Great Britain Air Displays FDC

Great Britain FDC
Name: Air Displays
Date of Issue: 17 July 2008

In 1908, Farnborough was the site of the United Kingdom's first powered flight by the American, Samuel Franklin Cody. He took to the air in British Army Aircraft One. 2008 is also the 60th anniversary of the Farnborough Air Show.

Denominations:
1st Class: Red Arrows
The Royal Air Force Aerobatic team was formed in 1964 to tidy up several different RAF aerobatic teams into one single unit. The greatest and best-known military aerobatics team in the world, they have performed at over 4,000 displays worldiwde and are a much-loved fixture of air displays and countless smaller outdoor events every year.

48p: RAF Falcons
The public will now routinely see high-precision routines from parachute teams at most big airshows and even garden fetes. The Falcons are the RAF's parachute display team, famous for their trademark 'non-contact canopy stack' jump. The Royal Navy have their own display team, the Raiders, while the famous Red Devils represent both the Army and the Parachute Regiment.

50p: Formation Flying
As small and agile biplanes gave way to faster monoplanes, then to jets, aerobatic displays got more spectacular - and further away from the crowds. It was 54 Squadron, flying de Havilland Vampires, that hit upon the neat solution of making themselves much more visible by bing the first to use smoke trails, made by releasing diesel and coloured dye into the jet exhaust.

56p: The Cold War
Until the Royal Navy became responsible for Britain's missile-based thermonuclear deterrent, the RAF was in the front line of any potential conflict with the Warsaw Pact. In the 1950s, air display audiences met new generations of fast jet-propelled fighters and bombers. Many would treat the crowds to a sonic boom or two, despite the objections of local residents.

72p: Wing Walking
Wing walking and other early stunts were so dangerous they were effectively outlawed, but they have made a comeback in more recent decades. Britain has at least one commercially-sponsored formation wing walking team performing at airshows and other events. It has also become a much sought-after experience among many extrem sports enthusiasts.

81p: Air Racing
From the very earliest airshows at Frankfurt and Rheims in 1909, competitive racing was a key element, allowing manufacturers to showcase designs and spurring companies - later nations - to improve their aircraft. The 81p stamp shows a speed contest fro monoplanes, won by William Barnard Rhodes-Moorhouse, who later became the first pilot to win the Victoria Cross.

Comment: This is my first real posted FDC from Great Britain. But it's very interesting. The Royal Mail cancelled this FDC but didn't send it directly to me, they put it into another bigger envelope, and then sent this bigger envelope to me by registered mail before issue day.