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RAF Coltishall 1961 - Flying Tigers Squadron 74, we spent hours at the crash gate at the end of the runway with a brew on watching these brave guys take off and land. Hard to believe the Bear aircraft are still being intercepted these days by Typhoon and 35's.



Javelins in the background.

What a great picture. glorious aircraft

I always remember the spectacular sight and thunderous noise and the shock wave of a squadron of Vulcan bombers taking off from RAF Wittering, flying low overhead as I travelled on the A1.

That must have been something else at the time magnificent planes in that era.

I shall never forget one open day at Coltishall when a Vulcan put on a demo flight and when he got to V2 he stuck it's nose in the air on full reheat and you felt the ground and your internals shaking just incredible.
This was back in the 60's so the crowds were not a long way from the runway.
We went every year as my Dad and two others took three Tiger Moths there tied together with canvas and took off, displayed including barrel rolls and loops and landed with the canvas still secure, Dad and his mate were ex Spit pilots and the other an ATC at Sculthorpe when the Yanks were there. They had some mad tales to tell from the Dinner and celebrations in the Lightning Officers Mess and spent an extra day sleeping it off.

I flew in Concorde to JFK on air miles. When that afterburner came on you knew it.

AHHH ... Concorde. Whilst working as a delivery driver in Cheltenham my area included Fairford. One day I spotted Concorde at the end of the runway. I parked up and walked across a field to the perimeter fence to where our un-liveried version (only two at that time, the other in France) of Concorde was sitting with engines running. I was only yards away and alone. After presumably pre flight checks she opened up and set off - the noise and vibrations were tremendous (visceral). At the far end of the runway she lifted skywards revealing that superb dart shape trailing four black lines of smoke. I'm pretty sure that was 1970 - it was a thrill to see and an everlasting memory. What a magnificent achievement that aircraft was.
Peter H

When I started work at Alfa Laval in Brentford I would head home to Clapham along the A4 and Concorde usually was on final to Heathrow, nose down wheels down.

20 years later I got to fly in this magnificent beast.

"Concorde" was the first word my eldest son learnt to say, we live SW from Heathrow and always knew when the evening Concorde taking off to the East was late leaving. They kept the afterburners on for longer and used to set off car alarms in passing.

I used to have one of the first day cover postcards of Concorde with the special stamps that I posted to myself to get the postmark on...think it was 1969 ?

An amazing time, what with the Saturn rockets and the first Moon landing too

Yes they were, watching all the space shots 405 line black and white tele, it was special. James Burke was it ?

Yup sure was..