Miss Helen
In addition to major airshows, The Imperial War Museum (IWM) Duxford has 'Showcase Days', when there is about two hours of flying with commentary. Visitors can get up close to the aircraft as they park up on the airfield and chat with the pilots that flew them.
Entry is free for members and parking is free for all.
| Duxford Showcase Days 2020 |
|---|
| Duxford Showcase Day August 4 |
| Duxford Showcase Day August 19 |
| Duxford Showcase Day October 10 |
| See the British Airshows calendar for a full list of all known British airshows in 2020 |
Duxford was an airfield in the First World War and was an RAF fighter station and then an American fighter base in the second. It was the base of the first operational Spitfire squadron during WW2.
It is now home to the Imperial War Museum with aviation, tanks, military vehicles and naval exhibits as well as the Fighter Collection, The Old Flying Machine Company, The Aircraft Restoration Company, Historic Aircraft Collection, B-17 Preservation Society and others.
| Aircraft on 4th August | |
|---|---|
| Due to fly | |
| Supermarine Spitfire Mk Ia G-CFGJ 'N3200' | |
| de Havilland Canada Beaver G-DHCZ: Aircraft Restoration Company | |
| P-51D Mustang 'Warhorse' | |
| Yak 50 | |
| de Havilland DH.89 Dragon Rapide | |
| De havilland DHC-1 Chipmunk | |
 | North American Harvard Mk.IV 'Wacky Wabbit' |
| LeVier Cosmic Wind | |
| North American NA-64 Yale | |
| Cassutt Special | |
| All appearances are subject to technical, weather and other constraints | |
| Aircraft due to fly on 19th August but disrupted by weather | |
|---|---|
| Due to fly | |
| Hawker Hurricane Mk Xlla 5711 (HAC) | |
| Supermarine Spitfire Mk Ia G-CFGJ 'N3200' | |
| P51 Mustang 'Miss Helen' | |
| North American P-51D Mustang 'Contrary Mary' (formerly 'Miss Velma') G-TFSI (Anglia Aircraft Restorations) | |
| de Havilland DH.89 Dragon Rapide | |
| LeVier Cosmic Wind | |
| Vickers Supermarine Spitfire Mk X1 G-PRXI 'PL983' (ARCo) | |
| North American Harvard Mk.IV 'Wacky Wabbit' |
| SIAI Marchetti SF 260 | |
| All appearances are subject to technical, weather and other constraints | |
Duxford is in Cambridgeshire, off Junction 10 of the M11. If you are coming from the north, a signposted alternative is to leave at Junction 11 and take the A10 to Royston, then the A505. This is a much longer route designed to split the traffic up. The Post Code (for Sat Nav) is CB22 4QR but some systems will only recognise the older code CB2 4QR. There is a park and ride at Junction 11 of the M11 on show days. The bus is free (you have to show your airshow ticket) but parking isn't.
There are links to other route planners in the Travel Advice column if you prefer to plan ahead or don't have sat nav.
The easiest (but not the closest) train station is Cambridge, which has a direct service from London. A courtesy bus runs between the show and Cambridge station on show days.
The variety of rail tickets and fares can be very confusing. Trainline and Raileasy web sites list all ticket and fare options for the time and day of travel you choose but they both levy an admin fee. Click either of the blue ticket agency names to go to their web site.
It is best to book as far as possible in advance. This is not only because nearby hotels and guest houses tend get booked up well before the date of an airshow but also because prices can be better when you book early online.
There are plenty of booking agencies. We find that many of the well known ones are better at finding hotels from international or larger UK chains and may suggest hotels in main towns or cities quite a distance from the show site.
Expedia list a good selection of smaller, as well as bigger, hotels and will find accommodation in villages and small towns as well as the main centres. They also give, and take, Nectar points.
There are three Premier Inn hotels in Cambridge and another four within about 20 miles of the show.
The International Hotels Group have a Holiday Inn Express near the airshow but it sells out very quickly for airshow dates. There is another Holiday Inn Express in Cambridge about 9 miles away and a Holiday Inn Express in Stanstead about 20 miles to the south.
Travelodge have one hotel about 4 miles from the show, which tends to be available a little bit longer after other low-cost hotels have been fully booked. There are three more Travelodge hotels in and around Cambridge
Click any of the blue names to go to the corresponding web site. Most of the links already have the location built in, but please check, and change as necessary, the dates, number of rooms and number of guests.
A full 7 day Duxford weather forecast from the UK Met Office
The Met office 7-day forecast includes actual and "feels like" temperatures, the likelihood of rain, wind speed, wind direction, wind gusts and visibility: the latter can have an impact on the viability of displays.
The BBC's 14-day forecast has overall conditions including and hourly estimate of temperature, wind direction, wind speed and UV range.
Click the blue-text link to go to the forecast. The location is already built into the links.
August 4
August 19
October 10
Free for members
Others
£23 adults
£11.50 child
Parking free
Sat Nav CB22 4QR
For links to travel and route planning web sites, click the 'Getting there' tab
© British Airshows