In July 2014 4Aviation organised a bus trip to the Flying Legends Air Show at the airport of Duxford in the United Kingdom for the fifth time. After its closure as an operational base, RAF Duxford was handed over to the Imperial War Museum (IWM). Besides an excellent museum, there was also room for dozens of ‘warbirds’ that are being restored here and can be viewed on a daily basis. During the Flying Legends usually numerous extra ‘warbirds’ visit, that give a spectacular non-stop flying display in the afternoon.
This year the Flying Legends show, that we visited on Saturday 12 July, was scheduled in the same weekend as the Royal International Air Tattoo at Fairford. Therefore two options were offered this year; a day trip to Duxford and a trip that would visit Duxford on Saturday and RIAT at Fairford on Sunday. As a result of that two coaches, with well over 100 participants, were on their way to Calais on Friday 11 July 2014. Both had Duxford as their final destination. While the drivers headed for their rooms to spend the day all participants entered the show terrain to do his or her thing.
The weather was a bit dramatic in the morning. Luckily things fully cleared up during the day. During the week previous to the event the weather had not been very cooperative either with a number of scheduled participants not being able to cross the Channel. A very nice show nevertheless! Not only the view was brilliant, so were the sounds. Highlight of the day was the Planes of Fame’s Boeing P-26 Peashooter. The sight of eleven Spitfires in the air makes ones warbird-heart beat faster as well. The Balbo at the end of the day was, as a result of the weather issues, relatively ‘small’ but very interesting still!
At 19.00 both buses departed the event again. One bus went to Dover in order to fetch the ferry to continental Europe and then continue towards the Netherlands. The other bus drove to Reading. There a night was spent in a hotel en that one continued to RIAT at Fairford the next day.
The Flying Legends show will be on the 4Aviation bus programme for 2015 again for sure!
