In 1994 the International Air Tattoo at Fairford could still rightly claim the title "The world's most spectacular airshow". Although the author – forced by his limited student budget into a highly uncomfortable night in a cornfield near Oxford – was overtired and thus only partly able to take in the wealth of material on offer at all, the pictures he brought back, despite their moderate quality (viewfinder camera and cheap film), show what was on offer and above all which almost forgotten aircraft types were still in service only a few years ago.
(Mindful of the traumatic experience of the first night in England, the author had already chosen a haystack near Didcot Parkway railway station on the way there for the second night, in which he slept comparatively well before setting off on the journey home reasonably rested.)
In the 1990s MiG-21s were regular guests at the IAT. In 1994 both a Czech ...
... and a Slovak MiG-21 came to Fairford – the latter a gift from the Slovaks to the organisers.
And one of the MiG-21s – probably the Czech one – also flew at the show! Despite the snapshot camera and grainy film, at least this fact can be recognised.
Eye to eye: the strategic bombers of the Cold War – Tu-95 and B-52.
The main theme of the event was "40 years of the C-130". On this occasion dozens of aircraft flew in from all over the world.
The current types at the show included this Spanish Harrier II (EAV-8B Matador).
In addition, numerous rarities could be seen, all of which are no longer in service: Swedish Saab J-32 Lansen, ...
