B-17G Sally B at Duxford Air Show

I went to the annual Duxford Air Show yesterday. What a day! I have never been before, and I thoroughly relished seeing so many old aircraft in one place. I have never before seen an SR-71 Blackbird, B-29 Superfortress, B-52 Stratofortress, Avro York, TSR2 or Handley Page Hastings. I also walked through all the old air-liners: The Viscount, Trident and the DeHavilland Comet. I actually remember traveling to the Canary Islands in 1968 with Dan Air on a Comet. It was a case of shake, rattle and roll and very noisy! I wondered if it had been the same aircraft, because the Duxford Comet was retired in 1973. But its log showed that, for the last few years, it flew between London and Alicante. I managed to get my ticket clicked for every single airliner.

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On the program for the day, I noticed that an ex Blackbird pilot, Colonel Richard Graham, would be giving guided tours around the SR-71 Blackbird. I turned up on time and even got his autograph on my ticket. Did you know that pilots had to stay in the cockpit of the SR-71 for 30 minutes after landing because it was too hot to exit? Continue reading “B-17G Sally B at Duxford Air Show” →