There’s only a limited number of events that I always make time for during a calendar year. The FIA World Endurance Championship’s trip to Silverstone and the Royal International Air Tattoo are two long term yearly fixtures, however an event that made its way on to my radar in 2014 was the Jersey International Air Display. After booking a £39 British Airways flight to the Channel Islands, out and back on the same day, I was struck by the content and setting of the show, giving me a desire to return in less of a rush.
As variety diminishes on the UK airshow scene, the efforts of the Jersey display committee are always highly commendable, catering well for multiple audiences, including the enthusiast community. This year continued the trend, with no less than three UK debuts, in the form of the Latvian Baltic Bee’s team, a Breguet Br.1050 Alize, and the Swedish Air Force Historic Flight’s Saab J32 Lansen.
With ongoing restrictions over the operation of classic jets on the UK mainland, Jersey becomes one of a few opportunities to see some these aircraft being put through their paces properly, so the chance to photograph the Swedish jets is not to be sniffed at.
From a personal perspective, the Jersey display has become more than a one day event, this year taking three days to view arrivals, practice displays, the show itself and departures. The further access to speak to the pilots and take a closer look at the aircraft on the ground, offers a more interactive experience, and also some different photographic opportunities.
This year’s show (a personal first!), the weather was less than clement with winds gusting at 40 mph, fortunately more-or-less straight down Jersey’s east-west Runway. This made displaying in St Aubin’s Bay a challenge, especially for some of the lighter, lower powered aircraft, which required some expert airmanship to keep displays safe yet entertaining, the Patrouille Reva and Supermarine Spitfire RR232 display being prime examples of this.
The very evident elephant in the room on the island surrounding the show was the lack of nine red jets, who has previously not missed a Jersey display. With the Red Arrows heading on tour, and RAF participation extending no further than an impressive wind-battling Battle of Britain Memorial Flight Avro Lancaster display, it was more down to civilian and foreign acts to take up the mantle and entertain on the traditional Battle of Britain Thursday.
Some other seldom seen gems booked included a Dornier Seastar CD-2, Remko Sibjen’s Stinson Reliant, and Richard Ellingworth’s Fairchild Argus, highlighted some of the obscure types which are actively pursued by the organisers to offer something different to other shows.
After a blustery day at the seafront, the winds abated for Friday which saw a vast majority of the participating aircraft depart. It was during the bulk of the departures mid-morning which reminded me of why I continue making the journey to Jersey for the show, though it’s a difficult feeling to put in to words. All I know is, that I’ll be back on the Island by Thursday 13th September 2018.
