What is your earliest aviation memory?

[mutley 4,495]

For me it was being looked after by my father sometimes in the school holidays when I was about 5. He worked for a company (Non-aviation) that just happened to be located within Southampton airport, I would watch the aircraft when I could but I could hear them all the time.

Since then I have been fascinated by all things aviation and flying.

Anyone else?

[wisemanp 0]

Probably staying at my Auntie and Uncle's flat in Hounslow with aircraft landing on 27L at Heathrow, and staying in one room for hours just watching plane after plane on the final approach.

Also, out in Grandpa's garden in Sutton, Surrey, which was right by the meeting points of inbound traffic from Biggin and Ockham VORs.

It's a shame that both these relations live in Ashford Middx now so all we see are southerly departures...

I can also remember a very embarrasing moment that i wont share on here but involved Concorde taking off, and getting scared...

[mutley 4,495]

Thanks Phil I think we can fill in the gaps there!

I remember watching the Concorde taking off from 27R what an awesome sight that was.

Cheer

[JPS 0]

Mine would have to be when my dad used to take me to the Queens building at Heatrow I cant remember my age but I was very young and since that moment the aviation bug bite me hard and I have been hooked from there on. I still visit Heathrow regulary with my dad and various airshows and gatherings.

Aviation plays a very very big part of my life and I owe it to my dad whos supports me in my dreams of flying.

[dgor 0]

Aer Lingus flight EI775 from Dublin to Valencia only 4 years ago! The only times I'd been on a plane before that were to and from Canada but I was only 2 so I was too young to remember those :sleep:

[reef 3]

1980ish and i was about 5 up at Newcastle visiting my Aunt Nancy with my Grandad. He took me to Newcastle airport for the day and on the walk down he told me to run up an embankment. As i reached the top an aeroplane flew directly over my head after taking off. I had been stood directly in line with the runway! The strange thing is, i can remember the day, i can remeber being on a viewing balcony and being with my Grandad. But i don't remember the aeroplanes. He died 2 years ago and i miss him alot but we had good times.

steve

[grth_bbtt 0]

when i was about 4 years old going from gatwick-edinburgh on the BA 737-200 a/c :sleep:

[ddavid 149]

When I was about 8 years old, my gran took me to London Airport. We drove, with my uncle, down the old Bath Road, and went to the Europa Building (now known as Terminal 2). We watched the 'huge' aero-planes landing and taking off and I had an ice-cream (I think!). To cap the visit off, I was given one of those friction-motion toys - a model plane similar to a DC-3 - which was my favourite toy 'til it broke.

A few years later, in 1959, my parents and I went to the Costa Brava - by a twin-engined Dakota - from Gatwick to Perpignan, and on to Spain by coach. The flight took 4 hours - we got a map of the route and boiled sweets for the landing.

What memories, eh? Now, I just look up at the 'planes flying between Heathrow and the States, with their contrails carving up the blue sky....

Mind you, my neighbour has a micro-lite (hang-glider type) so maybe I'll get up there again?

Cheers - Dai. :sleep:

[allardjd 1,853]

It's difficult to put any kind of time frame on most of these but all were around the time I was ten years old or before.

 

I recall frequently seeing a bright yellow "Bamboo Bomber", a Cessna T-50/UC-78 twin that was perenially parked at the local airport (KLDM - Mason County, at Ludington, Michigan), but apparently was flown seldom or not at all. Years later I happened across the remains of it, derelict in the local junkyard, where I happened to be looking for an automobile part. A sad thing...

 

An Army "flying bananna" (H-21 Shawnee, by Sikorsky, I think) helicopter was visiting at the local airport and we were allowed to walk up to it and look through the open door.

 

There was a visit to a large airport in the Chicago area while on a vacation trip, most likely Midway. There was an observation deck over the terminal and I have a distinct memory of an Ozark Airlines DC-3 loading passengers, then cranking and cranking and cranking one engine, which refused to start. They eventually unloaded all the passengers. My brothers and I thought it very funny.

 

An air show at Wurtsmuth AF base (now closed) which included B-47s and other current types. The stars of the show were one each, F-104 Starfighter and a brand new B-52 that was just entering the inventory. I'm pretty sure I was ten years old for that one, so probably 1956 or 1957. I think my brother has some black & white photos from that trip.