2003 Diary

31st December 2003:

Back from Australia :-(

Another fab holiday in Perth with the top temp hitting 43oC IN THE SHADE - Excellent! More great diving too with even better quality photos thanks to Hyla's digital camera and housing. Click HERE to view.

25th October 2003:

Aerial views of Snetterton airfield

Hyla flew over Snetterton in September this year and took some great pics. I've only just got round to putting them online! You can see the old hardstandings and the remains of the main runway, plus the site of a T2 hangar. Check it out HERE.

18th October 2003:

"Scare yourself Sensible" day at Lotus Cars

A great morning at Lotus cars with a factory tour and then a 20 minute track session on the awesome Lotus test track with Hyla as my instructor. I did well and even got a certificate. Cool!

5th October 2003:

Rougham Control Tower 1940s weekend

Back to Rougham again for a day of nostalgia, military vehicles, trade stands, and fab forties dance displays! A clear and sunny but windy and cold day, and plenty of crowds made for a good day out. Had another wander round and tower and a personal escorted tour courtesy of Clifford (thanks dude!).

Again, I was sad to leave and go back to the "real world" of today. The more time I spend at these 1940s weekends with their friendly people and great music, the less I like living in the 21st Century!

21st September 2003:

Hardwick Open Day

Another trip to Hardwick but this time to see the 93rd and 489th BG museums, which were closed when I was last there sitting in Maurice Hammond's gorgeous Mustang. More text and photos HERE.

20th September 2003:

Great Henham Steam Rally

A nice day out at the Royal Norfolk showground surrounded by traction engines and old steam organs. I love traction engines, I could stand and watch them all day, I love the smell of their smoke, the majesty of the showman's engines, the sound of the pipe organs as they belt out the old classics from bygone eras.

14th September 2003:

Martlesham Heath Open Day

I'd never been to Martlesham Heath and didn't know much about it so I trotted along to their Open Day on Sunday, as it promised Stearman and BBMF Spitfire flypasts.

Unfortunately I was a bit disappointed. Had I known that the entire ground floor of the Tower was a children's nursery I may not have driven such a long way to go and see just the upstairs (Brands Hatch Superbikes was my other option which I turned down - drat!). There was a good selection of memorabilia and photos and stories to read about, but I had been around and seen it all within an hour. None of the other rooms in the upstairs were exhibited, and unfortunately the Tower was very "modern" on the inside, with office-style carpets, nets at the windows, and other modern fittings. I'm too into my more genuine-looking Towers I'm afraid! There was no peri track or runway left either and the poor Tower was smack in the middle of a housing estate and near a school and playground. Very un-atmospheric for all you hardcore WW2 nostalgia-merchants out there!

The BBMF Spitfire wasn't due until about 4.30pm, and after I had browsed the nice selection of military vehicles on display, there was nothing else to do so I left at about 1pm. There was a radio-controlled plane club there but they had modern planes and choppers, and modern cars. Where were those gorgeous P47s and P51s that were flying at Debach?

24th August 2003:

Glenn Miller Festival

A contrast to last weekend's V2003 rock festival, I spent today at Twinwood Airfield for the annual Glenn Miller Festival, and it was GREAT! More text and photos HERE.

18th August 2003:

V2003

A rockin' day out with Hazel at V2003 at Weston Park, Staffordshire with the Foo Fighters definitely my Band of the Day, they rocked!

Also playing were The Cardigans, Coldplay, Feeder, Ash, Super Furry Animals, and Turin Brakes amongst others. Typically for my kind of luck, the sun didn't shine but it was still nice and warm. Big thanks to the guys throwing cups of beer during the Foos set, I was very suspect about the "warm" beer that landed on us - ewwwwwwk!

10th August 2003:

Framlingham Control Tower

Today I was meant to go to Horham for an open day but I ended up at Parham instead! Photos HERE.

1st August 2003:

Lowestoft

A total washout at the Lowestoft Air Festival, as you can see - rain drizzle, poor visibility and no planes! A polar opposite to last years glorious sunshine. I should have gone on Thursday, which was definitely the better day. Bummer!

31st July 2003:

New ratties!

Went to pick up my two new baby ratties today, from Julie at the Valhalla Rats in Wisbech. I got one Dumbo rat (top) and one normal "top-eared" rat. I wanted to call them Hinge & Bracket after the comedians but as I watched them they named themselves. Pearl because her colour reminded me of a furry pearl with a tail, and Snuffy because, well, she snuffles a lot! Both are hyperactive and curious but Pearl is the most chilled and already falls asleep tucked into my dressing gown.

23rd July 2003:

'Janie'

Another tick on my list of "Things to do before I die" - to sit in the cockpit of a P-51 Mustang. And what better Mustang than Maurice Hammond's gorgeous "Janie". More text and photos HERE.

12/13th July 2003:

Duxford 2003

Well I finally realised one of my dreams - to sit in the pilot's seat of a B17.....More text and photos HERE.

8th July 2003:

Airfields of the Eighth

A great evening out thanks to Mike Nice and his WW2 restored Tiger Cub. We flew locally and visited Thorpe Abbotts, Eye, Horham, Halesworth and Metfield airfields.....More text and photos HERE.

6th July 2003:

Mystery Vet uncovered!

I emailed Rougham Tower organisation to find out who the mystery Veteran was that I was too shy to speak to (see below) and I got a reply - Arthur L. Ennis, 94th Bomb Group, 331st Squadron, he was a waist gunner not assigned to any particular aircraft. He took off on nineteen missions, credited with thirteen.

Feel a bit better now! The guys at Rougham are emailing him to get more details of his time there, so I'll be interested to hear what they find out.

29th June 2003:

Old Buckenham Airshow

A marvellous sunny day out at "Old Buck", home of the 453rd Bomb Group and also famed for having James Stewart and Walter Matthau stationed there during the war.

Planes in attendence included Harvards, Yak 52 and 11s, Stearman, Bulldog, Beach Staggerwing, Sukoi 29, Extra 300, the UK parachute team, and best of all, the gorgeous P51 Mustangs of Maurice Hammond and Rob Davies, which were the final display of the day. Those two guys are the luckiest men on earth to be able to own and fly one of those beauties. I will be forever jealous.....

Interesting Mustang fact - fuel consumption is 3 gallons per minute takeoff power, 2 gallons per minute display power, 1 gallon per minute cruising power! Eeek!

28th June 2003:

Rougham control tower/steam rally

It's official - I am an idiot. Why? Because today I stood within feet of a 94th Bomb Group veteran, and I said and did nothing........More text and photos HERE.

22nd June 2003:

Horham open day.

This was my first visit to Horham, and although the airfield itself is almost non recognisable, with only one runway in use as a light aircraft landing strip and the rest returned to agriculture, the hospital site is complete and the Officers Club site is near complete and under restoration. More text and photos HERE.

15th June 2003:

Debach airfield open day.

Debach was left to nature after the war (see the B&W photo on my BOMBERS page) but 2 years ago restoration of the Control Tower began. Due to limited funds the restoration is going slowly, and all the artefacts in the Tower were not in protective glass cases - very trusting of the owners! It was nice to go into the tower and to see the bare original floors and brickwork of the yet to be restored rooms. Gave it much more atmosphere! More text and photos HERE.

23rd March 2003:

Thorpe Abbotts Control Tower & Museum!

Yep, another fab day of WW2 Bomberdom at Thorpe Abbotts and the fantastically-restored control tower that is now a museum housing artefacts, stories, photos and memorabilia of the 100th Bomb Group. Plus a flypast by a P51 and a Yak!

For more about Thorpe Abbotts and lots of pictures, click HERE.