Avro Vulcan XH558 displays on Sunday 19 July 2009 at the Royal International Air Tattoo at RAF Fairford, Gloucestershire. On take off, the Rolls Royce Olympus engines at full throttle make a distinctive 'howl' caused, no doubt, by the less than aerodynamically perfect triangular air intakes at the Vulcan's wing roots.
This was a spectacular take off, more so than that of the Saturday RIAT display. On the Sunday, the Vulcan rolled sharply right after take off, to somewhere between 110 and 120 degrees from the horizontal, before returning to level flight under Gloucestershire's grey summer sky.
This magnificent spectacle was witnessed by thousands of admirers of this cold war bird, bringing back many memories of air displays enjoyed in earlier, sunnier times.
