The Kent airfield of Headcorn, formally known as RAF Lashenden, played host to the Aero Legends Battle of Britain Airshow weekend over the 24th-26th June. The weekend saw a variation of warbirds, aerobatics, and jet aircraft in what has grown into one of the highlights of the airshow season. The small airfield has hosted Aero Legends for a number of years, and the airshow since 2017, growing from just the Aero Legends fleet, to having the Red Arrows and the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight. The event had a handful of cancellations with the BAC Strikemaster pair from the Strikemaster Display Team, representing the newly created Jet Legends, (a branch company of Aero Legends) cancelling due to pilot availability, as did one of the North American T-6 Texans, as well as a Stampe and Douglas DC-3 “Drag-Em-Oot” as it was awaiting an engine change, however the flying quality was still top notch.
The weekend was an extended three-day show where I attended the Friday show, mainly as it had the Royal Air Force Aerobatic Team, The Red Arrows displaying. The team came down from RAF Scampton for a single display on the Friday and (unlike last year due to low cloud) performed their rolling display for the crowds. They opened the show with their normal polished routine of display flying, this year down to seven pilots and aircraft, which did, unfortunately, take a little of the magic out of the display and left the crowd wanting more. The new commentator for this year didn’t seem so polished, often fluffing his lines, repeating himself and losing the crowd as to what was happening – hopefully, he tidies that up as the year goes on. It was a coup for Headcorn to secure the Red Arrows, and testament to their ambition and growth as a show to attract them to display here.
Away from the Reds, the vintage types were the other reason to attend Headcorn this year, the event always has a wide variety of them on show, and this year was no different, with the serene Biplanes following on from the Red Arrows. Flying a mixed formation led by the rare Thruxton Jackaroo, the display was led through some gentle passes and formation changes, made up behind with the de Havilland DH.82 Tiger Moth and Bucker Bu 131 Jungmann. The formation broke to allow the Jungmann some airspace to perform a series of spritely aerobatics above the airfield, which saw stall turns, flicks, rolls and inverted passes.
Higher energy aerobatics came with the ‘Nuii’ Ice cream sponsored Starlings Display Team, who brought out their toys for a bit of excellent formation displaying. The pairing is a new display team, flying a Mudry Cap232 and an Extra 330NG in the hands of Michael Pickin and Tom Cassells. The two of them put their different aircraft through a series of tight formation loops and passes, before breaking and performing opposition passes and stall turns – it was one of the best two-man aerobatic displays I have seen at any airshow. The pilots landed to a round of applause from the appreciative crowd, and well deserved it was too. Another team on display, and making their debut airshow appearance was the Wing Walk Company with their two Boeing Stearman airframes based at Headcorn. The two of them flew a sedate display with the Wingwalkers attached to the upper wing, whilst not as dynamic as the polished and world renowned Aerosuperbatics Wingwalkers, the display showed off what the company offers to people if they wanted to be strapped to a vintage aircraft and taken for a flight on the wing.
Moving on to the main bulk of the display theme: the warbirds. North American T-6 Harvards formed up for a unique display sequence which saw four of the type displaying together, with three in a formation, and the fourth (Aero Legends Canadian schemed T-6G) doing aerobatics above. The formation was made up of the Harvard G-CUIW, alongside the Aircraft Restoration Company example, and Aero Legends’ ‘Carly’ in her distinct green scheme with red cowling. The formation was led through a sequence of topside formations before breaking to land. The Harvards from Aero Legends also took part in the ‘Aero Legends formation’, in which they were joined by the Douglas Dakota ‘Pegasus’ in RAF colours, and Supermarine Spitfire MK.IX and Spitfire TR.9 ‘Elizabeth’.
As well as the heavy metal Dakota, coming from her home at Duxford was Boeing B-17G ‘Sally B’ who flew a couple of formation passes with the Dakota before breaking away for her solo display. The B-17 was put through a dynamic display routine on the Friday against some dramatic skies, with dark clouds in the background, and sunlight glinting off the aircraft. The highlight of this display was the elegant topside passes which saw ‘Sally B’ being shown off to her fullest. Another of the more powerful warbirds came from Bob Davy in his Yakovlev Yak-3U. The Yak was making its debut at Headcorn and unfortunately (being a new display sequence) meant it felt quite distant, however as he took advantage of the display box and the open space behind the crowd, it did allow for some unusual angles for photos as he banked round to reposition and actually felt closer there than in front of the crowds. The aircraft was carrying Ukrainian markings in support of the country, with the current war happening there.
One of the most evocative set pieces at the show is the dogfight re-enactment which saw the Aircraft Restoration Company’s Hispano HA-1112 Buchon “attack” the airfield, in the hands of John Romain. Following a couple of low passes and dives from high above, Anthony “Parky” Parkinson and Charlie Brown roared their Spitfires down the runway and into the Kent skies to bring to life what would have been seen and heard in the Summer of 1940. The chase was on, with the “109” being hounded by the pair of Spitfires from Aero Legends, with the eventual smoking of the Buchon as the pair of Spitfires got their “kill”. The pair then went into a two-ship aerobatic display with some tight topsides and formation loops, finishing, of course, with a victory roll.
The Battle of Britain Memorial Flight were in attendance across the weekend with the Hawker Hurricane MK.IIc, flying in from Biggin Hill to display each day of the show, Andy Preece was at the controls, and he put the Hurricane through its paces with some beautiful sweeping topsides, including one on the Friday which, like ‘Sally B’ earlier, saw some dark gloomy clouds in the background as the sun beamed off the wings of the airframe. It was an energetic display of this recently repainted and overhauled aircraft. On the Sunday, the BBMF did intend to send the Avro Lancaster for a solo routine as well, but adverse weather grounded much of the fleet at RAF Coningsby. Peter Kuypers brought over the Beech 18 Staggerwing for a display on the Saturday, the display was another debut at Headcorn and showed again the depth of different types the show had on offer.
The showpiece of the flying display was the Warbird Balbo, each year having a number of Spitfires and Hurricanes in formation for a number of passes, breaks and sequences which fills the sky with the roar of Merlins and the shapes of these iconic airframes. This year the Balbo was slightly smaller than that of the previous year, with four Spitfires and three Hurricanes in the finale. The two Aero Legends Spitfires from earlier led the way, with “Elizabeth” performing solo aerobatics above the main formation. Behind them came Spitfire PR.IX “L”, or better know as the NHS Spitfire from the Aircraft Restoration Company, also from them came Spitfire MK.VIII. From the Hawker stable came a trio of Mk.Is from Hugh Taylor, Hurricane501 and Hurricane Heritage to complete the formation. A tail chase followed the initial formation passes, with the 6-ship breaking to land as the solo Aero Legends Spitfire gave the crowd a couple more loops and rolls before completing the day’s action in the air.
Overall the Aero Legends Battle of Britain Airshow was, again, a delightful little show. It isn’t quite as big and crowded as the staple Duxford warbird airshows, nor as unique and niche as the Shuttleworth shows, but Aero Legends have crafted an airshow at Headcorn which epitomises the sense and emotion of a WW2 airfield in Kent, in the heartland of where the Battle of Britain took place. Growing from a showcase flying event for the company, it now draws in people from across the country with the assortment of warbirds, aerobatics and now jet displays which pack the programme. Critically speaking, the gaps between some of the displays was a nuisance, and it felt like time filling was happening too much from the commentary team - this has been a case for a number of years now, and something I implore the organisers to address, as the event doesn’t need to be spaced quite so badly I don’t feel. It’s a cheap airshow day out compared to most shows, its set in one of the most beautiful locations, and has historical provenance fitting to the event they’re hosting. If you are a warbird fan, this is a show you have to attend. Long may it continue.
Words and Photos by Matt Silvaire.
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