Farnborough—1968
The weather relented by Tuesday and most of the flying programme of the Air Show was possible. Incidentally, the Show is organised by the S.B.A.C., but this now means Society of British Aerospace Companies and not Society of British Aircraft Constructors, so the B.A.R.C. is not the only organisation to retain its initials but change its name.
The flying started with a very skilled bit of flying, including loops, by a Slingsby T53 sailplane—a nice gesture to commence such a noisy display with a silent machine! It was towed off by an Arden-engined Nipper single-seater. The usual cluster of Westland helicopters performed and then three Short Skyvans, one of which landed and then reversed. Two Beagle Pups looped the loop in formation, a Beagle 206S Survey did the first of many one-engine-off flypasts and a slow roll with smoke, and a couple of Britten Norman Islanders lifted off the runway together, one of them then doing a flaps-down flypast and a clean climb away.
The almost vertical turns of a B.U.A. Handley Page Herald were impressive, the H.P. Jetstream a star turn, and the Rolls-Royce-sponsored McDonnell Douglas Phantom was the first really quick and loud one. The experimental Fokker Fellowship treated us co a dusty take-off, the Saab Draken fighter was extremely good value, the Soko Galeb and Soko Jastreb took off together, and R.-R. demonstrated a Japanese YS 11A. The maritime Breguet Atlantic had enormous R.-R. Tyne-X energised propellers. A Vulcan bomber flew smokily over, but didn’t land.
The Hawker Siddeley 74B pulled straight up and away, and H.S.A. demonstrated a B.E.A. Trident 2, a big Nimrod which blew down the runway with its slipstream scattering numerous empty plastic tea mugs, and a 125 which landed fast, flaps down. The Harriers were hair-raisingly quick and an R.A.F. tactical Harrier put on a pre-war Hendon-style display involving an exploding petrol bomb and loads brought by helicopters. After these jump take-offs and hovering flights the Twin Otter looked the personification of civilised transport. The B.A.C. flew over a One-Eleven and demonstrated a Lightning and a 167. It made a change from watching motor racing!—W. B.