Saturday the 18th of September saw the BPAG roadshow roll into Cotswold Airport to attend the Battle Of Britain Vintage Fly-in. Although fielding a slightly stripped down version of our stand at Abingdon, the more intimate nature of the event, the quality of the display and a favourable location all meant our volunteers were kept busy. Despite much lower attendance than the last two events, we had a very successful day, enjoyed some great conversations with members of the public who were all very interested in our plans and happy to support us by purchasing merchandise. Thank you to everyone who stopped by.
Another useful aspect of these events is the chance to meet new, potential volunteers and this one did not disappoint on that front. It was wonderful to meet so many enthusiastic people who want to give up their time and talents to help restore and preserve our aircraft, we took many contact details and will be in touch in the near future. However, whilst not wishing to detract from anyone else we spoke to, one person does warrant special mention. The gentleman stood next to the seat is former Group Captain Laurie Hilditch, who- among his many other achievements- holds the distinction of being the last man to fly a Spey powered Phantom, when XT597 made its final flight on 28th January 1994. Mr Hilditch still has a great affection for 597 and will be working closely with us in the future. Watch this space.
This event will be our last public appearance for 2021, but we will be back next year, bigger and better. Once again, thank you to everyone who came and talked to us, offered their services or parted with their money to help us fund our projects. Finally, many thanks to our volunteers, John Bell, Paul West and Paul Wright for their hard work and dedication.
