RAF Waddington airshow 2011

[The_Edge]

Hi Guys,
Does anyone know if there are any A-10s planned for the show???..desperate to see em again!!!

[Sheff]

Thanks for the info - looks like a trip over there on Thu and Fri then!

[turbosix]

Hi Guys,
Does anyone know if there are any A-10s planned for the show???..desperate to see em again!!!

USAFE items are normally among the last to be added to the list. It's not unheard of for an A10 to be in the static display so fingers crossed...

[beefsteak]

I doubt it , there's nothing on their display listings, we can always hope i suppose, failing that , there's one scheduled to fly at RIAT !!

[davedubya]

I'm still feeling 50/50 about whether to go. At the moment, I'm only pretty much going for the Thunderbirds.

[Mayfly]

I think £20 compared to many other days 'entertainments' is still good value for money. And you can buy the advanced tickets from certain branches of Morrisons and HSBC up to the night before.

As far as the show goes I will there whatever is scheduled to turn up but I do know the team work very hard even tho' it doesn't always pay off.

[Sheff]

I just wonder how long people will keep claiming it's a good show! Have you seriously looked at the display list? Take off the Thunderbirds (which are a lucky break in effect) and the Vulcan, and it's pretty damned awful actually.

If nothing else of any significance is added over the next month, they could well be heading for a major drop in spectators next year. They will crow about this year being as good as ever, but there will be no Thunderbirds next year, and maybe no Vulcan either... then what?

[Danny]

I'll be going for the first time since the late 90's. The Thunderbirds are a big pull for me.

[cottesmore09]

I just wonder how long people will keep claiming it's a good show! Have you seriously looked at the display list? Take off the Thunderbirds (which are a lucky break in effect) and the Vulcan, and it's pretty damned awful actually.

If nothing else of any significance is added over the next month, they could well be heading for a major drop in spectators next year. They will crow about this year being as good as ever, but there will be no Thunderbirds next year, and maybe no Vulcan either... then what?

I can see what your saying sheff, but i think next year will be a recovery for Waddington because the Olympics are taking place may move the show weekend to June and should not clash with a Major show. This could bring over some tasty particpants like the Rafale, Griphen etc.

For this year they do need to add more flying participants for they will be having long breaks between displays, but i will be going what ever

[benyboy]

I have faith in them. Last year was an awesome show, non stop fling all day with hardly any `toilet break` displays.
Where else are we going to go up here any way.

Ben

[Sheff]

I lost faith in them years ago when I read some of the lame responses they gave to valid questions. The thing that amazes me is that people will still be saying it's a great show and well done to the organisers when it comprises of just the BBMF and some wingwalkers! How dull does it have to get before people stop buying tickets and the organisers are finally forced to do something? Oh well, they've scraped thorugh this year thanks to the Thunderbirds and XH558 - maybe they'll get a similar "goodie" next year if they're lucky

Glad to hear next year's show might be a different date though. When are the Olympics? July? Be interesting to see if the show does move. Waddington have bleated for years that they cannot change the show date. Be quite interesting to see how they suddenly can change it when needs be.

[cottesmore09]

I lost faith in them years ago when I read some of the lame responses they gave to valid questions. The thing that amazes me is that people will still be saying it's a great show and well done to the organisers when it comprises of just the BBMF and some wingwalkers! How dull does it have to get before people stop buying tickets and the organisers are finally forced to do something? Oh well, they've scraped thorugh this year thanks to the Thunderbirds and XH558 - maybe they'll get a similar "goodie" next year if they're lucky

Glad to hear next year's show might be a different date though. When are the Olympics? July? Be interesting to see if the show does move. Waddington have bleated for years that they cannot change the show date. Be quite interesting to see how they suddenly can change it when needs be.

well they may get away with the 30th June-1st July, which would leave RIAT to be the week after! I bet then it will still collide with Zeltweg! To get a better chance of participants they do need to change dates, last weekend of june maybe?

[benyboy]

Last years show was good though, and thats coming from me who slated for the two previous years. Those shows could only be described as babba

[davedubya]

I just wonder how long people will keep claiming it's a good show! Have you seriously looked at the display list? Take off the Thunderbirds (which are a lucky break in effect) and the Vulcan, and it's pretty damned awful actually.

If nothing else of any significance is added over the next month, they could well be heading for a major drop in spectators next year. They will crow about this year being as good as ever, but there will be no Thunderbirds next year, and maybe no Vulcan either... then what?

It was a great show in 2010. And you aren't charged the near-extortionate prices of RIAT.

...but I just get the feeling it, and other shows this year, might be a bit on the sparse side.

[ChrisG]

Also no Zeltweg next year either!

[turbosix]

Waddo's been getting progressively better these past few years, however they've slipped this year. Like sheff said, the thunderbirds/vulcan have saved the show.

[Sheff]

The same problems apply to both Waddington and RIAT. Waddington has been lucky with the Thunderbirds this year and both RIAT and Waddington are also lucky in having the Vulcan. But even so, I think this year will be a seminal moment for many spectators and even with those two "star acts" I think it will make many people question whether the trip has been worthwhile. Next year's shows will be the ones to watch. Unless something spectacular comes along (and this does seem very unlikely) and unless XH558 is back (also very unlikely) then what are both shows going to do next year?

Strange days indeed...

[Sheff]

they still work, for your pleasure
Well no, they work for our entertainment, for which we are expected to pay, even though the taxpayer has already paid for the military assets in the first place. Shows ain't free, unlike in the US.

what else can they do
Quite a lot actually. We've had this discussion many times before. Truth of the matter is that they have no interest in doing anything else. They've said as much.

which in turn encourages more future non aviation enthusiasts to attend the following years shows
That's what I was getting-at. They will get a good response from this year's show because they have the Thunderbirds and the Vulcan. But what happens next year?

and just be grateful that Waddington is going ahead this year
I disagree entirely. We've had far too much of this "be grateful" attitude. Grateful for what? The air show isn't some sort of generous act. It is a commercial event designed to generate money for charity. It was also supposed to be the RAF's "showcase" event. A commercial event has an obligation to provide value for money. It is arguable whether the show does this even now, never mind in the future. As for showcasing the RAF (for which the taxpayer surely has some right to see what they're paying for) the show doesn't really do much showcasing either. Same arguments apply to RIAT in most respects. How many years do we passively watch shows become more and more dull before we stop saying "well done" and start saying this just isn't worth paying-for, and that we expect something rather better?

[beefsteak]

Sheff , for gods sake , grow up , think about what you are posting , and remember:-
"He who pays the piper calls the tune "
So as you aren't paying , keep your mouth shut and let those of us who do fork out their hard earned the right to moan if we want to , you have no right whatsoeve to tell us we're wrong.
But as usual , you will still come back with some stupid comment to try and justify your hell bent negativity on the subject.

Sorry mods if I seem a tad harsh, but I've had a long ,long ,long, hard day, meeting and talking to too many people who spend a hell of a lot of their free time trying to put these shows together and I can't stand reading negative crap like this !!

[Sheff]

Beefsteak this is a forum not a school yard.

Softbill, you say that the entrance fee is to see the taxpayer's assets showed-off. In that case, where are they all? The RAF's presence at its own "showcase" event is hopelessly small. The greater part of the show is being made-up of civilian aircraft.

I'm sure the organisers do "love the end results" but the point is that an awful lot of the paying public do not. That's why increasing numbers of people just don't go to RIAT and even Waddington now. Fine to look at all those that do and claim that all is well but as I said before, what happens next year when there are no Thunderbirds, probably no Vulcan and if it rains? Some extra pot of money is going to achieve very little - a couple more civilian acts is a proverbial sticking plaster on a corpse.

I just don't get this notion that we are expected to be somehow grateful for an air show. It's quite absurd. We are invited to pay to see an event, simple as that. The show isn't doing us a favour, in fact they are charging the taxpayer to see the assets they've already paid for. We used to crow about how American shows invited the public inside for free but in return they got a small static display and a fairly tame flying display. With great irony that's just what we now get at Waddington, and yet there's a pretty hefty admission fee. I don't see how that is anything to be grateful for.

Why are we so scared of accepting that these shows are rapidly becoming pale imitations of the past? Unless we all accept that, there ain't a hope in hell of ever making things better - they will just get worse. I don't accept for a minute that a far better show could not be created if the will was there. It's just that there is no will to change anything when the current format still brings in money. I guess you can't expect the organisers to think any differently but unless they get a grasp of just how many people really do no longer have any interest in the show, then they are surely heading for big problems. And if they are heading for problems, then so are the enthusiasts that want an air show to go to.