EXCLUSIVE
by Sam Hawcroft
A breathtaking dogfight between a Second World War Hawker Hurricane and a Messerschmitt will be the dramatic finale to this year’s Blue Light Weekend air show – a rare and possibly unique sight in UK skies.
The enemy aircraft will engage the Hurricane in a staged display above Withernsea’s seafront on Sunday, August 3, recreating a scene that would once have been all too real.
Organisers say it is likely to be the first time such a pairing has been seen over the Yorkshire coast, and possibly one of the only such displays in the UK this year.
The dogfight is the headline act in what is shaping up to be one of the largest free air shows in the North of England – thanks to the support of three local electrical firms who have joined forces to make it happen.
Under the slogan “ElectriFLYING the Skies”, long-time supporters Richardson Electrical & Mechanical Services, PJD Electrical and Thompson Electrical are sponsoring a show that will also include two classic Boeing Stearman biplanes, the return of the wartime Tiger Moth, the high-performance Jubilee Pitts biplane in its distinctive Union flag livery, as well as the Starlings Display Team, led by British aerobatic champions Tom Cassells and Mike Pickin.
The elegant US-built Ryan monoplane, a rare 1930s design flown by Charles Sunter, and a Bell 47 helicopter – the oldest airworthy example in Europe – are set to complete the line-up.
For more information about Blue Light Weekend, visit bluelightweekend.com
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