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Ambri Air Show '95
The 1995 edition of the Ambri Air Show was held on 19 and 20 August, confirming itself as the leading Swiss vintage aircraft meeting.
The ex Swiss Air Force base of Ambri, placed in the Leventina Valley inside the Italian speaking Canton Ticino, hosted a fifty aircraft flight programme organized by the local Vola Ticino association.
The main exhibit was a Mach 2.2 Sukhoi SU-30 jet fighter but the backbone of the show was formed by warbirds, both in flight and in the static display area.
The Ambri airport was handed over to the civil aviation side recently and it is now the home base for Pilatus P.2s, P.3s, an Harvard (HB-RAJ) and some Bucker biplanes. For the show, the Old Flying Machine Co. came with its CAC Mustang G-HAEC, FG-1-D Corsair NX55JP and Spitfire G-ASJV. The Fighter Collection brought in its P-38J Lightning NX3145, F6F-5K Hellcat G-BTCC, P-63A Kingcobra G-BTWR, Wildcat N4845V, Spitfire FR Mk.XIV G-SPIT and A-lD Skyraider F-AZED. Mustang N51NA of Swiss Warbirds, T-28 F-AZFV and B-17 "Sally B" were also present and Fiat G.59-4B I-MRSV made its appearance on 20 August only.
Another new entry in the Italian warbird scene calling at the Ambri Air Show was the Milan-Malpensa based PBY-5A Catalina N9521C of Simpson Wallace Enterprises.
On Sunday 20 a very rare Bristol Sycamore (HB-RXB, RAF serial XG544) made a single fly pass.
The star of the show was the pride of the Vola Ticino enthusiast members: the former Swiss Air Force Hunter J-4080 now HB-RVT, making its outstanding public flying debut in the hands of Dario Mazza.
The air show was attended by the usual large crowd partly coming from nearby northern Italy; mixed with them the professional photographers who discovered, for the first time, the disadvantages of the "press-not-pass" badges.
(Aeromedia)
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