Alldays Fly-In Festival 16 June 2012
By Johan Barnard
What a great weekend!! What more can a person ask for than the bushveld, planes and more planes! The event… The 2nd annual ALLDAYS FLY IN FESTIVAL. Departing from a private airstrip near Marble Hall, meeting enroute with a few others from Groblersdal we made our way to Alldays. Beautiful, crisp blue skies was with us all the way.
Flying over the Blouberge and then descending for Alldays we were notified that a Gripen was in the area and to be on the lookout. Unfortunately we didn't get a glimpse of this "beast" but those already on the ground were entertained by this spectacular sight.
On arrival we were met by friendly faces and a very festive atmosphere. Saturday morning a pilot briefing and a very informative presentation was held by Maj Hano van Eck from Air Force Base Makhado, lots of information about the Gripen and Hawks, flying procedures, safety etc. Later during the day a Gripen and a Hawk "visited" Alldays with a Fly by again. Where else would you get this kind of treat at a Fly Inn!!
An estimated 70 aircraft flew in for the event with some coming from as far as Cape Town. The "Harvard Club" brought a few of the Harvards from Swartkops and Mike Lombard and Werner Schmikel were very busy during the day taking people for flips in this iconic trainer.
One Interesting craft that caught my eye was a motorised glider with a retractable propeller. It is powered by a Rotax 914 Turbo, have a wingspan of 75ft and an unbelievable gliding ratio of 50:1.
100's of vendors put up their stalls, great food (and I really mean great food), flavoured mampoer, biltong, model toys, clothes... you name it! South African bands like DJ Ossewa, Snotkop to name but a few entertained us with their talent throughout Saturday afternoon and evening.
All too soon the weekend came to an end, and aircraft departed in all directions on Sunday morning. It was my first Alldays Fly Inn, but certainly not my last. A Big thank you to the guys & girls from Alldays for putting together this great event.
Flying over the Blouberge and then descending for Alldays we were notified that a Gripen was in the area and to be on the lookout. Unfortunately we didn't get a glimpse of this "beast" but those already on the ground were entertained by this spectacular sight.
On arrival we were met by friendly faces and a very festive atmosphere. Saturday morning a pilot briefing and a very informative presentation was held by Maj Hano van Eck from Air Force Base Makhado, lots of information about the Gripen and Hawks, flying procedures, safety etc. Later during the day a Gripen and a Hawk "visited" Alldays with a Fly by again. Where else would you get this kind of treat at a Fly Inn!!
An estimated 70 aircraft flew in for the event with some coming from as far as Cape Town. The "Harvard Club" brought a few of the Harvards from Swartkops and Mike Lombard and Werner Schmikel were very busy during the day taking people for flips in this iconic trainer.
One Interesting craft that caught my eye was a motorised glider with a retractable propeller. It is powered by a Rotax 914 Turbo, have a wingspan of 75ft and an unbelievable gliding ratio of 50:1.
100's of vendors put up their stalls, great food (and I really mean great food), flavoured mampoer, biltong, model toys, clothes... you name it! South African bands like DJ Ossewa, Snotkop to name but a few entertained us with their talent throughout Saturday afternoon and evening.
All too soon the weekend came to an end, and aircraft departed in all directions on Sunday morning. It was my first Alldays Fly Inn, but certainly not my last. A Big thank you to the guys & girls from Alldays for putting together this great event.
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