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Wickenby Café in Financial Times Magazine


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Pick up a copy of the Financial Times magazine this week? You may be surprised to find Wickenby’s café and the Memorial Museum getting a mention after a visit from writer Mrs Moneypenny:

“I go a long way, sometimes, to eat food. This is how a group of us made a special visit to the café at Wickenby airfield, near Lincoln, for Saturday brunch. What would I tell you if I were a food writer? The most important thing to know is that the food is prepared by Jean – but only on Thursdays to Sundays. The rest of the week there’s an honesty system for the tea and cake left out for hungry pilots.

If you plan a mass visit, it’s best to call and warn Jean, who took over a year ago, so that she can factor it into her supermarket run. I took 20 people to try her brunch and forgot to do just that.

Service? Excellent. She even drove me to the hangar at the far end of the airfield to use the loo because the nearer one was out of action. Location? A nice outdoor terrace if the weather allows, with a great view of the runway (note to Oxford airport – please move the café to somewhere we can see the planes), and a museum upstairs with hundreds of artefacts and photographs from the war days when it was RAF Wickenby, home to two squadrons of Lancasters. The brunch? Delicious. And great value for money, unless you include the round trip from Oxford.”

To read the full article and other great features visit: FT Magazine

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12 & 626 Sqn Memorial Service on YouTube


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Wickenby’s Memorial Service took place last Sunday, marking the first of the ‘Friends of Wickenby Archive’ events.  It took place at the Icarus Memorial at 3pm, following in the footsteps of the Wickenby Register’s annual event.  It’s estimated that over 100 people made it to this year’s event, which was presided pver by Revd Ian Partridge.

Amongst those who attended was Wing Commander Strasdin, and six personnel from 12 Bomber Squadron who made the journey from RAF Lossiemouth in Scotland.  Lancaster PA474 from the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight honoured the fallen and the attending veterans with a fly past at 3:55pm.

Joanna White, of Primetime Media, attended to record this event and has produced a short YouTube video which is posted below for all to enjoy.

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Last year’s event:

Veterans of 12 and 626 Squadron

It was an unfortunate end for the last Wickenby Register Memorial Service, when the heavens opened at the beginning of the service and torrential rain forced the event to be brought to a premature close.

All who attended stuck out the first hymn (coincidental that the rain began with the singing!) but an inability to hear the vicar speaking due to the violence of the rainfall led to the wreaths being laid immediately and everyone running for the cover of their cars or the Old Control Tower.

A saturated Tim Brett lays his wreath

For those few who stayed on for tea and snacks at the Watch Office, their patience was rewarded by a late fly past by the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight Lancaster.

The Lancaster had been delayed at Duxford due to the weather and was not expected to make it to Wickenby. But thanks to RAF Coningsby ATC, we were notified when the aircraft was 15 minutes away and the Wickenby Register Members could be at the Icarus Memorial to witness the excellent display.

The Lancaster display over the Icarus Memorial

Graham Smith, a member of the Wickenby Register commented: “Once again streams of water appeared, only this time it was flowing down our cheeks as we remembered those brave youngsters who, having volunteered for aircrew during that conflict, laid down their lives in service of their King and Country. That fly past marked a very poignant and fitting end for the Wickenby Register (of airmen who flew from that airfield during WW2), which is formally closing this month and handing its assets over to the RAF Wickenby Memorial Museum.”

The Wickenby Register was formed in 1977 by a small group of aircrew who had served with 12 and 626 Squadron’s at Wickenby from 1942-45. Over the next few years founder members Jim MacDonald and Denzil Ede researched the history of the two Squadrons and collected together Operational Record Books, a considerable collection of photographs and a number of Flying Log Books and other documents for safe keeping. These documents form the basis of the Wickenby Register Archive which is looked after by the Wickenby Collection today.

Wickenby is now home to the Register

We will be sorry to lose the Wickenby Register, who are finishing this year. But we are delighted to announce that their good work will be kept going. The ‘Friends of the Wickenby Archive’ is a committee set up to preserve the heritage and memory of 12 & 626 Squadrons, to look after the Archive, the Book of Remembrance and the Memorial. They will also organise an annual memorial service and keep links with the current 12 Squadron and the ATC.

Anne Law of the Wickenby Memorial Collection adds: “The RAF Wickenby Memorial Collection also intends to have some sort of membership scheme which is in the process of being set up with a Newsletter (initially on our website) and then by email or post as necessary. Anybody can join and interested people should contact us at members.rafwmm@gmail.com or speak to Tim, David or myself.”

For more details visit The Wickenby Memorial Collection website.


Aerobatic ace wins again!


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Massive congratulations to Gerald Cooper who’s just won gold medal for his Unlimited Freestyle flight at the European Aerobatic Competitions 2012.

This win comes amidst the olympic & paralympic gold-rush of London 2012, so it’s easy to be a little blasé about such a remarkable result. However, Gerald and all the British team spend a great deal of their own time and money training to compete against countries, like France, where aerobatics is state funded.

Wickenby friends Philipp Steinbach and Eric Vazeille also flew in the Freestyle competitions coming 5th and 10th respectively. To see all the results from the competitions visit the CIVA Results website.


Gerald on the podium (Video courtesy of BAeA Facebook page)

This win comes just a few weeks after the British Advanced team made their mark in Hungary at the World Advanced Aerobatic Championships. New competitor (and Wickenby pilot) Tom Bennett made a strong first impression being awarded 5th place overall, with fellow team mate Paul Tomlinson taking 11th place.

Wickenby airfield would like to extend our congratulations to Gerald, Tom and all who took part in this year’s competitions, and wish them all good luck for future events.

 


Fly out success


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Eight Wickenby aircraft dared to cross the English channel again this August for a fly out to Albert and Abbeville, in the Somme.

It was an adaption of the annual Blois microlight trip, run by Malcolm Howland of the Fly365 school.

As the DH2 flew to the Somme last November, it was decided we would return there (in good flying weather!) to thank our hosts and Stewart Smith took the opportunity to distribute a few DH2 DVDs to those involved.

A few of the group also tried to make it further south to Alençon but bad weather forced a return to Abbeville.

John Edser has compiled a collage of photographs of the trip, which was enjoyed by all who went.

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