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RIAT 2016 your views

Post information relating to the Royal International Air Tattoo here.
Alfie
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Re: RIAT 2016 your views

Post by Alfie » Wed Jul 13, 2016 3:41 pm

I attended Saturday, arrived in the car park at about 8 to 8-15, not to bad driving in, but than took another hour to get through security (it seemed every other queue apart from the one I chose was moving twice as quick) Then only to find the information point at the entrance had ran out of programmes. I enjoyed the flying, but from a photography point of view too many grey planes against a grey sky. I know the weather can't be help but a little variation in the programme may have helped. All in all a good day, might give next years a miss but journey to Cornwall to take in Culdrose.

Approach23
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Re: RIAT 2016 your views

Post by Approach23 » Thu Jul 14, 2016 7:47 am

A bit harsh, in a way I did pay but not to RIAT, it just gets too busy with bodies inside the fence. Judging by other comments on the food vendors, I'm glad I wasn't inside the fence. The Totterdown Farm food was not over priced and extremely good with no threat of being short changed. RIAT did get money from me on the Monday and that was good.

Frankly, RIAT is over hyped and because of its size will never satisfy everyone that goes.

RCC/approach23

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Droptank
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RIAT 2016 views

Post by Droptank » Thu Jul 14, 2016 9:34 pm

All.

Interesting to read the comments relating to good and bad about RIAT 2016.

Firstly, if you didn't attend the show itself, I feel you have no right to comment on what you did or didn't like based on what was visible from a camp site or distant field, also it shouldn't be overlooked that RIAT is held to uphold very worthwhile charitable enterprises and at least deserves our support as enthusiasts.

My first International Air Tattoo was 1973-the first at Greenham Common and my experience was similar to that of many of the newer attendees of recent Fairford shows in that there was an astonishing array of unusual and rare military aircraft on show such as a Sikorsky Skycrane, Lockheed Neptune and Ohio Air Guard KC97, things you had only read about in magazines (there was no internet).

Over the years, global changes such as wars, recession, national unification and terrorism have had varied effects on the scale and content of Tattoos but one thing has remained, it is still the world's premier international military airshow, featuring collections of aircraft you won't see anywhere else.

I read with frustration the debate about why there are no longer 450 aircraft on show or what can't some active front line aircraft visit in greater numbers, the reason can be found in the small print at the bottom of every RIAT ticket under "operational commitments"- surely it can't escape the notice of even the most blinkered enthusiast that many countries resources are stretched as they are at war?

Add to that the fact that most air arms operate fewer multi-role types rather than a number of specific operational types and it is obvious that there will be fewer aircraft globally to invite.

One thing that does need to be considered is to compare RIAT not with previous RIAT or IAT events gone by but with other current air shows around the world.

Unless I am mistaken there were 23 different air arms present this year and most latest generation combat aircraft from Western manufacturers not only attended, but also flew- which other airshow can make such a claim?

OK, links with Farnborough contribute to this, but who cares?...the organisers made sure the aircraft were there and it was good to see.

Testament to the global appeal of RIAT is the number of foreign visitors from far and wide that are attracted to the show, for them to make a journey from all over Europe and beyond is only due to the status and continued spectacle of what is on show at RIAT- we are very fortunate to have a show of such magnitude on our doorstep in the UK.

There has also been some criticism of costs for food provided by the vendors in the show and unfair comparison with Flying Legends at Duxford.

The thread on Duxford also mentions extortionate food prices so that argument is redundant, food at any event is naturally going to be more expensive than Macdonalds or your local chippy.

One of the key things that improved for 2016 is the arrivals days, at the Western P&V it was fantastic to be so close to the arriving aircraft, well done air traffic for sending most of the arrivals around the loop/taxiway Alpha, a controller actually came to ensure the group of people at the Western end were happy.

Also of note, although I walked into the show each day, traffic seemed to be handled very efficiently, car parks emptying very quickly.

Aircraft on static was also quality and slightly more were present than previous years, most crews were by their aircraft and happy to discuss anything and everything enthusiastically- just what air shows are all about- again, where will you see such an array of air arms on show?

Entertainment zones were excellent for those with broader age groups and children, again there was tons to do for all ages and interests, encouraging the future aviators to find out how everything about flight actually works.

I may be mistaken but was there a fairground this year????.....I don't recall seeing one which is also a step forward, although I may have been distracted by all the other good stuff on show.

So, in summary, I felt RIAT 2016, when viewed as a stand alone show, was a terrific success once more and the RIAT team should be applauded, what has gone before, since 1973, has been fantastic, but unachievable in these modern and challenging times, RIAT is still the act to beat...and I doubt anybody will.

Droptank.

footes
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Location: Plymouth

Re: RIAT 2016 your views

Post by footes » Thu Jul 14, 2016 10:03 pm

I first started going over 10 years ago with my wife and our friends, it was brilliant. The women would go into Swindon on the Saturday to some retail therapy and then join us at RIAT on the Sunday and would they not get bored (as they weren't interested in aircraft) as there was plenty of things for the women to do. Plenty of various stalls of all types as well as the stage show and other things for them to do. Over the last four years the women have stopped coming with us as the showground itself has got smaller and there is less stall the stage has gone and I believe it has become less of a show for everybody which is a shame. Also it is our belief that it is not as big as used to be as the men used to spend the Saturday looking at the stalls and exhibitions and Sunday watching the air display but unfortunately now we only go on the Saturday. That said as it is an Air Tattoo the aviation side of things is awesome especially with the differing international attendees. As with all shows there will be things that should and could be done differently and I could sit here and go through a big list of them, but as I said previous the aviation side is awesome so its a case of taking the rough with smooth.

Footes

Bushpilot
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Re: RIAT 2016 your views

Post by Bushpilot » Sat Jul 16, 2016 5:26 pm

We went on Sunday and P&V on Monday.

Sunday
Good points
Flying display
Time to get in and leave
No traffic through the crowd
Good pasties (red zone)
Not so good
Static layout - especially the Chipmunks which were largely ignored by the crowd
Signs banning steps/shelters from the crowd line need to be in Dutch/German and French or at least enforced (east end of the crowd line.)
Halal rabbit c/o the Royal Jordanian Falcons :halo:
Red route exit didn't tell you when the one way part had ended, if you were in the left exit lane and took the back route to Lechlade after crossing the A419 it wasn't clear that this was no longer one way down the narrow lanes.

Monday P&V East

Good
Easy to get in and park.
Catering quality.
Not so good
The ginger haired man mountain in a brown coat who blocked off the view of half the airfield when he stood up.
Camps at the fence.
Toilets - surely some of you can aim better (wife's complaint)
Unused tannoy still up.

Overall the best show I've been to for years.

Julian
I want 2% of GDP and I want it NOW!

footes
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Location: Plymouth

Re: RIAT 2016 your views

Post by footes » Sat Jul 16, 2016 10:13 pm

Bushpilot I have to say your taste in pasties does leave a lot to be desired. I don't know if you have ever been to St Ives but they are to die for and that is from a Devonian. :D

Footes

John flightpath
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Re: RIAT 2016 your views

Post by John flightpath » Sat Jul 16, 2016 11:00 pm

I went on the Friday with 2 friends from Manchester and Chorley. Got in no problem. Arrived about 10.30am. Security check was quick but thorough, Had a nice walk up the static. Kept moving positions for good views of the flying display. Took 400 + photos. Happy days. Will be back next year.
Best bit. Rafale display.
Worst bit. Food too expensive !

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Approach23
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Re: RIAT 2016 your views

Post by Approach23 » Sun Jul 17, 2016 11:37 am

Droptank,

I believe I have a right to make comment, I did not complain as such, as I was there and saw the same displays as you did. Also I traveled 365 miles to get there with some of our party traveling 539 & 585 miles. Its a costly trip by either car or flight and add in accommodation, petrol costs, food and drink any saving that can be made along the way helps.

I choose to ignore your other comments as its all a bit of a ramble and not relevant to what I said.

Enough said.

RCC/approach23

Bushpilot
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Location: 20km West of Aberdeen Airport

Re: RIAT 2016 your views

Post by Bushpilot » Mon Jul 18, 2016 7:33 pm

footes wrote:Bushpilot I have to say your taste in pasties does leave a lot to be desired. I don't know if you have ever been to St Ives but they are to die for and that is from a Devonian. :D

Footes
Footes

Note I didn't call them Cornish, the plus side was hot and quick. ;)
I want 2% of GDP and I want it NOW!

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Blackcat1
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Re: RIAT 2016 your views

Post by Blackcat1 » Wed Jul 20, 2016 8:08 pm

Went on the Sunday not a bad show , have seen better but hey that's in the past. Thought the Greek Phantom pilots and the Lakenheath Eagle crews were friendly and enjoyed chatting to them. Was glad I got up close to Ramex Delta as they taxied out/in and enjoyed seeing the crews celebrating with a bottle of Champagne after they shut down. As for the flying display i enjoyed Ramex Delta, F22, Italian/Spanish Typhoon cant remember which , saw F35 dont like it and dont think i ever will lol, all display teams were good! enjoyed the Frecce Tricolori with time to say goodbye and Nessun Dorma playing as they displayed.

Paid 5 Pound for a burger , was tasty but pretty cold and the person that served it could have been a bit more cheerful lol then again it must have been a long day!
Gareth

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TomG
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Re: RIAT 2016 your views

Post by TomG » Tue Jul 26, 2016 12:21 pm

Approach23 wrote:I cannot comment on the static but the flying display leaves a lot to be desired. Whilst those aircraft displaying were, on the whole, good, the time gap between displays was poor, sometimes up to 30/40 mins. Got a bit bored frankly.
I can only surmise that your 30/40 mins gaps were when aircraft could not display due to the weather and you wouldn't have noticed that from outside. Otherwise the timings were fine.

TomG
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Re: RIAT 2016 your views

Post by TomG » Tue Jul 26, 2016 12:30 pm

B58 wrote:Well I'm just back from a great day, flying excellent & varied shame about the cloud base. Static very good but a few annoying little things, 1 why put an aircraft that's come from the other side of the world in front of a line of toilets. 2 I would of thought the F22 could of been parked next to the F35s. 3 please don't put 2 sets of steps on both sides of the aircraft keep 1 side clear please. 4 if there's a rare aircraft on the ground doing nothing on the north side ask the USMC if there KC130 could be parked in the static it would of been nice lined up with the others & whats happened to the 45 degree static line format? It makes better photo opportunities. It sounds like I'm nit picking but these are little things that would of topped the day completely. Other than these things well done RIAT for putting a great show together this year i know it's not easy but many thanks.
Thanks for your views and I'll quickly take a bit of time to provide a quick answer to these 'issues'.

1. The aircraft was one of the first to arrive and was parked on a bay that allowed the use of the more efficient refuel method. Also this allowed us to be more efficient with handling and available facilities whilst meeting the needs of the aircraft and crew. I spoke with them and they had a great time with us.

2. A whole host of considerations meant that was unfortunately not possible. It was looked at but we couldn't achieve it.

3. Access step were positioned to facilitate visitors going in one door, down the aircraft, back up the other side and then out of the opposite front door - a nice flow giving the crew a great engagement opportunity and many visitors a chance to see the inside.

4. USMC KC-130J. Yes, it would have looked great in the static. Yes, we did make the effort made to discuss this with the USMC & I did ask nicely to have the aircraft in the static. We do consider the enthusiast however in this instance a number of considerations precluded this, sometimes these things happen.

5. There's a limited amount of time for the team to park the static display aircraft given we are now having 2/3 of the Showground open to public on Friday morning and I don't want to break a small team with work. It is surprisingly difficult and time consuming to park aircraft precisely at a 'nice angle' without it looking messy and for every person who wants that there are others who are happy with them as they were.

Thanks for the comments.

Tom

TomG
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Re: RIAT 2016 your views

Post by TomG » Tue Jul 26, 2016 12:34 pm

B58 wrote:just wish all flying display aircraft were southside & within reach as I explained in 1st post. Maybe a small group of enthusiasts on an advisory team would help smooth out the small & easy to solve issues that get lost in organising a huge event like this. Anyway roll on 2017 70th anniversary USA ah yeah
There just isn't the available space southside to do as you ask (and meet the requirement for the on-base car parking). Without wishing to sound dismissive but what "small and easy to solve issues"? The small team in Air Ops really do look at everything with an enthusiast eye and consider what is in the realms of the possible given the myriad of operational, logistical, regulatory and security considerations. Trust me, it really isn't a matter of solving easy issues!

Tom

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Bluetail
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Re: RIAT 2016 your views

Post by Bluetail » Wed Jul 27, 2016 9:36 am

Approach 23
I cannot comment on the static but the flying display leaves a lot to be desired. Whilst those aircraft displaying were, on the whole, good, the time gap between displays was poor, sometimes up to 30/40 mins. Got a bit bored frankly.

RIAT should take a tip from Duxford on timings as on the previous Saturday at Flying Legends it was a joy to see those elderly aircraft give fantastic displays all in a timely fashion. No great time gaps between displays keeps your attention going.


I would just like to ask which day did you go to because I certainly don't recall 30/40 minutes gaps between displays on any of the three flying days, even on Sunday morning when the cloud base was only 800ft aircraft were trying to put something on,
As for Duxford, it can often get repetitive with the same aircraft doing two or three shows, at RIAT there is no repetition, over 7 hours of display time with every one different. No other show in the world gives you the variety that RIAT provides, yes it was a bit samey this year with the Typhoons and F-16s, but what about F-22, F35, Croatians, French, Italians, Spanish. Red Arrows Unique formations. May be if you had paid to go into RIAT instead of reaping the benefit of the hard work that the volunteers put in by going into Totterdown Farm, then your comments may be justified.

If you don't pay to get into an event and effectively steal the efforts of others, what gives you the to right to complain about it.
Last edited by Bluetail on Thu Jul 28, 2016 7:25 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Approach23
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Re: RIAT 2016 your views

Post by Approach23 » Wed Jul 27, 2016 3:55 pm

TomG & Bluetail,

I think I justified not going inside the gate if you read my previous note. I'm not complaining only commenting, there is a difference. I was there on the Sunday, as said before, and also the Monday, as said before. Our tame weatherman with us kept an eye on the weather for us and the pilots coped well with the occasional low cloud and slight rain.

Please read postings in more detail before responding, save a lot of time and space.

RCC/approach23

TomG
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Re: RIAT 2016 your views

Post by TomG » Wed Jul 27, 2016 9:18 pm

Approach23 wrote:TomG & Bluetail,

I think I justified not going inside the gate if you read my previous note. I'm not complaining only commenting, there is a difference. I was there on the Sunday, as said before, and also the Monday, as said before. Our tame weatherman with us kept an eye on the weather for us and the pilots coped well with the occasional low cloud and slight rain.

Please read postings in more detail before responding, save a lot of time and space.

RCC/approach23
Evening. I read your post just fine thank you and responded to your comments appropriately. Whatever you feel are your justifications for being outside are down to you. My response offers the view that you may not have noticed or been aware of why there were perceived gaps given you were not on the airfield.
Please read postings in more detail before responding, save a lot of time and space.

page_verify
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Re: RIAT 2016 your views

Post by page_verify » Mon Aug 01, 2016 6:34 pm

I marshaled aircraft in the very distant past with TomG (back in the days when RIAT had Dragon 1 as TS 1) and I know that his professionalism in making the show happen will be second to none. I'm sure we'd all like to thank Tom for a great show again this year. I just hope the Queen doesn't keep him waiting too long for a gong as the diplomacy he must have to have with some spotters and foreign nations must be unimaginable sometimes :)

YellowBelly
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Re: RIAT 2016 your views

Post by YellowBelly » Mon Aug 01, 2016 9:36 pm

for what its worth, I havent been to a RIAT since the early 90s and I decided to go on the Friday the day before. I did ask on here if the Friday was decent and the general consensus was yes, well I have to say I had a tremendous time, thoroughly enjoyed the day, both the static and flying display were very enjoyable.

My favourite bit was at the end of the day, sitting on the open top bus and doing a double circuit, what a fantastic way to get around.

I learnt a few lessons for next year, I will definitely be going back on the Friday.

well done to all that make it happen.

:clap:

darkman
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Re: RIAT 2016 your views

Post by darkman » Mon Sep 19, 2016 8:51 am

Attended Sunday and Monday
Both days excellent.
No difficulty either getting to or away from the base. Travelled down from Alcester to RIAT then stayed over in Newbury.
Highlights Raptor and F4s.
Good variety and ticked all the right boxes.
Yes food is overpriced but no different to other events. Weather could have been better both days too but until we can change that then......
Will hopefully be back next year.
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