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Starting the Week at a rather damp Tibenham Airshow - July 8th


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Tibenham Airshow was another potentially great show spoiled by the weather. I had been invited to use the Jeep on the flightline as a Follow Me Jeep for all the warbirds, but due to the rain and low cloud, most of them cancelled. While Carolyn Grace managed to get there and display her Spitfire in the rain and clouds, B-17 'Sally B', the Dakota, and Maurice Hammonds Harvard, PT-17, and two P-51's were unable to leave their home bases. I was particularly disappointed at not getting the chance to lead the B-17 in, which would have made a great photo through the rear window of the Jeep.

 

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Those that did manage to get into the air were two Pitts Special teams, a Christen Eagle, a Bucker Bestman, the Yak team and the Turbulent team doing barnstorming, plus the previously mentioned Spitfire. I spent the day watching the show from the Jeep near the flying control truck beside the runway intersection.

 

Before the show started, I went for a wander and saw Clive's GMC amongst all the other MV's, but no sign of Clive. There were a good number of MV's there, with WW2 probably out numbering the post war by at least double.

 

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On the way home, I made a small detour to Thorpe Abbotts, the 100th BG base, and got a few photos around the perimeter track. The last picture shows the field where dispersals numbered 9 to 12 were located. This was part of the the 351st squadron area. Behind them is Thorpe Abbotts Tower. In the wood behind the Jeep was the Emergency Control Bunker, which is still there.

 

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After coming back to the A140, I thought I was one roundabout further south than I was, and went straight across by mistake. I turned around in a gateway and came back to the roundabout in time to see Clive in the GMC! I think we ended up chasing each other twice around the roundabout before heading south again at a steady 30mph. Since the traffic was quite fast, I stayed behind the GMC until the next junction since my Jeep is a little less than subtle in its colours for fast approaching cars. At that roundabout I pulled along side, waved again and turned off towards my holiday cottage near Diss.

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Very nice pictures considering everything Steve, you're lucky to get any bits of an airshow completed, I'm yet to even prop swing anything this year as each time we're due a show the weather cancels it for us. Heres to hoping for a far better end to the season it's been the worst one I can remember on too many levels.

 

If you and Peter pop down to the war and peace mud bath stop by and say hello.

 

Steve

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I won't be at War and Peace. It's too far and too expensive! We may get to an Old Warden show late in the year. They need all the support they can get right now.

 

 

Yep they do need any attendance they can get, the next airshow is sat evening and the forcasts arn't great but they are better than whats come before, hopefully it'll be a good one with a decent crowd if not the first sunday in august is another military themed one so our bits and pieces will be there.

 

Stopping the drift now as I said before great pictures and there's nothing quite like driving around an old airfield with aircraft and vehicles of the correct period to make the hairs on your neck stand up.

 

Steve.

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