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I went to the Microlight Fair at Popham last Saturday. It was a great day out but being a tad rusty most of my photos were disappointing to say the least. I've picked out a few of the better ones to give an idea of the atmosphere.

When I arrived at about 9 am the circuit was already full of aircraft. Popham is only a small airfield & by 12.30 I was told there were at least 500 visiting aircraft on the field. I think this was a conservative estimate. The organisation is amazing & has to be seen to be believed. They might only be small but each aircraft has to clear the runway ASAP after landing & be directed to a parking spot.

Awesome. Great angles in all of these.

8-)

Angles shmangles  ;)

These are great Doug, and I'm not just blowing sunshine either. Ok, they're not perfect, but you are clearly pushing your settings to the limit here, and you have got some extremely punchy shots as a result.

Actually the angles are great too, plenty of variety  8-)

That first shot is a wonderful example of the day, what a sky! How on earth do they manage to control that?

"Ok Golf Charlie Tango.....see the conga line in front of you? Join on the back and don't tread on anyone's heels"

Looks like someone forgot to put out the mosquito repellent in the first one.

Terrific snaps, Doug.

WOWZERS...!

To me, that's what fun flying is all about!

Excellent, Doug...what a fantastic day out!...!

Even Shobdon doesn't get fly-ins quite as busy as that!

Paul..... 8-)..!

Fields full of Oil Seed Rape......!

Thanks for the comments. [smiley=thumbsup.gif]

Terrific snaps, Doug.

That's a nice compliment James.

That first shot is a wonderful example of the day, what a sky! How on earth do they manage to control that?

"Ok Golf Charlie Tango.....see the conga line in front of you? Join on the back and don't tread on anyone's heels"

Something like that. Radio chatter is kept to an absolute minimum. Here's an extract from the special procedures for the event.

[b][i]"ATC does not want to hear your full inside leg measurements when you call up!  Call-sign, Aircraft type, and where you are, is all that is required, e.g.

..love the Gyrocopter!... [smiley=thumbsup.gif]...!

A very professional looking crew!...(Military?).

Paul.

...do I spot a nice little Tipsy Nipper?... ....!

..all "G" registrations?

G-HULK.... ...!

..love the Gyrocopter!... [smiley=thumbsup.gif]...!

A very professional looking crew!...(Military?).

Paul.

...do I spot a nice little Tipsy Nipper?... :)....!

Thanks Paul. I don't know about these two but a lot of the gyrocopter bods are ex-military types.

There was a Tipsy Nipper on the field but it's not in any of these shots. I'll find out what that little blue job is.

PS. It's a Tipsy Piper CP.1 Metisse. First time I've heard of it.  ---> http://www.abpic.co.uk/search.php?q=Tipsy%20Piper%20CP.1%20Metisse&u=type

Would hate to be ATCing for that event ......lovely shots though Doug....looks like great fun (hopefully should get something like that at G-VFWE tomorrow )

.mic

Would hate to be ATCing for that event ......

They're all volunteers. They do a grand job.

lovely shots though Doug....looks like great fun (hopefully should get something like that at G-VFWE tomorrow )

.mic

Thanks. Hope you have a good time at Kemble & get some decent shots. I thought about going today but decided against it. I think it was the right decision. I'm back at Popham tomorrow for the vintage Cessna fly-in. Not sure how many will turn up as they will probably be at Kemble.

Would hate to be ATCing for that event ......

They're all volunteers. They do a grand job.

I take it's not a towered airfield, so do they just have some guy with a two-way scanner giving instructions?

edit- Just got my answer via their website.

Would hate to be ATCing for that event ......

They're all volunteers. They do a grand job.

I take it's not a towered airfield, so do they just have some guy with a two-way scanner giving instructions?

The radio operators are usually based in the clubhouse. (FBO to our chums on your side of the Puddle. )
On events like this they use the control caravan at the end of the runway. I copied this from the Popham website.

Popham radio is Air/Ground and as such is NOT Air Traffic "Control", however the generic term "ATC" is widely used as everyone seems to understand this abbreviation!  Even Solent Radar, Farnborough, Lasham, Boscombe, Odiham, etc., still call us on the phone and ask for "ATC"!  Perhaps we should just use "AT"!

So who am I talking to on the radio?

Our ATC people all have CAA licences and some are retired CAA Controllers.  They generally have their "favourite" days to be on duty but as they are volunteers, they sometimes swap around according to their personal engagements.

The senior controller is also the site webmaster. He also flies the An 2 based on the airfield.

I love the variety of birds you're showing us here, I would have had a blast there snapping shots of these.  Thanks for sharing with us!