| The Vampire Preservation Group held
their inaugural Open Day on Saturday 8th March at North Weald
Airfield, Essex. The weather conditions were far from perfect,
with strong winds, low cloud and occasional rain causing a
degree of disruption to the proceedings!
 The
planned flight at 3:15pm was postponed due to rain; Matt Hampton,
the VPG Chief Pilot instead gave a presentation about the
work of the VPG and the history of the Vampire. Shortly after
4:00pm the weather brightened up and VPG Display Pilot Mark
Hooton managed to make a short flight in WZ507, much to the
delight of the assembled crowd.
The Vampire was then parked outside of ‘The Squadron’
and any members of the public that were prepared to brave
the elements had the opportunity to come and have a detailed
look at the aircraft. As the skies became darker everybody
went back indoors for the raffle, hoping to win the top prize
of a ride in WZ507 when it was taxied back to the hangar.
 At
7:00pm everybody was outside again to witness the night start
up – the flames looked much more impressive in the dark!
The Vampire then made two taxi runs past ‘The Squadron’,
allowing people to take photographs and hear the unique sound
of the Goblin engine at close range.
The VPG intend to host another Open Day later in the summer
– hopefully with better weather! More details will be
announced on this website nearer the time.
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