2023 was another big year for anniversaries to
celebrate at Scale ModelWorld: We had the 70th anniversary of both the USAF
Thunderbirds and the Patrouille de France - and most importantly it was the
60th anniversary of IPMS and the 30th anniversary of the Aerobatic Display
Teams SIG. But to top it all off, for IPMS(UK), this also marked the 25th event
held at the Telford International Centre.
So to commemorate all these, our Scale
ModelWorld display this year had to be something very special - and was in fact
the most complex and ambitious one we've ever done.
A few times in previous years, we had done
small "flying displays" as part of our Scale ModelWorld theme displays - but
for so many anniversaries all coming together in 2023, we decided to make our
entire display stand into one huge airshow, by creating a great fantasy
International Air Tattoo !
The "Static Park" features aircraft
representing display teams from all over the world, military and civilian, past
and current. Then flying overhead, there are no less than seven internationally
famous display teams, performing in our "Air Tattoo". In honour of the 60th
anniversary of IPMS, all of the teams in attendance have existed during the
time of the Society, i.e. no teams earlier than 1963. Also, for the purposes of
scale - and probably for the first time ever - every single model on the
display is 1/72nd scale. Although our "IPMS 60th Anniversary International Air
Tattoo" took place over the weekend of 11th & 12th November in Telford,
each of the teams in the flying display performed with a backdrop representing
their own countries. To further enhance the whole "air show experience", we
also had a Bluetooth speaker concealed under the stand, which played the jet
noises of a Red Arrows display !
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We are also extremely pleased and
proud to have won not one, but two awards for our display this year !
Airfix awarded us their trophy for
"Scale ModelWorld 2023 Display Of The Year" - and then we also won Gold/1st
place for the IPMS(UK) Best Special Interest Group Display.
This is the first time that anybody
has won both at the same time ! :-) |
The display was
presented on an area of 18 feet x 4 feet (5.8m x 1.2m) of table space.
There
are a grand total total of 134 models on the whole display, all in 1/72nd scale
- 86 in the "static display" plus a further 48 in the "flying displays". They
were built by 16 of our members, from 5 different countries.
Now, below are some general overview
photos of our IPMS 60th anniversary International Air Tattoo. At the bottom of
this page, you can follow the links to go see more detail shots of the "Static
Display" and also the "Flying Display"
So please enjoy the airshow
!
