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Tag Archives: Hawker
More news from Great Yarmouth
Local reporter, Lauren Rogers, has published some more news about the IWM Duxford based Catalina G-PBYA coming to visit the area on the afternoon of Wednesday 21st. Read all about it on the EDP24 or the Great Yarmouth Mercury24. Great photos of the Sopwith Waterplane on the beach with interested onlookers all around.
21 days to go!
What a day! The decals from the RAFBF arrived by courier today and will be affixed to the aircraft prior to the flight. Other decals are expected. Another council has come on board with sponsorship for the local Control Point display and flight costs. Watch out for a formal announcement. Lots of calls from other parties involved namely CAA, the Garda in Ireland, regional press and Shell all gearing up for this 100th Anniversary of a historic flight. Also found some rare footage of Hawker and seaplane on Southampton Water.
FlyPast Exclusive
The September issue of FlyPast has broken the news with “Catalina to mark Hawker centenary”. Page 7 provides the details plus a great air to air shot of Plane Sailing’s Catalina G-PBYA “Miss Pick Up”.
Route dates and timings
Last week, the route with timings went in to the CAA for flight co-ordination purposes. However, it is time for everyone to start getting ready and planning where best to see the IWM Duxford based Catalina G-PBYA go past. Naturally all is weather dependent and subject to air traffic control (ATC) but the support from National Air Traffic Services (NATS) and local ATC units has been superb given the historic nature of what is planned. To find out more go to the Route page.
Fundraising for charities
The page for charities is now live with the Royal Air Force Benevolent Fund (RAFBF) listed and one more charity to follow. Any money donated via this page goes to the charity and it is totally separate to any sponsorship to support the Catalina’s flight around the UK.
30 days to go and counting down now!
A day of progress with the air display applications sent off to the CAA and an excellent meeting with Fiona and Laura, Public Relations and Fundraising Managers respectively, at the RAFBF. I had my first lesson on Twitter which challenged the grey cells but never to old to try something so expect some tweets in the coming days. Only diversion was a trip to the Mall Galleries to see the Guild of Aviation Artists, 2013 Aviation Paintings of the Year Exhibition. Great to see the names Sopwith, Hawker and Catalina among the exhibits.
Flying Legends and Water Landings
It was a hot weekend at Duxford and that includes the weather. Lots of disappointed visitors asked where the Catalina was and the answer was simple; Austria! She arrived back on Sunday evening at 1830 after a successful trip to the Scalaria Air Challenge. Water was in demand at Duxford during the weekend but in Austria the Catalina water display went very well. Furthermore, all the PBY water rated pilots who fly G-PBYA were able to renew their ratings. With the pilots current on type, the question now is whether there will be a water landing during Project Hawker 2013?
50 days to go!
The logistics of the crew change in Oban has been resolved and the locals are gearing up to welcome the Catalina on this historic flight. At long last sponsors are starting to show their hand and the smallest tend to be the most generous. However, more sponsors are needed to cover the costs especially that of fuel. Time to dig deep!
Project Hawker 2013 