Aerosparx at Blickling

The Great British Prom at Blickling in August is planning a huge celebration of the RAF centenary – and the latest guest to the party has been announced as Aerosparx, the only team in the world to combine formation flying, aerobatics and night time pyro! 

They will be joining the Rolls-Royce Spitfire to combine the best of the old and the new, bringing their own unique specialities to the skies above Blickling. 

The scene is set and, with the National Symphony Orchestra leading the musical programme of well-known RAF inspired music, Cranwell Military Wives Choir and Soprano, Philippa Healey, Blickling will be saluting all that is best about our great Royal Air Force.

Rolls-Royce Spitfire
Rolls-Royce Spitfire

The Summer’s evening will begin with a poignant and emotive fly-past by the Rolls-Royce Spitfire; as the iconic engine echoes around Blickling Park, the crowd will be waving their flags and the fitting tribute to current and past RAF servicemen and women will begin.

The Supermarine Spitfire is one of the best-loved and widely recognised British aircraft of all time, designed by Reginald Joseph Mitchell.  The prototype Spitfire, K5054, first flew on 5th March 1936 powered by a Rolls-Royce Merlin, the last of Sir Henry Royce’s engine concepts before his death.  Delivery of the first production Mk1 Spitfires into RAF squadron service took place from July 1938.  The Spitfire and the Hawker Hurricane with their Merlin engines achieved lasting fame during the defensive action of the Battle of Britain in 1940 when the invasion of the British Isles was averted.  By the time production ceased more than 22,000 Spitfires and Seafires (naval versions of the Spitfire) were built.  It was the only allied fighter to remain in full production and front-line RAF service both prior to and after World War Two. The Spitfire also served in 28 other air forces across the world. 

The Rolls-Royce Spitfire, PS853, is an unarmed, high-altitude reconnaissance aircraft, one of a batch of 79 Mk XIXs built at Supermarine, Southampton. The Mk XIX was powered by the 2,050 hp Griffon 65 or 66 and represents the pinnacle of the Spitfire’s development in terms of speed and altitude capability with a top speed of 446mph and a ceiling of 42,000ft.

PS853 was delivered to the Central Photographic Reconnaissance Unit at RAF Benson on 13th January 1945, before moving to Belgium and Holland. The aircraft was engaged on active service with 16 Squadron up until the end of the war and participated in “Operation Crossbow” to detect V1 and V2 “vengeance weapon” launch sites.  PS853 performed the last ever Spitfire THUM sortie on 10th June 1957 and was retired into ceremonial and display duties to form the RAF’s Historic Aircraft Flight, the forerunner of today’s Battle of Britain Memorial Flight (BBMF). 

In 1996, Rolls-Royce bought PS853 to replace the original Rolls-Royce Spitfire XIV, G-ALGT which had been destroyed in a crash in 1992; it represents the heritage of the Spitfire and the Rolls-Royce engines that powered them as well as honouring the pilots of all nations who flew them, and the men and women who built and maintained them. 

In 2010, 65 years after its first delivery to RAF service and with over 2300 hours flying time accumulated in that time, PS853 was taken out of service for its first major overhaul. The aircraft was fully restored to as-new condition and is now presented in the exact colour-scheme worn on delivery to front-line squadron service in Europe in early 1945; it’s now based in a dedicated hangar at East Midlands Airport, near Derby. 

Phill O’Dell, the pilot likely to be in the cockpit on Saturday 11th August is looking forward to flying above familiar territory: “I was based at RAF Coltishall 20 years ago and used to regularly visit Blickling Hall with my family, so it holds very special memories for me.  Anthony Inglis, the conductor, and I have worked together before, many years ago, and it will be wonderful to work with him again; I’ve also seen AeroSPARX perform and their display is phenomenal.  It should be a fantastic evening!”

The first half of the concert will be a musical tribute to “those magnificent men in their flying machines” including, William Walton’s “Spitfire Prelude and Fugue” and Eric Coates’s “Dambusters March”.   The National Symphony Orchestra will be conducted by world-renowned Anthony Inglis, who himself has very strong links with the RAF.  

After the Sunset Ceremony performed by RAF Marham personnel and as the sun begins to fade at the beginning of the second half, the AeroSPARX duo will shoot into the Blickling sky, in a blaze of colour and pyrotechnics.  There are hundreds of flying display acts world-wide, but only about 200 formation teams. Only half of these perform formation aerobatics and only 6 of these teams fly with pyro…. only 1 team does it all at night – AerosSPARX are globally unique!

As well as flying with fireworks, AeroSPARX bring together several innovations not seen before at air show flying displays.  The wingtip pyrotechnics have taken five years of careful development; they have a selection of different effects to choose from in order to control the history and trail of sparks emitted from the aircraft wings, giving the team the unique ability to perform anywhere and they’ve been dazzling audiences with their remarkable demonstrations as far afield as Saudi Arabia, China and New Zealand.  Last year, AeroSPARX added a new LED light system to their aircraft and with over 3,000 lights that can each be individually colour controlled, they will provide an incredible spectacle for the Blickling crowd.   

Established in 2015, AeroSPARX pilots Guy Westgate and Rob Barsby, regularly take to the skies in their Grob109b motor gliders. Guy is the team leader, eight times National Glider Aerobatic Champion at unlimited level and on the British team for three World Aerobatic Championships.  He has been flying aerobatics since 1993 and displaying gliders since 1998 and has two world records, tandem paragliding, with his brother.  His day job is an airline pilot where he flies Boeing 787 Dreamliners for British Airways from Heathrow. 

Guy and Rob will be in constant communication throughout the display via their airband radios and will have designed their display specifically to go with the chosen music.  The light display is usually between 5-8 minutes long and is guaranteed to wow the audience. 

Guy is excited about the evening as it’s the first time that they have performed a sunset display in Norfolk and the first display of this kind at a stately home, proms event: “This is a new genre for us; choreographing a display to accompany a proms orchestra above the grounds of a setting like Blickling Hall is something I’ve always wanted to explore further – it will be amazing!  Our motor gliders may not be as iconic as the Spitfire, but they are the perfect vehicle for us to literally paint a picture of light, in formation, in the twilight sky and the show will be specially choreographed for the Blickling audience.”

Organiser Lisa Ward said: “This year’s air display will be second to none and something of a first for Norfolk.  We know that the crowd adores the Spitfire and Aerosparx will add a completely new dimension and we’re thrilled that their first ever Norfolk twilight display is going to be with us at Blickling!  It’s going to be an absolute treat for everyone at the concert.”

The second half of the evening will be packed with performances of Proms favourites, including “Rule Britannia”, “Land of Hope & Glory” and British anthem “Jerusalem”, closing with a spectacular firework display over the lake, choreographed to the music.

Car-parking is free for all and guests can bring their picnics and champagne, wave their flags, and enjoy the music and aerial spectacle in the outstanding Blickling park setting.   Once again there will be a magnum of champagne on offer for the best fancy dress costume.

For full event details and tickets (£37.50) visit www.greatbritishprom.co.uk  or call the event box office on 01283 841601.

Revival Productions is led by Lisa Ward and Katharine Brindley, long-standing friends and business associates. They have considerable experience of putting on classical music events at stately homes up and down the country. Revival Productions’ first open-air classical concert, “Last Night of the Blickling Proms,” was held in August 2012 and has continued annually since, attracting crowds of over 5,000 each year. 

In August 2016, they held “Classic Ibiza”, also at Blickling Hall in Norfolk, with Urban Soul Orchestra and Goldierocks. Due to the success of the concert, “Classic Ibiza” is now also being rolled out at Capesthorne Hall in Cheshire, Ragley Hall in Warwickshire, Harewood House in Yorkshire,  Bowood House  in Wiltshire and Hatfield House in Hertfordshire in 2018.

The National Symphony Orchestra (NSO) is one of the longest established (1940s) and most versatile professional orchestras working in Great Britain today. It has a firmly established national and international reputation, successfully performing and recording for audiences in a dynamic range of genres: Classical, Film and TV scores, West End and Broadway Musicals and accompanying celebrated international singers. 

Anthony Inglis, one of the busiest international conductors, will conduct the orchestra. He is Music Director of the National Symphony Orchestra, Music Director for the Welsh mezzo-soprano Katherine Jenkins and Music Supervisor/Consultant to Phantom of the Opera in London. In over 200 conducting performances, it is reckoned there is no featured artist who has appeared more often at London’s Royal Albert Hall than Anthony Inglis.