Cold war, cold day

Hot rain

Adam Noonan reports on the annual Cold War Jets open day at a wet and windy Bruntingthorpe. All photos copyright of author. 

Despite the weather, many flocked to Bruntingthorpe over the bank holiday weekend to see the Cold War jet collection in action. The running programme had a little more to boast over last years event, with the Comet and Buccaneer now serviceable. However, Lightning XR728 was unable to run. With one Lightning out of action, it was up to the other to steal the thunder, so to speak. 

With the Southend airshow being held over the Sunday and bank holiday Monday, the organisers of the open day had hoped for flypasts from two of the participants enroute to the show - namely the Canberra B.2 and Chinook. Unfortunately, the weather intervened and neither was able to make an appearance. Presumably this was down to the lack of navigation aids at Bruntingthorpe, combined with the poor visibility. 

Action on the ground was unaffected by the weather, with runs completed by the Lightning, Victor, Comet, Buccaneer, Iskra, Jet Provost, Canberra and Hunter. The rain did add an extra dimension to the runs, with plenty of spray kicked up off the runway. For the photographers, this certainly made up for the lack of light, giving the opportunity for some fairly spectacular photos! 

As usual, the other aircraft on static provided a little extra entertainment, with the likes of the Super Guppy,Victor B.1 and Lightning T.5 open to the public for a small fee. It's always nice to experience the Super Guppy's vast cargo hold in person!

Most notably on static was one of the three Buccaneers at Bruntingthorpe, XX894, painted in Royal Navy colour scheme. Lined up next to the other two Buccs, it performed engine runs during the day - hopefully a sneak preview into its future, where it should be available for fast taxi runs at following open days. 

The next open day at Bruntingthorpe, an LPG open day, is planned for 22nd July. This will be an open day for the Lightnings, as it's being organised by the LPG, but other aircraft should also be available to run on the day. The commentator also spoke of another Cold War Jets open day this year, which should hopefully be taking place some time in September. Of course, more details on this should arise if it is to take place.