05/02/2023
When does an aeroplane become an icon?
A poignant day today as Foxbat 7963 flew her last sortie for the RFC. At 0030 Zulu she departed the secret airbase for her new home and new adventures with a great new owner.
In nearly 6000 hours of flight training duty, our little yellow peril was the backbone of the school and a trusty and reliable asset.
It's a funny thing with aeroplanes. They are machines, sure...but even the hardest airman would admit to them sometimes having a heart and a soul.
So many nervous first flights, so many first solos, so many confident flight tests...this little bird has seen it all. Is it any wonder then, that some of that emotion and energy might leach into her frame of metal and fabric and that she might become more than just a plane. Well at least to those who've flown her.
If you have a connection with 7963...or just curious, take a tour through the photos on this page...for nostalgia, and you'll see what I mean.
As for her age...I'd love a dollar for every GA type who said as an LSA she'd never last. Meticulous maintenance and timely replacement of parts over the years has seen this Foxbat become the most reliable and solid aircraft in our whole fleet...(RA and GA included)! With recent upgrades, she is in just as good a shape as when we bought her new...and in many areas she's even better! I have absolutely no doubt she'll do another 6,000hrs and probably more.
But for now, it's time for us to say farewell, to a trusty and reliable friend and to wish her well for the next phase of her career.
Forever, in our eyes at least...an absolute icon 😉.
Tallyho
