out of this world mode of delivery. Crewed spacecraft Soyuz 7 was launched by Russia carrying mail for the astronauts aboard the orbiting Salyut space station, the first weightless postal delivery.
1978, the year brings back recall of Blackbushe Airport and the sell-out Bob Dylan concert where some 300,000 arrived covering the airfield in a sea of blue denim and some kind of mist that arose from the gathering. I took a look from the benefit of a Jet Ranger helicopter and the sight of Blackbushe simply covered in humanity was one I'll not forget. A host of celebs arrived at the 'helipad' which unfortunately was the dusty car park to the north-east of the airfield. Another mist arose every time helicopters arrived and departed. I remember Ringo Starr emerging from one of the dust clouds...
Nearly half a Century later Blackbushe still fights on, we can but hope the fight will soon not only be over but victorious for the Airport's ambitions...
On that subject, have you submitted your response to the Planning Inspectorate in regard to the current Consultation over Blackbushe Airport's future plans?? "POTD" has covered the subject well over the past week, perhaps if you've submitted a reply you could simply put the word "done" in the POTD Comments section? Only because it would be interesting to have an idea of the response our Forum has generated. A link to the comments section is below....
blackbusheairport.proboards.com/board/268/potd-commentsOn this cold January morning, a warming memory from last year's Blackbushe Air Day... It will seem no time until this year's event on June 15th. Do not miss it!Keep warm! PB
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Post by PB on Jan 11, 2024 7:33:54 GMT
"Photo of the Day" 11/01/24Today is another of those days that we'd be happier if it wasn't..
Once again we say "Farewell" to another true Blackbushe character, a person whose long life has been associated with aviation - and in particular Blackbushe.
The funeral of John Lowe takes place this morning at 11.30 at the Aldershot crematorium. It's so hard to believe we will not see him and his cheerful disposition again, especially after sixty plus years of knowing him.
John was an ardent enthusiast who kept meticulous records of Blackbushe air traffic movements, his devotion to the airfield was obvious to all who knew him... His recall of wartime RAF Hartford Bridge as a boy who lived in Yateley village adjacent to the airfield often included accounts of Bostons on operations and many other memories of the airfield at war followed by recall of the transition to peacetime operations. I first met him in probably 1961/2 as AVM Bennett acquired much of the Airport and for so many years he and many others carried the hopes of seeing the Airport enjoy reconstruction. Very sadly, John will not witness the hoped for scene, but his love for Blackbushe was at least satisfied by the airfield being saved from ultimate destruction and his involvement in various air events over the years. John Lowe, second from the right, with the team from the Blackbushe Aviation Group assisting and enjoying the Daily Telegraph/St John Ambulance Air Display and Sky Diving Championship in the 1960s.Sorely missed, John's wit, knowledge, and delightful character will be with us in spirit long into the future..
PB
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Post by PB on Jan 12, 2024 7:50:40 GMT
"Photo of the Day" 12/01/24Yesterday, on a bright but cold January morning a gathering of Blackbushe 'people' came together to say "Farewell" to another of their sadly dwindling numbers. From all of the people who revere Blackbushe and all that she stands for there stands a group for whom the airfield has been a lifetime 'fixation', those who have been active in their support for decades, those haunted by memories of a Blackbushe now long gone but driven by visions of a renaissance whereby the airfield regains some of its stature and able to release some of the potential demonstrated prior to the 1960 closure.
John Lowe was a shining example of a Blackbushe 'person', and it was for him that we yesterday gathered at Aldershot crematorium on that bright but cold January morning to say that longest and most emotional of 'goodbyes'....Faces so familiar from those early days after AVM Bennett saved Blackbushe from annihilation have all but disappeared, John's departure takes another of those very familiar faces to another place, John's face was very much a part of those extraordinary days in the sixties right up to recently when on greeting him at Blackbushe his bright response to 'how are you?' was a smiling "Still breathing".... Following the service family and friends met at the Bisley Rifle Club, and I am quite certain John would have been moved to see so many of his Blackbushe friends in attendance..John's documentation and photographic records have left many records of past years at Blackbushe. As an example, I have just scanned some of the pages from one of his photo albums, these photos all pertaining to Blackbushe's visiting aircraft during 'Farnborough Week' in 1956. For the next couple of days "POTD" will include four pages of John's photos from 1956. Here are the first four.... Therein some of the 'magic' of Blackbushe and the huge variety of air traffic movements she hosted, Farnborough Week being when her movements excelled. More of John's photos tomorrow.
Farewell dear John, knowing you for six decades was never long enough, but you will always be in our thoughts throughout the coming years.
PB
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Post by PB on Jan 13, 2024 8:05:41 GMT
"Photo of the Day" 13/01/24This year, of all the many years that have passed since 1960 when Blackbushe Airport was surrendered to the breakers and her unique association with aviation looked like being lost for all time, promises to be one of the most exciting yet if the planned Land Exchange gets all the green lights. Those green lights depend in part on the results of the current Consultation taking place whereby we can ALL take part and make our thoughts known as to the wisdom of permitting Blackbushe to provide a modern and new infrastructure to support her already established role as a General Aviation centre of great value and significance.
The Consultation is in full swing, you will hopefully recall recent words in "POTD" whereby all were invited/asked/begged to participate by completing the simple Consultation documentation available on the Blackbushe Airport website. To gauge your responses I suggested you could leave the word "done" in the POTD comments department. To date only two of our followers have done so and said "done". Thanks to you both, much appreciated, BUT come on, the future of Blackbushe is at stake and we CAN make a difference by completing the Consultation document. It need only take a couple of minutes to fill in the spaces, say that you support the scheme and whatever else you might wish to add, and then hit SEND!!! Could not be easier, so please we'd like to see a few more 'dones' appear in our Forum's 'comments' section. We have until February 16th - that's it.
This link www.blackbusheairport.co.uk/consultation takes you through the details and concludes with the form we can all fill in and submit to the Planning Inspectorate. Could NOT be easier....!!
..and here is the Forum "Comments" section.. blackbusheairport.proboards.com/thread/51/potd-comments?page=342 If you could place the word "done" here once the Consultation had been completed it would be greatly appreciated. Thank you very much in anticipation!!
Back to this week and the sad "Farewell" to John Lowe. As promised yesterday, here is the second batch of his Farnborough Week at Blackbushe in 1956 collection.
Such sweet nostalgia, these were the scenes that stole many a heart as Blackbushe and her wonders totally grabbed you.......The remaining pages of this album of Johns will be included in tomorrow's "POTD".
Thank you for your ongoing support of Blackbushe and, of course, the Blackbushe Heritage Trust where details of our Viking's progress are on the website www.blackbusheheritagetrust.com/. The undercarriage is now in the hands of SAFRAN at Staverton for overhaul. A huge concern grown from names such as Dowty and Rotol, they have a small team of apprentices inducting us as a new customer. They have all the tools and equipment necessary for handling a new type of landing gear, makes a change for them from the daily Airbus work!!
Do NOT forget next Thursday evening at the Pathfinder for Dave Payne's unmissable talk and images of the BIG prop airliner days. Come and wallow in nostalgia!! Starts at 7pm and the £10 entry goes 100% into the Viking's development fund.
Have a great weekend!!
PB
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