When Stratton Richey arrived at rain-soaked Farnborough yesterday, he surveyed the clag and thought "brilliant".
Richey, the airshow commentator, immediately knew that the early morning bad weather would disappear by the afternoon, clearing the skies for a full flying display programme.
Richey is the man behind the microphone here at Farnborough, talking visitors through the daily air display from what he calls "a greenhouse" in the air traffic control tower. He has been the Society of British Aerospace Companies (SBAC) commentator for almost two decades now, and loves every minute of the job.
"You get to see some wonderful aircraft at Farnborough and this year is no exception. The highlight for me had to be the arrival of the Northrop Grumman B-2A Spirit".
Richey, who flies the Boeing 777 for British Airways, adds: "Gathering and writing the commentary takes a lot of preparation.
"I work alongside researcher Mark Brown, and at each show we sift through a pile of literature about 1m high to get all the facts and figures we need.
"Because Farnborough is a trade show, we are effectively selling the aircraft that take part in the flight display, so we can't afford to make mistakes."
Source: Flight Daily News
