Queens of the skies

I'm an aviation nut from way back and working here in Europe gives me the chance to see some beautiful aircraft.

I've been to Duxford in the U.K. to see the warbirds and I will be going to the Paris airshow this year to O.D. on everything with wings. Another on my list of 'must see's' is Oshkosh in North America too.

Here in Geneva I get some real treats as well. We had a visit from the Breitling watches sponsored Lockheed Constellation a little while back - one of the most graceful passenger aircraft ever built.

She flew a few circuits around the city and hordes of fellow enthusiasts descended on GVA airport for the open day to gaze upon this beautiful belle. If ever there was a golden age of flying this was it. I love this plane.

Another treat was a visit from a Consolidated PBY Catalina. She was an absolutely pristine example and was treating us locals by flying circuits and bumps on Lake Geneva - gliding in like a white swan and planing in before those Pratt & Whitneys would open up and she lifted off for another trip around. We could here those powerful piston engines throaty roar and it was just a symphony to me (actual photo from the lake).

Even my little local airport which normally has the usual run of the mill Cessna's had a weekend of WW2 classics last summer and I watched on my chair from my balcony a mere kilometre away as they did barrel rolls, falling leaf turns, 360's etc.

There's way too many other favourites to list them all in this posting. But these are in my top ten and to not only see them but watch them fly was unimaginable...