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I visited the Fleet Air Arm Museum at RNAS Yeovilton this week. I haven’t been for many years, and it’s well worth going if you have any interest in naval or flying history. Some of my photos from my visit can be seen here. But it reminded me of my visits to the air station much earlier in life.
When I was a kid, my parents took me to the annual air day at Yeovilton for several years. My father was always interested in planes, and my mother had been stationed there for a time when she was in the WRENS just after the war.
I don’t remember the exact years we went, but it was the late sixties, early seventies. It probably came to an end when I changed schools in 1974 and Saturday became just another school day. (Though they probably went without me!)
The air day was a major event in the area (we lived thirty miles away) and brought visitors from all over the country, and exhibitors and aircraft from much further afield. I’m not sure if I’m correct, but I’d say it was the second or third largest air show in the country, and there were a lot of them in those days.
It took some organising, as well. The land over the road from the air station became the visitor’s car park, and a Bailey bridge was built over the road so people could move safely across. In reality, of course, it was all a public relations exercise for the Navy, but it seemed to work. I think I remember the Army and RAF always had display areas, but I may be mistaken. Anyway, there were plenty of recruiters on the lookout for willing landsmen.
My recollections of the day are somewhat hazy now, but a few things stick in my memory. First, there were always a number of things to have a go at in the hangars. I remember one where a carrier top was built on the floor, and a long cord suspended above it. You took a seat, and guided a model plane down onto the deck. I don’t remember exactly how it worked, and it was definitely leaning towards the Heath Robinson end of design, but it didn’t seem to matter to all the boys lined up to try their hand.
I also remember how close the displays were to the crowd. The planes flew over us, in all directions, and very low. There didn’t seem to be any separation, and although I’m sure there were rules of some sort, looking back it’s hard to work out what they were. But it meant you felt the aircraft, rather than just seeing them. And this heralded the star of the show; at least for me. Sorry, Royal Navy, but the highlight of the day for many was the Vulcan.
I have not heard or felt such an assault on the senses before or since. It flew low and slow, crossing the airfield several times from different directions, lastly flying along the crowd line, and powering away. The ground shook, the buildings shook, and every fibre of your being trembled. It was glorious. People laughed, screamed, cried. It’s one of the defining moments of my childhood.
If I remember rightly, the day ended with a mock assault landing by the marines, with lots of explosive effects, followed by a Swordfish (or was it more than one?) flying over, dropping little parachutes with bags of sweets to the crowd.
The Air Day was cancelled in 2020 due to COVID, and I gather hasn’t taken place since, and the MOD have confirmed it will not go ahead in 2023. I guess such events are hard to justify in the current financial climate, and it may never happen again, which seems a pity. But I’ll still have my memories, and I’m grateful for that.
See more photos from the Fleet Air Arm Museum on my Photo Galleries page.
To find out more about the Museum, visit their website here.
