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A Spring afternoon and evening at former RAF Bruntingthorpe, Saturday 11th March 2017

About this event

We are pleased to announce a return to the home of the Cold War Jet on Saturday, 11th March, where we will be back at Bruntingthorpe in Leicestershire for an afternoon, sunset and evening shoot with some of the former greats from the British Military.

Currently, we have three Buccaneers, a Hawker Hunter and hopefully we will add at least one, possible two, other airframes to the list before we get to the 11th but think you will agree this line-up is pretty special and should make for some stunning photo opportunities as the sun sets over the airfield.  Add to this some human interest in appropriate attire and we will transport you back to those helicon days of the 1970s and 80s.

The Buccaneers we are expecting to take part are XX894, XW544 and XX889.  Then we have Hawker Hunter XL565 and Canberra WT333.  To add further to the event, we will be ground-running one, possible two, of the Buccaneers and will be demonstrating ‘Wings Up’ for added photographic interest.

XX 894 in Royal Navy livery: XX 894 was delivered to the RAF on 4th December 1975 and issued to 16 Squadron at RAF Laarbruch, the first of several squadrons during its 19-year career.  This is the most famous Buccaneer, being the only RAF aircraft to destroy an enemy aircraft during the first Gulf War.  In 1993, XX 894 was repainted to represent '020' of 809 NAS aboard HMS Ark Royal in 1978.  Retirement came on 31st March 1994 and the plane is now in the care of volunteers from the Buccaneer Aviation Group, the only group in the world dedicated to preserving this type of aircraft.

XW 544 in RAF Camouflage Livery: XW 544 was new to the Royal Air Force in June 1972, flying with XV and 16 Squadron before being grounded during 1983.  After years in storage, the plane was rescued from a scrap yard and brought to Bruntingthorpe in 2004.  After four years of hard work, the first ground run took place in 2008, and in May 2011 the aircraft made its first public taxi run.  It is restored in the colours of 16 Squadron. 

XX 899 (RAF Desert Pink "Sky Pirates" scheme): XX 899 was delivered new to the RAF on the last day of December 1974 and retired in 1994.  It began its career with 16 Squadron in February 1975 and saw service with numerous squadrons, its last move coming in October 1993 to 208, where it received full squadron markings.

Hawker Hunter XL565 was put up for disposal in 1993 and was sold into private ownership.  The aeroplane was moved by road to a location in Closterworth, Lincolnshire, during early 1994 where it was placed in store.  During December 1997 it was on the move to Ipswich after being sold to Everett Aero, but within a few months it had changed hands again and moved by road to Kemble Airfield in April 1998.  Intended to be used as part of a project to mate a two-seat cockpit section onto a bigger-engined ex-Swiss AF Hunter F-58 fuselage, XL565 was placed in store after the project was shelved. Sold by Aeromech to Geoffrey Pool in 2002, XL565 was moved by road to Bruntingthorpe and work immediately began to restore the aeroplane to ground running condition. Parts were ordered and an engine sourced, and XL565 undertook its first ground runs in May 2010, when it had also been freshly refinished in its RAF Aden livery.  It has since become another regular 'live' classic at the Leicestershire airfield.

Our afternoon will start at 14.45 with a short safety briefing and photography will commence at 15.00 hours.  We will have use of a scissor lift to obtain elevated shots of the airframes and to add a little atmosphere; we will attempt to bring a few special effects online as the evening draws in. The event will run until approximately 20.30 hours.  Refreshments will be available during the event at a small extra cost.

This promises to be another excellent event and we look forward to seeing many of you in Leicestershire for an exciting five-hour feast of aviation photography. 

Event cost £58.00 per person.

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