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On the weekend of the 15th and 16th September, our military specialist Richard ‘The_Challenger’ Cutland attended the ‘Battle of Britain’ Weekend at the RAF Museum in Hendon in London. Here he reports on the weekend and picks out his highlights to talk about.
The RAF Museum commemorated the “Battle of Britain” over the weekend of the 15/16th September 2012, with a series of special events and attractions.
Upon entering the first thing you saw was an amazing replica of an Mk.IX Supermarine Spitfire (Below). It is amazing to believe that this is not the real thing. This aircraft took more than 25 years to painstakingly create and although it doesn’t fly, the creator told me that it is actually because of this that he could recreate the aircraft to be close to the original spec, rather than having to adhere to current aviation regulations.
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One of the highlights of the weekend was the re-enactment of a "Scramble".
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| "Chocks away" |
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| Sopwith Camel (Above). This legendary aircraft entered service on the Western Front in 1917 and claimed more enemy aircraft than any other allied fighter during the war. |
The Museum houses a wonderful collection of aircraft, spanning much of aviation history.
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| Fokker DVII (Above) Proved itself as a formidable aircraft during WWI. |
Hawker Hart (Above) The replacement for the Hawker Horsley, entered service in February 1930. |
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| Hawker Tempest (Above). One of the most powerful high performance fighters to see service during WWII. However, as it only saw operations towards the end of the War, when the German fighters were very much already decimated, it really made its name as a very successful Air to Ground Fighter as opposed to Air to Air. |
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| The beautiful P51 Mustang (Above) without doubt one of the most successful single seat fighters of WWII. |
The BAe Harrier (Above) Everyone will recognise the first production vertical take-off and landing aircraft. Powered by the Rolls Royce Pegasus engine (Below) which delivered 21,500 Ibs of thrust. |
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| The multitude of artwork installed pride and unity. | |
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| BF 109 G (Above) the “Gustav”. | Bristol F2B Fighter (Above) Saw service from 1916 until 1932 often referred to as the “Brisfit” or “Biff”. |
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| The Curtiss Kittyhawk III (Above) Ground Attack Fighter 1942-1945. | Spitfire F24 (Above) 1946-1952. |
The Museum was an amazing backdrop for the weekend. You really get a feel of nostalgia as you walk round. But for me the weekend had to belong to the Spitfire.
For more pictures please see my Facebook page!
The_Challenger
