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Flying Legends 2016 Part 2

Text:	Urs Schnyder
Pictures:	Urs Schnyder & Michael E. Fader

Malta and the Battle of Britain

First there was a mock combat between the Gladiator and two Messerschmitts. It showed that an experienced pilot in a Gladiator did have his chances against the faster Messerschmitts due to the higher maneuverability of the Gladiator. After landing and leaving the plane, the pilot walked over to the audience and mentioned that he had shot down two Messerschmitts in the engagement.
The formation of Spitfire, Hurricane, Blenheim and Gladiator were representing the Battle of Britain. The Blenheim with it’s 4 Gun tray under the fuselage representing the night fighter version of this aircraft.

(Picture courtesy Urs Schnyder)

Messerschmitt Bf109 (Picture courtesy Urs Schnyder)

Bristol Blenheim Mk.1F (Picture courtesy Urs Schnyder)

Bristol Blenheim Mk.1F (Picture courtesy Michael E. Fader)

Hawker Hurricane (Picture courtesy Michael E. Fader)

Hawker Hurricane (Picture courtesy Urs Schnyder)

Supermarine Spitfire (Picture courtesy Urs Schnyder)

Gloster Gladiator (Picture courtesy Urs Schnyder)

Gloster Gladiator (Picture courtesy Michael E. Fader)

Hawker Biplanes

Another first was the Hawker Fury in the flying display, together with its naval counterpart the Nimrod. The Nimrod differs in some aspects from the Fury in that it has a greater wingspan and carries naval equipment, which makes it a bit slower than the Fury. Both however carry the colourfull Squadron markings that were used in the thirties by the different fighter squadrons.

Hawker Fury (Picture courtesy Urs Schnyder)

Hawker Fury (Picture courtesy Michael E. Fader)

Hawker Nimrod (Picture courtesy Urs Schnyder)

Hawker Nimrod (Picture courtesy Michael E. Fader)

The Navy

Grumman propably stands for naval aviation like no other company. It was therefore fitting that a Grumman Avenger and Wildcat represented this part of history. The Avenger, having flown over from Switzerland, while the Wildcat belongs to the Fighter Collection.
The british part of naval aviation was the Hawker Sea Fury. This one was painted like the prototype which is quite attractive with its yellow underside. A quite unusual paint scheme, as most owners tend to favour schemes of active squadrons.

Grumman TBM-3 Avenger (Picture courtesy Michael E. Fader)

Grumman Mildcat IV (Picture courtesy Michael E. Fader)

Hawker Fury (Picture courtesy Urs Schnyder)

Hawker Fury (Picture courtesy Michael E. Fader)

Hawker Fury (Picture courtesy Urs Schnyder)

Hawker Fury (Picture courtesy Michael E. Fader)

Luftwaffe and Transports

The Fieseler Storch gave its last display at Duxford. Belonging to the Shuttleworth collection, it was sold to Norway, where it will be based in future.
The other Luftwaffe representative was the Bücker Jungmann which did fly some aerobatics. Another frequent visitor was the Norwegian Dakota. As always, the pilot flew it almost like a fighter. Or perhaps he is indeed a fighter pilot getting carried away.

The last display was a Lockheed 12A Electra that flew all the way from the US state of Washington to Duxford. The owner having seen the video of Flying Legend 2014 decided that he wanted to see the show personally and so he flew the Electra over to Duxford together with a friend.

Douglas DC-3 (Picture courtesy Michael E. Fader)

Douglas DC-3 (Picture courtesy Urs Schnyder)

Douglas DC-3 (Picture courtesy Michael E. Fader)

Lockheed Electra (Picture courtesy Michael E. Fader)

Lockheed Electra (Picture courtesy Urs Schnyder)

Lockheed Electra (Picture courtesy Michael E. Fader)

Fieseler Storch (Picture courtesy Michael E. Fader)

The Balbo

And finally everybody gets ready for the Balbo which is the final act of the day. Named after the Italian General Balbo who was famous for his mass flights. The idea is to get as many aircraft to participate as possible. It is quite a demanding piece of display flying. All the aircraft need to line up for takeoff as quick as possible so that there is no chance of engines overheating while waiting. Also the distance between aircraft when taking off shouldn’t be too great as this will increase the time it takes for the formation to form up. Not all aircraft can take part in the Balbo. Hurricanes for example tend to be a bit too slow and two engine types always fly at the back of the formation. They also land after the first pass as they can’t normally keep up with the formation. Considering that the Balbo is not rehearsed, it is incredible that it works out every time.

While the Balbo assembles, the time is passed with the help of the Joker as he is called. This is normally the Gladiator doing some display flying. However, on Sunday this was taken over by a Spitfire.

When the Balbo comes into view, the Joker leaves the Stage for it. After the last pass, the sections split up and join the landing pattern.

(Picture courtesy Urs Schnyder)

(Picture courtesy Michael E. Fader)

(Picture courtesy Urs Schnyder)

-	last update 14. August 2016	Written 8. August 2016	-	-
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