June 22 - 23
F-35A, P-47 'Nellie B' and P-51 'Jersey Jerk' opened the show on Saturday
There are airshows, good airshows and great airshows. This one fitted firmly in the 'great' category. An excellent programme, excellent organisation and a first class venue make this a must-visit airshow if it returns in 2025.
The Sywell Airshow was promoted by Sywell Aerodrome and Ultimate Warbird Flights, who are based there. Richard Grace and his colleagues at Ultimate Warbird Flights are themselves very experienced at airshow flying and clearly brought all that experience to bear. They know what people want to see and they provided it.
From the outset, the organisers promised classic aircraft from across Europe, with a flying line-up to include formation and unique displays, some of which would be UK firsts. And they certainly lived up to that promise. They also released information about the displays very early, so that enthusiasts could see the sort of show in prospect. Of course that brings risks that some planned displays would be cancelled and that did happen but, by and large, the format of the show became clear quite early on and the fundamentals didn't change.
Apart from the excellence, variety and quality of the displays, the choreography deserves special mention. At some shows there is a sequence, with a clear gap in between. At others there may be an overlap, such that the following team are already in the air and assume the focus as soon as the previous display has completed. At the Sywell Airshow there was infinitely more fluidity, so that a range of aircraft or groups became part of the same display, seamlessly transitioning from one focus to another.
An example of this sequencing was the opening series. On Saturday, the show opened with three flypasts by an F-35A Lightning II from Lakenheath, accompanied by P-47 'Nellie B' and P-51 'Jersey Jerk'. The fighters then held off leaving the F-35 perform a solo overshoot and dramatic vertical departure with afterburner. The fighters then flew past together before 'Jersey Jerk' left the stage to Nellie B and Sally B, which had been waiting in the wings, for their bomber-with-fighter-escort passes. This led, in turn, to a Sally B solo followed immediately by a Mustang trio comprising a returning 'Jersey Jerk' with 'Miss Helen' and 'Nooky Booky IV'; a P-47 solo, and a tailchase involving two Buchóns, which had been scrambled during the earlier action, the Mustangs and the P-47: the latter scoring a hit on Buchón Yellow 10 causing both Buchóns to retreat and the allies to finish victorious after an exhilarating, beautifully orchestrated, epic display which captivated the audience for more than half an hour.
The sequence was repeated on Sunday, without the F-35, but with the bonus of a fourth Mustang, the Rolls Royce Heritage Flight's WD C, which hadn't been able to join on Saturday because of a technical issue. (... continued below the pictures and aircraft table)
Mustang Quartet on Sunday
Emilio and Danielle Buono - 46 Aviation
Nine Spitfires
| Aircraft | Pilot | |
|---|---|---|
| Headliners | ||
 | Lockheed Martin F-35A 'Lightning II (US Air Force 495th Fighter Squadron, RAF Lakenheath) flypast with P-51 Jersey Jerk and P-47 Nellie B (opening the show - Saturday only) | Capt. Everett Montano |
 | Red Arrows (Sunday only) | |
| Spitfires | ||
 | Supermarine Spitfire Mk IX 'RW382' 'The Suffolk Spitfire' presented as USAAF Mk.IXc "Porky II" (converted from a low-back Mk XVIe to high-back Mk IX configuration, complete with Rolls Royce Merlin, full wing tips and earlier rounded tail, in 2011). (Owner George Haye) | George Haye |
 | Supermarine Spitfire LFVb EP120 G-LFVB (The Fighter Collection) | Rolf Meum |
 | Supermarine Spitfire FR XlV G-SPIT MV293 (previously as MV268 JE-J) (Fighter Aviation) | Alex Smee |
 | Supermarine Spitfire Mk IXb G-ASJV MH434 (Old Flying Machine Company) | Paul Bonhomme |
 | Supermarine Spitfire Mk Vc G-IBSY 'EE602' (Fighter Aviation Engineering) | Nick Smith |
 | Supermarine Spitfire Mk G-PR.XI 'PL983' (Aircraft Restoration Company) | Martin Overall |
 | Supermarine Spitfire FRXIV 'RM297' (W Air Collection) | Baptiste Salis |
 | 'Grace' Spitfire MkTR1X G-LFIX 'ML407' (Ultimate Warbird Flights) | Ben Cox |
| Supermarine Spitfire Mk IX TA805: Biggin Hill Heritage Hangar | Dan Griffith | |
| Hurricanes | ||
 | Hawker Hurricane Mk.I G-ROBT P2902 (Fighter Aviation Engineering) | Gabriel Barton |
 | Hawker Hurricane Mk X AE977 G-CHTK, painted as Mk 1 P2921. (Biggin Hill Heritage Hangar) | Trevor Dugan |
| Mustangs | ||
 | North American P-51D Mustang 'Nooky Booky IV' (Flying Bulls) | Eskil Amdal |
 | North American P-51D Mustang WD-C (Biggin Hill Heritage Hangar / Rolls Royce Heritage Flight) | Steg Williams |
 | North American P-51D Mustang 'Miss Helen' G-BIXL '472216' (owner Robert Tyrell based at ARCo / Aerial Collective) | John Dodd |
 | North American P-51D Mustang 'Jersey Jerk' (Fighter Aviation) | Mark Levy |
| Corsairs | ||
 | Chance Vought F4U-4 Corsair (Flying Bulls) | Eric Goujon |
 | Chance-Vought F4U-5NL Corsair F-AZEG (Les Casques de Cuir collection) | Baptiste Salis |
 | Goodyear FG-1D Corsair G-FGID (The Fighter Collection) | Brian Smith |
| Bombers and Transport | ||
 | Boeing B-17G Flying Fortress G-BEDF 'Sally B' (B-17 Preservation) | Peter Kuypers & Daryl Taplin |
| Biplanes / Triplanes | ||
 | de Havilland DH82 Tiger Moth (one or more of G-AMTV, G-ANTE and G-ALIW) | Dan Williams |
 | Boeing Stearman with Wingwalker (46 Aviation) | Emiliano Del Buono (Wingwalker Danielle Del Buono) |
 | Fokker D.VII (Reproduction) (Mikael Carlson) | Stu Goldspink |
 | Fokker Dr.1 Dreidecker (Reproduction) (Mikael Carlson) | Mikael Carlson |
| More | ||
 | Boeing 727 Oil Spill Response | Adrian Thurley |
 | Lockheed P-38 Lightning (Flying Bulls) | Raimund Riedmann |
 | North American B-25J Mitchell (Flying Bulls) | Frederic Handlemann & Lugwig Reiter |
 | Republic P-47 Thunderbolt G-THUN 'Nellie B' (Fighter Aviation Engineering) | Cameron Rolph-Smith |
 | Grumman F8F-2P Bearcat G-RUMM (The Fighter Collection) | Pete Kynsey |
 | Grumman FM-2 Wildcat G-RUMW (The Fighter Collection) | Stu Goldspink |
 | Hawker Fury FB.II G-CBEL 'SR661' (Painted as Sea Fury Prototype) (Fighter Aviation Engineering) | Paul Bonhomme |
 | Hispano HA-1112-M4L Buchón "White 9" G-AWHH (Biggin Hill Heritage Hangar / Warbird Experiences) | David Puleston |
 | Hispano HA-1112 Buchón G-AWHK 'Yellow 10' (Aircraft Restoration Company) | John Romain |
 | Lockheed 12A Electra Junior G-AFTL (Fighter Aviation Engineering Ltd) | Jon Corley & Claire Bradley |
 | Gamebird GB1 | Steve Jones |
 | Extra EA-300/SC | Mélanie Astles |
| Static Display and viewing inside | ||
| C-47 'Placid Lassie' (replaced Douglas R4D 'Ready For Duty', which was unable to transit from the USA) | ||
| Static | ||
| Beechcraft GB-2 'Staggerwing' (Elizabeth Charney Ulfig) | ||
| Buchón Red 11 (in the Battle of Britain bar) | ||
| Supermarine Spitfire MH415 (in the Battle of Britain bar) | ||
| de Havilland DH82 Tiger Moth G-ANTE and G-ALIW (originally listed as flying) | ||
| Cancelled | ||
| Fokker DXXI Reproduction (Fokker D21 229) (Technical problem) | ||
| Hawker Tempest II (Fighter Aviation) (not ready for displays) | ||
| Douglas C-47 'Night Fright' (Night Fright Promotions Ltd) (not ready for flight) | ||
| C-47 'Placid Lassie' (Tunison Foundation) (was in the flying list at one stage but reverted to static) | ||
| Douglas A-26 Invader 'Million Airess' was added to the static display list but was not available for display at the show. | ||
Appearances are always subject to technical, weather and other constraints. | ||
Another example of seamless transitions came soon afterwards in a naval fighter formation. This began with a single pass from the three Corsairs, the Bearcat and the Wildcat in a five-ship formation, from which Stu Goldspink broke away to give another of his superlative displays in the Wildcat. The three Corsairs then took the spotlight for a relatively brief but harmonious display led by Brian Smith in the Goodyear until they, in turn, gave way to Pete Kynsey, Chief Pilot at the Fighter Collection, in that company's Bearcat.
Between the opening extravaganza and the naval fighter display, and to the surprise of the commentators on Saturday, one of the 2Excel Aviation Oil Spill Response Boeing 727s made a rarely-seen and impressive low flypast. 2Excel Aviation have two such oil spill response aircraft, which are fitted with equipment that enables them to disperse oil spills anywhere in the world when called.
Both days were full of highlights but one of the greats worthy of special mention was a rare Flying Bulls four-ship in which their P-38, B-25 and Corsair flew alongside P-51 'Nooky Booky IV': the first time Nooky Booky has flown in that company since joining the Flying Bulls fleet.
To open the sequence, the B-25 led a perfectly maintained 4-ship formation. The B-25 broke to provide an exemplary solo display before the remaining three gave a truly exceptional aerobatic demonstration that would have been remarkable in identical aircraft but was simply stunning in three with such different flying characteristics. The display was not solely a series of formation passes, but included rolls, loops and a tailchase, the P-38 sometimes trailing smoke, which served to emphasise the pace of the movement and volume of sky traversed.
Excellence and rarity extended to the aerobatic displays, too. Without wishing to take anything way from the wonderful skills displayed at airshows nationwide, it is truly refreshing to see aircraft and routines that are unusual in the UK airshow setting. Steve Jones is well known to anyone who follows airshows, for example from his time with Paul Bonhomme as the Matadors, but at Sywell he threw his own Gamebird GB1 around the skies, something he has vowed not to do at any other venue. The Gamebird is an aerobatic and touring airframe which is becoming widely available and will no doubt be seen worldwide in other hands. But not flown like that.
Melanie Astles flew another rarely-experienced aerobatic display in a more familiar Extra 330SC. Melanie has joint British and French nationality but lives in France. Melanie is the holder of six French and one English aerobatics titles and the first lady to race in the Red Bull air races. Melanie Astles gave a stunning, precise championship-type performance blending into a freestyle finale. And she could still stand up when she landed. Brilliant.
Another first for Sywell was the first UK display by '46 Aviation' wingwalking display in which Emilio Del Buono gave an impressive flying performance in a Boeing Stearman with his wife, Danielle, wandering around outside. To begin with, Danielle was in the familiar harnessed location on top but each time Emilio brought the Stearman back to the crowdline she had moved: to the wing; hugging the struts and even hanging by her legs, upside-down on the bottom wing. Danielle was once a Breitling Wingwalker but she and her pilot husband have certainly moved on.
And if two wings on the Stearman were not enough, there were three on the Fokker Dreidecker Dr.1. Mikael Carlson has half-a-dozen vintage aircraft reproductions and brought two of them to Sywell. He had taken the Dreidecker for its maiden flight back in November 2008 after a 3½ year build using original and authentic materials. Here at Sywell he flew it again, alongside that man who can fly anything, Stu Goldspink, in Mikael's Fokker D.VII. The take-off, direct from the static display line, was surprising and spectacular, as was the pairs display in which the pilots of both Fokkers demonstrated their extreme manoeuverabilty deserving, and gaining, ardent appreciation from a mesmerised crowd.
One of the major draws for family and general visitors, was the display by the Red Arrows, which ended proceedings on the final day of the show, but on the Saturday the ending was quite different. There was a deliberate pause in the show, lasting about an hour, before an early evening 3-display finale. It wasn't clear whether the pause and resumption was to provide an evening display in different light, or whether it was to split the crowd: airshow aficionados staying on whilst the more casual visitors had a chance to leave early and get ahead of the traffic. Whatever the motive, it seemed to work, with a substantial number departing but the remainder enjoying an early evening display by Mark Levy in 'Jersey Jerk' and a day-ending aerobatic exposé by Paul Schofield in Mk V Spitfire EE602.
Although the day was full of excellence from hugely experienced pilots on top of their game, Richard made room for another who is just starting out. Between those Saturday evening displays by experienced and well respected pilots, there was a chance for Danny Williams to take to the air in Tiger Moth G-AMTV for his first ever public display, having achieved his Public Display Authorization only days previously. Not yet permitted to fly aerobatics, Danny nevertheless presented a very competent and confident display of which he can certainly be proud. He was clearly in relaxed control of his mount and well deserved the applause from knowledgeable onlookers that he received on his return to terra firma. (... continued below the pictures)
Rather than mention all pilots in the script, pilot names and aircraft ownership are in the aircraft table.
Corsair Trio
Steve Jones in Gambird GB1
Mélanie Astles in Extra EA-300/SC
Fokker D.VII
There are more and larger photos of Sywell 2024 in the Photo Gallery
Other highlights abounded, high on the list for most being the nine-ship Spitfire display to end the main part of the flying on Sunday and the grand finale on Saturday, in which all nine: two Mk.Vs, three Mk.IXs (including the Mk XVI Suffolk conversion), Grace Spitfire Tr.IX, a PR.XI, Mk.XVI, and two FR.XIVs (all as listed in the table) flew in formation and then broke into a nine-ship tailchase a brief three-ship aerobatic display and a stunning solo by Ben Cox in the Grace Spitfire, possibly designed as a fitting and emotive tribute to an absent mentor.
It is tempting to recite a litany of all the aircraft in the show, to cover all of the excellent displays, but take it as read that they were all spectacular and a trip down the aircraft list in the table is testament to the variety of craft and excellence of the pilots.
The displays were the highlight of a perfect day but the show peripherals were clearly also well thought-out and an example for other shows to follow. The static displays, for example, were mainly grouped in a traditional line. Less traditionally, visual access was available to the rear as well as the front of the aircraft and the ropes to keep the public from the aircraft were more subtle than the thick coloured alternatives and cones so often seen elsewhere, distracting much less from the overall look.
Other statics had their specific area. In particular, the Red Bulls were in a separate enclosure arranged to make it easy to see each of them - and to witness the constant polishing evidently necessary to keep the aircraft in such impeccable condition.
'Placid Lassie', one of the C-47 aircraft that came over from the USA for the D-Day Commemorations, was also on display and attracted a queue of visitors eager to take a look inside.
Reviews don't often mention the commentators but credit has to be given to James Holland and Mike 'Lingy' Ling of Red Arrows fame for their Saturday duo. Both clearly had knowledge in their heads as well as at their fingertips. They were able to share their considerable expertise, aided by notes, no doubt, but without sounding as though they were reading from a crib-sheet. And they knew when pause to let the aircraft speak for themselves. James couldn't make it on Sunday but Lingy was able to call in the able assistance of a variety of pilots, all able to add gems based on their own flying experience with the various aircraft. Very informative and very refreshing.
Special mention, too, for the catering facilities. To be fair, most other shows don't have the opportunities available at Sywell, but credit to the organisers here for making the most of the opportunities they do have. The Battle of Britain bar, for example, made excellent use of a hangar, where diners could watch a classic film and sit around tables with a snack, a coffee or a beer in the impeccable company of Buchón Red 11 and Spitfire MH415. (... continued below the box)
The first 'Great Aerial Pageant' was part of Sywell's opening ceremony in 1928. The second, in the following year, attracted an estimated 35,000 spectators. Since then, what was once a basic airfield has grown to become an award-winning General Aviation Airfield with hard runway, museum and hotel.
A variety of shows were held at Sywell from the early years. Most recently the Sywell Airshow was held every other year until 2014. The show due to be held in 2016 was cancelled following the Shoreham airshow incident. Other events, notably 'Pistons and Props', continued at Sywell (except during the Covid years) but the headline Sywell Airshow had been absent from the Airshow calendar until an announcement in December 2023 that it would return in 2024.
There was a proposal to hold Flying Legends at Sywell when that show announced it was moving from Duxford, but the proposed shows in 2020 and 2021 were cancelled because of Covid. The 2022 show was also cancelled when Flying Legends announced they were seeking an alternative venue.
Like Duxford and Old Warden, many of the airshow participants are based at the aerodrome. In Sywell's case, the residents are Ultimate Warbird Flights and their parent company, Air Leasing.
There were also the usual trade stands, a few classic motors and plenty to keep the little ones amused. Even the weather played ball. On Saturday, after an overcast and sometimes threatening sky earlier in the day, the weather cleared to blue skies with white cloud in time for the start of the air displays, bang on time at 13.00. On Sunday the day started bright and stayed that way throughout.
Traffic management often comes in for criticism but, even though the airfield is accessed by minor roads, which normally becomes an issue elsewhere, the car parks cleared relatively easily and, although there were a few diversions to avoid congenstion, by and large the traffic kept moving.
The last airshow of any size at Sywell was about a decade ago. Yes, there have been 'Pistons and Props' in the meantime, but nothing on the scale of this one. There are great risks in bringing what was effectively a new show to the circuit, and significant upfront costs, so it is not an enterprise to be taken lightly. Lots of airshows have been unable to continue. Lots more are still running, but struggling. So it is a brave person who takes that plunge.
Yes, Sywell has some advantages that most other shows don't have. For a start, it has resident aircraft, whereas shows without based aircraft have higher bring-to-site costs. Equally important, perhaps even more important, it has ready access to unparralleled expertise. Richard Grace and his team know the trade inside out, know the people, and 'know the ropes'.
But those things on their own are not enough. It takes very careful planning and an instinct for what is right about a show. And they certainly had that. There was enough organisation that everything went smoothly from a visitor point of view (accepting that there may well have been difficult moments behind the scenes) but not so much that visitors felt organised.
And the displays. An excellent blend of types, with a mixture of the big boys and the never-seen-before.
So, overall impression? Brilliant. More, please.
The Aerodrome is easily accessed from the A45, M1 and A14. It is less than a mile from the A43; four miles from Wellingborough and ten miles from the centre of Northampton.
Use postcode NN6 0BN in the Sat Nav until you get close, but ignore sat nav in favour of local airshow signs as soon as you see them.
There are links to other route planners in the Travel Advice section.
Wellingborough station is about 5 miles away and has services to and from London St. Pancras and Corby. Northampton station is about 10 miles away and has rail services to and from London Euston, Milton Keynes and Birmingham. It is possible to use local bus services between the stations and the Aerodrome but they take a while. Taxis are available from both stations.
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.
The location is already built in to the links but please check, and change as necessary, the dates, number of rooms and number of guests.
There is a Premier Inn hotel in Wellingborough about 6 miles away, three in Northampton, about 8 miles away and one in Kettering about 11 miles away.
There are seven Travelodge hotels in Wellingborough, Northampton and Kettering, all within 10 miles of Sywell.
A full 7 day Wellingborough (for Sywell) 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.
thigh.doubts.chucklingSat Nav NN6 0BN
For links to other travel and route planning web sites, click the 'Getting There' tab