FighterControl

With RIAT fast approaching, and some of us looking forward to another few days in the FRIAT enclosure, I thought I would dig out some shots to perhaps bring back one or two memories for fellow oldies like me, and give the young 'uns an insight into the early days of FIAT. Greenham Common '83 was my first Friends of International Air Tattoo experience. Pretty basic back then, only a small amount of raised seating which could accommodate about 25% of the people in the enclosure. For anyone not in a seat, if you weren't at the front, photography was very much a challenge. A mass of heads, tannoy masts, fence posts and barbed wire featured in most shots. From what I recall, there were basic toilets, a burger van and we got a movements sheet, programme, and maybe a gift. Luckily, two years later for the first IAT at Fairford, things were much improved, and were the beginnings of what we experience now.

Sid

Photo_2024-07-01_134526 by Andrew Cutworth, on Flickr

IMG_20240701_140802370 by Andrew Cutworth, on Flickr

IMG_20240701_140320699 by Andrew Cutworth, on Flickr

IMG_20240701_140240287 by Andrew Cutworth, on Flickr

Thanks for sharing. Just missed this one and my first tattoo ended up being 85. Look at the absence of ladders though!

Thanks for sharing these with us, the last Greenham Common show. It does show the frustration that photographers must have felt in those days. At least they didn't have the dreaded blue and white cones then. That Argosy eluded me and I never saw it, but nice to see the Jordanian Mirage.

I spent the Friday at the end of the runway and the Saturday with the press photographers on the south side.
Great memories.

Blimey, was that the last one at GC? Don't think I graphed DET-4's arrival as I was only down for the weekend- inside Saturday and found the best field-kitchen by the SR-71 and TR-1, big queue for their burgers! In the forest Sunday to catch the flying.
Think it was after the event that the "women" broke in to graffiti DET-4's finest; scumbags.
Roger
edit/ps: My slides from this event are still in strips in envelopes, processed by Berkley Studios if I remember. A job when I retired was to mount all my slides, and you know what? I'll never get them done! There's thousands of them if anyone wants to take on the task.

Thanks Sid brought back memorises. Terry

If I remember correctly the loos were some distance away necessitating a walk through the static park, suffice to say there was a lot of incontinence about on arrivals day. The SR-71 arrival was something else, did a couple of low overshoots, some footage here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KhqZxjQOuZ4

My first IAT. Before I'd learned to drive, but managed to persuade a mate to do a run down to Greenham for the show. Made a hash of most of my flying shots, but managed to get some decent statics (including my one and only Belgian 104). Soon learned to drive after that.

Happy days - manual cameras and lenses, deciding what shots to take because you never brought enough film with you, few hospitality tents along the crowd line, etc. But the photo-bus to the flight lines on the far side was good! Biggest downside was taking photo's of the flying display for us "plebs" as it was south facing. Sadly, I only ever took photo's of the static aircraft. Great memories for us oldies so thank you.

Thanks for the comments chaps. As you said binbrook, no ladders then, but an aluminium camera case could gain you a few inches, as shown by a couple of guys in the E-3 shot. I attended the '77, '79 and '81 Greenham shows as a day visitor, travelling there and back on the Sunday from Norfolk. I wasn't aware of the Friend of IAT package until a work acquaintance told me he had done it for 1981 which led me to joining in '83, I have been a FIAT/ FRIAT devotee for every show since, wouldn't do It any other way. Just as a matter of interest, would anyone recall when the first FIAT package was offered, I'm assuming it may have been '81?

Sid.

Thanks for posting. Like many, I didn't bother pointing my camera skywards due to the orientation to the sun, hence plenty of runway shots featuring those metal posts for the barbwire. Thankfully scanning and Photoshop have recovered many messed up shots.

Great thread - I was there! Would have been on the far right of the shot of the E-3 - in the very corner of the enclosure!

E-3A - LX-N90446 - NATO (3) by Darren Currie, on Flickr

SR-71 67-17980 - Det 4 9th SRW Mildenhall (1) by Darren Currie, on Flickr

Ay, 17980 was the last fully marked-up SR I saw- at this event, static.
Roger

Here are a few of my faves from the veeeeery long static display, starting with the sharkmouth F-4s from the Phantom Meet and one from the odds and sods section, and then the exotica from the STAR line up which seemed to stretch half way to Cirencester! The Pucara was a trophy of the Falklands War being evaluated by Boscombe Down.

Greenham IAT '83 - Phantom Meet (10) by Michael Britton, on Flickr

Greenham IAT '83 - Phantom Meet (9) by Michael Britton, on Flickr

Greenham IAT '83 - Phantom Meet (7) by Michael Britton, on Flickr

Grrenham IAT '83 - Phantom Meet (3) by Michael Britton, on Flickr

Greenham IATs - RNZAF Boeing 727 '83 by Michael Britton, on Flickr

IAT '83 - STAR Meet line - up by Michael Britton, on Flickr

IAT '83 - Mirage F1 RJAF by Michael Britton, on Flickr

IAT '83 STAR Meet - Buccaneer S2 Z 16 Sqn. by Michael Britton, on Flickr

IAT '83 - STAR Meet line - up (midway) by Michael Britton, on Flickr

IAT '83 - A7 Corsair 404 USN by Michael Britton, on Flickr

IAT '83 - STAR Meet line - up 2 by Michael Britton, on Flickr

Thanks for sharing these with us, more great memories and so many classic fast jets. From the 1983 show, one that stood out was my first sighting of a PD808.

I was there, Our Scout Group was asked to do litter/fod picking before the show, during the show & also on departure days.
Had some very interesting experience's particularly once joe public left for the day. Even getting to see the delayed SR-71 departure on the Tuesday from very close quarters.

The USAF also kept us well fed & watered each day as well as our Scout Group doing very nicely out of the enterprise.

Oh my! I have just seen myself in the first photograph. As Darren has said, the place to be was tight in the right-hand corner. I was also gutted to see the RAE Argosy. I had to take a leak, and as reported, it was a long walk and quite an experience, just a field tent with a trench. Enough said, and when I returned, my mate gave me the bad news with a little smile! Anyway, thanks to Sid, Darren and F3 for the memories. I have enclosed a link from my Blog for anybody interested in seeing more from that great weekend. https://legendarymilavia.blogspot.com/2 ... -1983.html

Nice blog Michael - completely forgot about the Atlantic hitting the photobus - I was on that!

I remember attending but on the show day only, as with previous comments took a lot of photos of the static but hardly any of the flying! For the life of me I can't remember the Argosy being there either!

I can recall glimpsing a French AF Noratlas parked up on the far side of the airfield