Last Saturday we brought Luke to Lasham. He is 13 years old and has had a really bad time recently. One week ago (as his family told us) he did not have the energy or will to leave his sofa even to go to the sweetshop across the road, but on Saturday he was delighted to make 1.5 hour journey with his family to come and fly with us.
This one off flight was pretty important to him and his family; in fact 10 of them turned up to spectate, including Auntie, Grandmother & cousins. (See photo)

Luke was piloting the Cherokee for around ½ hour and he had a great time flying around the Isle of Wight seeing the ferries docking and the sailing boats at Cowes.

Luke is the one of the first junior flyers for the BDFA this year; the cost of such flights will be met, wherever possible, by the BDFA, thanks to its sponsors and supporters. If you think you or your organisation could help us to provide more free flying experiences for sick or disabled children, or you would like to arrange such a flight for a friend or relative please click here to contact us.

This Wednesday Luke will back in Great Ormond Street Hospital for more treatment and we all wish him well.

If you havent got your tickets yet you need to get moving. This is our first such event and it promises to be an unforgettable evening, with world class food, drinks and entertainment. Auction prizes to include some very special experiences and memorabilia items that "money can't buy" from our extremely generous sponsors. Contact Simon Rapkin to purchase tickets. More information at www.aviatorsball.co.uk

The BDFA AGM is at the Aviator Hotel in Sywell on 12th May 2007. As usual, the plan is to keep business to a minimum and for us all to get together for a great social evening dinner and of course some flying on the Sunday morning. Dr Frank Voeten, GP, pilot and aviation doctor will be giving us a light-hearted presentation at the end of AGM proceedings, and we will also be welcoming Group Captain Sean Reynolds, Station Commander, RAF Odiham, as our guest of honour. Tales of recent operational flying in Afghanisatan and Iraq will surely make fascinating listening.

The event is only a few weeks away so please contact Norman Tench to book your tickets now on
01494 565406
normanandjenny@tench.me.uk

Thanks to Norman Tench for organising a visit to Bruntingthorpe on 17th April. We were fortunate to have Norman along as he flew Vulcans (amongs other things) during his RAF career and was able to give us the "inside story" on this magnificent aircraft which should fly again this year. Picture below shows Norman in the cockpit of a Vulcan for the first time since 1971!

Denis Parker kindly showed us around the aircraft and the museum.He has been involved with XH558 since it arrived at B'thorpe in '93, and was the 1st paid employee in '99 when the project started. He catalogued the 800 tons of spares , some 20,000 line items which forms the basis of the logistics system today. Denis clearly has an encyclopaedic knowledge and history of the XH558, the Vulcan type in general, the VFORCE and the cold war. He is known as the Project Anorak! The aircraft is being painstakingly rebuilt under strict CAA supervision and is expected to fly this summer to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the Falklands war.



Bruntingthorpe is also used by car manufacturers for testing, and they have a fascinating collection of military and civilian aircraft. More information at http://www.tvoc.co.uk/