Over 80 Light Aircraft Association members are heading to the biggest fly-in in the world – Oshkosh 2022, starting Monday 25th July.
Find out more about Oshkosh, here:
All posts by Amy Whitewick
Blooming Bodmin Airfield
May 24th, 2022
Join us to hear about the incredible biodiversity at Bodmin Airfield with Jay Gates
Where do you think you’d find over 170 different plant species, including three species of Orchid- the Chelsea Flower Show? A nature reserve? Well, no, actually- a small private Airfield in the centre of Cornwall!
From a chance encounter with Ian Bennallick- a Cornwall Country botanical recorder, the biodiversity gem which is Bodmin Airfield, was unearthed. Ian spotted what looked like Orchids in the Airfield and identified three different species of Orchids on closer inspection. These were the Southern marsh, Heath spotted and Greater butterfly Orchids.
Bodmin Airfield has since become a key ‘Donor’ site of seed and green hay as part of the Meadow Match project, which provides a ‘dating agency’ to match makes donor and receptor sites of wildflower meadows. Wildflower Collective runs Meadow Match in partnership with the University of Exeter, The Halpin Trust and the SWEEP project.
Join us for a talk and Q&A by Jay Gates, who will tell you about this exciting discovery, and how they have inspired other airfields locally, nationally and even internationally to recognise their biodiversity potential!
Join us on Zoom on 24th May at the link below:
https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/blooming-bodmin-airfield-tickets-320577494917
Visit YES at the Shuttleworth Season Premiere Air Show 2022
Visit YES this year at the Shuttleworth Season Premiere Air Show, Sunday 1st May 2022.
Expect a thrilling air display from historic aircraft, fantastic children’s activities, and a chance to explore the beautiful Shuttleworth Swiss Garden. There is something to keep the whole family entertained!
Find out more information and book your tickets at the link below:
We look forward to seeing you there!
Royal Visit to Stansted Airport College
During March 2022, HRH Princess Anne popped in for a visit to Stansted Airport College and was shown around the engineering workshop by YES Ambassador, Rares Turcu.
HRH Princess Anne was impressed by the college work and the dedication of the students.
Celebrating International Women’s Day 2022
Patricia shares her story with us on IWD 2022:
YES Conference 2022
For years YES have enjoyed conferences at Brooklands Museum and in more recent times they have added Cosford Aerospace museum as a venue. The conference is an action packed day with many speakers from all aspects of aviation and many youth movements who are all locked together in a single thought of helping our youngsters discover the world of aviation. Time is also allowed for networking and this communication between attendees has led to incredible opportunities for our future adults.
The last two years has presented problems for us all due to the Covid pandemic so it was decided to hold the 2022 YES conference by ZOOM, something that we have all now become very familiar with. So the date was set for Friday 11th March at 17.00 with the following running order of speakers on the agenda with the set time allowed for each talk:
Conference Introduction: Eryl Smith, Chairman of the LAA ~ 5 mins
Youth & Education Support, YES, Stewart Luck, Acting Chairman ~ 10 mins
Green Credentials for Aviators, Cllr Louise Pepper, Uttlesford District Council, Portfolio Holder for Climate Change ~ 5 mins
The UK’s 1st AERO ECO AIRFIELD : Jay Gates ~ 10 mins
FOG…….. Feet Off the Ground charity at Bodmin Airfield. Pete White ~ 10 mins
Shuttleworth’s Discovery Zone, Mathew Studdert-Kennedy ~ 10 mins
WAT WW1 Heritage Trust, Dick Forsythe Chief Trustee ~ 5 mins
The Plane Guy, Andre Faehndrich S ~ 5 mins
Jet Age Museum, Mike Fortescue (Museum Volunteer ~ 5 mins
Aerobility Harvey Matthewson ~ 10 mins
A Teacher’s view of the Build A Plane Initiatives, Stewart Blakemore Project lead. 10 mins
Heritage Engineering Apprenticeships Francis Glalashan ~ 10 mins
LAA Struts, David Millin ~ 5 mins
Type Clubs, VAC & Aviation Artists Anne Hughes ~ 5 mins
Uttlesford District Council Communities Development Officer: John Starr ~ 5 mins
Cllr Richard Porch, Mayor of Saffron Walden ~ 5 mins
Stansted Aviation College/Havering College. B@P progress, Rares Turcu YES Ambassador ~ 5 mins
A full and varied selection of topics and with discussion time and the odd technical hitch we managed to complete our conference sometime before 22.00.
Without doubt the star of the show was, our Jay Gates, who presented a superb picture of how our airfield BODMIN has become the leading light in the UK, or possibly further afield than that, as a green ECO airfield. Watch this space!
Pete White, Chairman, FEET OFF the GROUND (FOG)
Today’s Top Tip from the Aviation Career Hub
Today’s top tip:
“Do not get disheartened by the current Covid situation. I have seen the worst but also the best in this industry and things will get better, without a doubt.
Resilience is a key factor, it will take an extra effort to succeed, but the rewards are second to none.” – Anders Tabima, experienced pilot.
Today’s top tip comes from Anders Tabima, an experienced pilot. Stay tuned for next week’s top tip, where another industry expert will give practical ways you can improve your job search, or simply some wisdom that will hopefully brighten your day.
These bite-size tidbits are perfect if you’re looking to top up your job-seeking knowledge with Aviation Job Search, while our Aviation Career Hub has tons more advice for throughout your career.
Aerobility is recruiting!
Is it a case of New Year, New You? Do you want to change lives through the magic and wonder of flight?
If so, Aerobility have two great roles which they are recruiting to:
- Fundraising and Outreach Events Manager
- Administration Assistant
Both support Aerobility’s core mission of providing access to aviation for anyone with any disability.
To read more about the roles and how to apply, please visit Jobs at Aerobility — Aerobility.
Record smashed at the World Pedal Plane Gathering 2021!
Over 59 pedal planes attended the Annual World Pedal Plane Gathering at the Shuttleworth Museum on December 29th 2021, beating the previous record of 53 set by the Experimental Aircraft Association (EAA) at Oshkosh, USA on 24th July 2019.
Main image above credit: Andre Faehndrich and Ron Shell
Organised as a joint effort between YES Flyers (Youth Education Support) and The Plane Guy (Andre Faehndrich), the event was a feast of entertainment for young and old alike, with activities provided by the Light Aircraft Association, Shuttleworth Discovery Team, IPMS Brampton and OWMAC realflight simulators.
Pedal planes from across the world, alongside UK pedal plane owners and their mini-pilots were invited to gather to be part of this historic aviation event and all participants were awarded a participation certificate. A grand parade was held, alongside a pilotless formation photo shoot.
“The Plane Guy [Andre Faehndrich], has actually coordinated everything for this record attempt. Getting 59 of these little planes from all over takes some doing in itself!” says Stewart Luck, ex-airline Captain and Volunteer for YES Flyers.
“We both help the Shuttleworth Trust Education dept with the outreach activities they undertake. This initiative is to ‘start them young’, to be involved in Aerospace and Aviation whether it be as a hobby or a career. We’re over the moon with this record smash and hope it continues to inspire future generations of young pilots. A huge thank you goes to all those involved with the event and to the hosts of the activities.”
Read more about Andre’s inspiring work with young people in aviation, here:
YES Flyers:
Our thanks go to the Shuttleworth Museum who hosted this event:
HCAP launches 2022 PPL flying scholarships
A number of PPL flying scholarships are available from the Honourable Company of Air Pilots (HCAP) – and the window for applications is open from now until 2 February 2022.
Providing up to 45 hours of flying training, the scholarships can take a candidate with little or no experience to completion of their flying licence during the course of the summer. Alternatively they can ‘finish off’ someone who is already partially trained.
Candidates must be 17 or over on 1 June 2022. The course must be commenced during June 2022 and completed by 29 September 2022.
Read more about the Scholarships and previous winners on the Flyer news page, here:
https://www.flyer.co.uk/hcap-launches-2022-ppl-flying-scholarships
To apply, click the link below:
https://www.airpilots.org/scholarships/flying-scholarships/flying-scholarships-2022/
Good luck with your application!
WW1 AVIATION HERITAGE TRUST – FLIGHT SIMULATOR
In 2015, with help from the National Lottery Heritage Fund, the WW1 Aviation Heritage Trust built a replica of a 100-year-old flight Simulator and fitted a VR Headset with a programme called Flying Aces to encourage young and old to experience the challenges of flying and fighting a WW1 aeroplane.
The intention is to use the funds created to keep their reproduction WW1 aircraft airborne – BE2, Albatros DVA, Nieuport 17, Fokker DVII (joining shortly). The inspiration for this project was Major Lanoe Hawker VC DSO RFC. Hawker had a major impact in his short life on the operational effectiveness of the Royal Flying Corps in just over 2 years 1914-1916 as a leader, pilot, innovator, and inventor.
One of his many inventions was the Rocking Nacelle created when he realised by mid-1915 that the attrition in pilots was getting extremely high through inadequate training.
Once the pre-war cadre had been killed, their replacements with no experience of shooting guns could not hit moving targets from their aircraft.
Hence, Hawker designed a cockpit that moved in 3 axes and allowed them to fire at targets on a range. He also wanted to ensure that the younger pilots he was leading, and training, were prepared for the challenges and pressures of live warfare in the air.
It was for this purpose that he devised the ‘rocking fuselage’ or ‘rocking nacelle’ for target practice on the ground, simulating the tough conditions in the air.
You can enjoy this exquisite mix of vintage mechanics with the latest VR technology as the rocking nacelle is now mounted on a trailer and available for hire.
The WW1 Aviation Heritage Trust’s (WW1 AHT) vision is to provide a unique, dynamic, and enduring testament to the evolution of aviation, and the bravery and innovation of the crews, in the Great War.
The Trust’s raison d’etre is to explain how the concepts of air power were founded in the air battles over France and to keep the infinite tales of courage and endurance of the Great War aviators in the public eye.
The Trust is creating and maintaining a collection of flying late-model original WW1 aeroplanes to encourage young people into engineering and flying by supporting STEM initiatives. The Flight Simulator is now mobile and will support the Trust in this aim while also contributing to the upkeep of the aeroplanes.
Air Traffic Services Assistant vacancy at Gloucestershire Airport – Staverton
An exciting vacancy has come available at Gloucestershire Airport for an Air Traffic Services Assistant.
A great and varied role, you will be able to learn a wide range of skills while assisting the Air Traffic Department.
Minimum qualifications are GCSEs and basic IT skills.
Other qualifications useful to this role (but not required) could include previous experience as a Cadet NCO or Ranger, or a recent Air Cadet or air-minded Scout/Guide.
In the past, these posts have been a starting point for full ATCO careers.
To find out more, please visit the Gloucester Airport vacancies page:
https://www.gloucestershireairport.co.uk/vacancies/
For job description, click here:
https://www.gloucestershireairport.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/ATSA-Job-Advert-09.11.21.pdf
World Pedal Plane Gathering at Old Warden on Wednesday 29th December 2021
Introducing the World Pedal Plane Gathering at Old Warden on Wednesday 29th December 2021, 12.00 noon.
The gathering is a joint venture between YES and The Plane Guy.
Our aim will be to gather up to 55 pedal planes to try and beat beat the current US record of 53 set at Oshkosh 2019!
The event will be held at:
Shuttleworth Trust
Old Warden Aerodrome,
Hill Lane,
Biggleswade SG18 9DX
Scouts Aviation Taster day Success at Audley End Airfield
An Aviation Taster Day for Scouts was held at Audley End Airfield on 16th October 2021.
Around 60 scouts attended the event from Newport, Thaxted, Carver Barracks, Bocking and Clavering, all located in N.Essex
At the first base on the day, Rules of the Air were covered in a fairly relaxed atmosphere:
The Second Base the scouts visited was to learn about Elementary Navigation:
How to conduct PREFLIGHT CHECKS was next at Base 3:
Our 4th Base Covered Aviation ART:
Some of the amazing artwork produced that was entered into the LAA Young Artists Competition:
The 5th Base was Aviation Careers.
Lunch was served to all Volunteers:
At the End of the day the Mayor of Saffron Walden, Richard Porch and 100-year-old PPL/LAA inspector Ted Barret exchanged notes:
A big thank you to the LAA who came to promote the aviation art competition and the Guild of Aviation Artists for their help on the day, Vintage Fabrics who allowed us to use their hangar for the art sessions, and all the PPL Pilots, Instructors, Scout Leaders and Counsellors who were all part of making the event so successful.
Thank you also to the WW1 Aviation Heritage Trust who took part in the event and have some exciting and interesting projects planned for the future.
Project Slingshot Update
On 20th October the fuselage, undercarriage, firewall forward and canopy kits for the Sling2 arrived at Cosford.
We have a lot of work to do now – the empennage still has to be completed so we are now planning to double the length of the build session each week.
