Travel Air Mystery Ship: one of the more unusual displays in 2018
Run by volunteers for the benefit of children's and local charities, the Little Gransden Air and Car show has grown from a small local show to one of the major UK airshows, whilst retaining its friendly, local feel.
The show plans over three and a half hours of flying from early biplanes, WW2 warbirds through to modern extreme aerobatics featuring solo and formation air displays with world championship aerobatic pilots. The list of display aircraft is shown in the table and will grow as the event date approaches.
On the ground there are due to be more than 300 classic, historic, vintage and ex-military vehicles from the earliest days of the internal combustion engine, showing off the amazing variety of engineering and design skill that has gone into getting us around over the last century or so; also vintage tractors, stationary engines, scale model aircraft, a glider and a rare F1 aircraft racer.
| Aircraft | |
|---|---|
| Due to fly | |
| Global Stars Extra 330SC (Mark Jefferies, leader); Extra 300L or CAP 232 (Tom Cassells); Extra 300S (Chris Burkett); Extra 260 (Steve Carver); Extra 300L (Chris Heames) & CAP 232 (Michael Pickin). Can fly solo or formations of various combinations. | |
| Gazelle Squadron | |
| Supermarine Spitfire Vb BM597 G-MKVB (HAC) | |
| Additionally the following are due to be on static display, but are not flying during the show | |
| Hawker Fury and Hawker Hurricane restorations from the Cambridge Bomber and Fighter Society | |
| All appearances are subject to technical, weather and other constraints | |
Refreshments will include a licensed bar, fish and chips, coffee, ice cream, BBQ, burgers, hog roast, sweets and doughnuts.
The show has been going since 1992, when it started as a car show with a single flying display. Now there are usually 300 vehicles and over three hours of flying alongside other ground attractions.
The show is organised by volunteers for the benefit of Children in Need and local charities.
Amongst the organising team are David Poile MBE, Heather Lowe, renowned pilot Mark Jefferies, John Jefferies and photographer Darren Harbar, under the guidance of event organiser John Swain.
In 2018 there was an interesting series of displays, blending traditional favourites, such as the Global Stars, with the more unusual, including the Mystery Ship and an L29, Soviet block fast jet trainer.
The line-up for 2019 is equally varied. Details are in the table.
The show has been going since 1992, when it started as a car show with a single flying display. Now there are usually 300 vehicles and over three hours of flying alongside other ground attractions.
The show is organised by volunteers for the benefit of Children in Need and local charities.
Amongst the organising team are David Poile MBE, Heather Lowe, renowned pilot Mark Jefferies, John Jefferies and photographer Darren Harbar, under the guidance of event organiser John Swain.
On the ground expect about 80 traders and exhibitors showing and selling not only aviation and motoring goods but also artwork, antiques, collectables, crafts and clothing.
| Aircraft | |
|---|---|
| Due to fly | |
| Boeing B-17G 'Sally B' (cancelled - unscheduled maintenance) | |
| Dakota (BBMF) | |
 | Hawker Sea Fury T.20 G-INVN (Norwegian Historic Flight) |
| Spitfire Mk XIX PS853 | |
| P51 Mustang 'Miss Helen' | |
| DH88 Comet, Shuttleworth Collection | |
| Extra 330SC (Mark Jefferies) | |
| Yakolev YAK3-U (Will Greenwood) | |
| T6 Harvard 'Wacky Wabbit' | |
| Pitts Model 12 | |
| Messerschmitt Bf 108 Taifun | |
| The Red Sparrows, DHC-1 Chipmunks | |
| Global Stars Extra 330SC (Mark Jefferies, leader); Extra 300L or CAP 232 (Tom Cassells); Extra 300S (Chris Burkett); Extra 260 (Steve Carver); Extra 300L (Chris Heames) & CAP 232 (Michael Pickin). Can fly solo or formations of various combinations. | |
| Paramotors | |
| Piper L-4 'Grasshopper' | |
| G-Force Aeros (Little and Large) | |
| Spartan 7W Executive | |
| Hurricane V7497 | |
| Turbulent Team. | |
| Beech 18 | |
| Pitts Special S2A (Dr Kirk Patrick) | |
| North American Aviation T-6 G-TSIX | |
| Bell 47 G-MASH | |
| Tigers Parachute Display Team | |
 | Republic P47 Thunderbolt 'Nellie' |
| All appearances are subject to technical, weather and other constraints | |
Use sat Nav SG19 3BP until you get close, but ignore the sat nav in favour of local directions signs as soon as you see them. There are links to route planners in the Travel Advice column if you prefer to plan ahead or don't have sat nav.
The nearest station is St Neots, which is accessible by train from Peterborough (about 20 minutes) and London. St Neots is about 12Km from Little Gransden.
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 lists 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.
Click the blue Expedia name for a list of hotels and guest houses near the show. The venue is already built into the link but when the list comes up you do have to enter your dates and adjust the number of rooms and guests, if necessary.
The International Hotels Group have a Holiday Inn in Huntingdon, about 11 miles away. There are also Holiday Inn and Holiday Inn Express hotels in Cambridge and Bedford between 11 and 14 miles away. There are two Premier Inn hotels in St Neots, about 9 miles away, and more in Cambridge, which is a little further.
A full 7 day Little Gransden weather forecast from the UK Met Office
The Met office seven-day forecast includes maximum, minimum and "feels like" temperatures, the likelihood of rain, wind direction, gusts and visibility: the latter can have an impact on the viability of displays.
The BBC's five-day forecast has overall conditions including temperatures, UV range and a description that may help to determine how pleasant the day will be for the visitor.
Click the blue-text link to go to the forecast. The location is already built into the links.
30th August 2020
Sat Nav SG19 3BP
For links to travel and route planning web sites, click the 'Getting there' tab
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