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Post by Bruce on Oct 4, 2012 21:09:14 GMT 12
My mate and I had prepaid our tickets - we arrived at the airfield Rd gate at 8.30am expectingto be in a queue, but there were only 4 vehicle ahead of us. The very efficient and friendly traffic marshalls directed us to park in the maize paddock that used to be the Rugby grounds (behind Pioneer) and we walked along to a gate with lots of ATC people around. I expected to be asked for tickets,but was just handed an ad for the next airshow!. We kept on walking, expecting to find a ticket booth somewhere, and the next thing we knew, we were at the crowdline. There seemed to be quite a number coming in after us, but we were all from the "prepaid ticket" park, so I guess it should be OK.
One other odd thing though - during the first display we had a good possie down the side near Christian Aviation, but before the second slot, a chap in High viz was tryingto get everyone to move back to the main area as the ropes were aparently in the wrong place and the crowd infringed the paranoia safety lines. After some time with absolutely no effect - it looks like he gave up, and the grass in front of the hangars was very popular with lots of families sitting down having picnics etc. If we were really expected to crowd back into the main area I think there would have been some very unhappy punters - expecting a large crowd to cram into such a restricted area already full with the queues from the food vendors,and to sit on rough ashphalt to view the show past tents and buses is a bit of a stretch!
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Post by baz62 on Oct 4, 2012 21:12:46 GMT 12
yeah no one seemed interested in checking our tickets even when I waved mine about. We did buy a programme but basically we just walked in the entrance, we could have been ticketless but maybe it was too early, for us it was just on 8:30am. Should have had a open-ended tent or something with a big "Tickets" sign.
Oh well didn't worry us, the show was awesome!
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Post by JDK on Oct 4, 2012 21:13:36 GMT 12
Interesting Bruce. On the other side of the coin, it was one of the toughest air display areas I've seen laid out, with people / public both N, W and S of the 'line' and a funnel to a narrow gap where the grass and hard runways pointed together at the E (IIRC). Not a great environment for high performance aircraft pilots to manage, but everyone did well, nevertheless.
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Post by baz62 on Oct 4, 2012 21:14:57 GMT 12
Seems pretty odd because we arrived just before 8am and there were dozens of marshalls everywhere. Which gate are you taking about? We went through Airfield Road gate and on round to the Avspecs side passing the Hamlin Road gate, and both were very well covered. This would have been 7.50am We drove in the Airfield road gate and parked where Bruce indicated he parked Dave. |
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Post by JDK on Oct 4, 2012 21:16:29 GMT 12
We drove in the Airfield road gate and parked where Bruce indicated he parked Dave. Did you both realise you were both driving British antiques, or was this news? ;D |
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Post by DragonflyDH90 on Oct 4, 2012 21:25:07 GMT 12
The thing to be mindful of is that by these folk being in the "wrong place", even though it was through no fault of their own necessarily due to the misplaced ropes, it nearly meant the show could not continue. Due to the way the show was arranged (other side of the field from the norm) there were two crowd lines and two display lines, being that there were folk on both sides of the airfield. The two display lines were displaced 200m away from the crowd lines and this left a very, very small gap in the middle for the display aircraft to squeek through. When the people encroached into an area not supposed to be occupied this didnt not give the required clearance and effectively closed the gap we had to fly through. After a short while it was agreed upon that the show must go on and things resumed and new display lines were developed by those participating  some of you may have noticed the new display lines |
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rodm
Flying Officer
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Post by rodm on Oct 4, 2012 21:31:10 GMT 12
Wierd thing is, I have never heard of Walter Turner. Are you sure that isn't Walter Waterston? Hi Dave, it was the name he gave me as I walked down the line and asked. Walter Waterston - he wouldn't happen to be Wally Waterston, ex-RNZAF and ex-high school teacher in In'gill? PS - Walter Turner may be the Mossie vet that was in the crowd, and FGOFF Brett Mann organised for him to join the group shot. |
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Post by Dave Homewood on Oct 4, 2012 22:01:26 GMT 12
Hi Rod, Yes Wally Watston, ex-RNZAF and now lives in Queenstown so probably the same man you're thinking about.
OK, I didn't know one was plucked form the crowd, that is cool.
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Post by oggie2620 on Oct 5, 2012 2:33:41 GMT 12
Have been smiling all the time at all the pics and videos of this Mossie. So have all my Facebook friends who love aircraft! Keep em coming. We are so jealous over here!
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Post by hardyakka on Oct 5, 2012 7:40:26 GMT 12
After a short while it was agreed upon that the show must go on and things resumed and new display lines were developed by those participating some of you may have noticed the new display lines Yes I did notice. Hence all the great photos and videos popping up on the net... Nothing like proximity for good airshow photography. |
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Post by jp on Oct 5, 2012 9:11:57 GMT 12
I found the hi-viz people trying to move people to be a pita - I have no problem toeing the line (so to speak) if the rules are logical, but letting people move at random along the flightline to and from their vehicles, but not letting them stand with them doesn't make sense - its either a dangerous place to be or its not. Likewise, you were allowed to watch from your cars - provided you keep the windows rolled up. Really? Also, if its dangerous to stand in such and such place, this should also include photographers as well - their hi-viz is going to protect them from a wayward aircraft even less effectively than the safety glass side windows in someones car....
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Post by mumbles on Oct 5, 2012 9:14:16 GMT 12
The thing to be mindful of is that by these folk being in the "wrong place", even though it was through no fault of their own necessarily due to the misplaced ropes, it nearly meant the show could not continue. When the people encroached into an area not supposed to be occupied this didnt not give the required clearance and effectively closed the gap we had to fly through. Speaking of which, did anyone else see Harvard 1099 come within feet of collecting a few spectators as it crossed the fence after the Roaring Forties display?  The area in question was cleared shortly afterward, but people should not have been encroaching/gathering there in the first place. Not finger pointing at anyone, but the impression I got from this and other aspects was that the public interest and attendance was well underestimated, and so the organisers may have under-resourced accordingly. I haven't been to any other Ardmore shows, so have no other experience of the venue to compare it to. |
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Post by baz62 on Oct 5, 2012 11:46:38 GMT 12
NZ1098 wasn't it as NZ1099 is in Australia.
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Post by baz62 on Oct 5, 2012 11:48:59 GMT 12
We drove in the Airfield road gate and parked where Bruce indicated he parked Dave. Did you both realise you were both driving British antiques, or was this news? ;D Didn't realise the 2011/12 Holden Commodore was considered a British antique James...................or are you alluding to something beginning with A..... ;D |
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Post by Bruce on Oct 5, 2012 12:24:56 GMT 12
I'm not intending to be negative, but the layout of the show was extremely unusual, wierd even, And I'm puzzled by why it was like that. "Back in the day" of the great shows of the 1980s, they used the main seal and parallell grass only, with the crowd line parallel to that. the cross runway (now taxiway) was where the display aircraft were parked, with visiting aiircraft behind that. It meant that the crowd was on the "centre grass" and getting in and out was nice and easy. I wonder why the crosswind grass runway was used? Certainly it meant most of the best sitting area was out of bounds.... I wasnt aware of public access to the south side of the field - if it infringed on the "paranoia lines" then it should have been cleared, and you would have one nice display line, with happy punters having a decent view and somewhere comfy to sit...
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Post by nuuumannn on Oct 5, 2012 12:37:26 GMT 12
Hi James Very much so and I didn't know that that was you in the photo until we briefly met at the Subritzky's. Thought you might like that "Where's JDK"!  |
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Post by mumbles on Oct 5, 2012 16:06:08 GMT 12
NZ1098 wasn't it as NZ1099 is in Australia. It was neither actually, it was 1078! ;D I just have the yellow one stuck in my memory as 099 for some reason. |
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Post by baz62 on Oct 5, 2012 16:32:15 GMT 12
NZ1078 Oh yeah of course! ;D
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Post by McFly on Oct 5, 2012 18:20:34 GMT 12
Cool footage from the the other De Havilland aircraft...  |
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Post by spongebob206 on Oct 5, 2012 20:14:28 GMT 12
Just beautiful. Thanks |
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some of you may have noticed the new display lines 
The area in question was cleared shortly afterward, but people should not have been encroaching/gathering there in the first place. 
