During the day there were various war re-enactment shows. This year there were several themes: the 70th anniversary of the liberation of Czechoslovakia, the 75th anniversary of the Battle of Britain, the memorial for Colonel Rudolf Borovec, a war pilot from Pardubice (it was the 100th anniversary of his birth), and the history of aviation. We watched the re-enactment of the liberation of Czechoslovakia after World War 2. It was very well done and from a historical point of view it was interesting to see the old vehicles (trucks, cars, bikes) and planes used in war, as well as the period costumes. In fact it was so realistic that it even made me sad to see people shooting each other! (they had pretty realistic pyrotechnic effects and the guys were pretty good at pretending to die!)

The history of Rudolf Borovec is written here, and is very interesting. During world war 2, after Czechoslovakia was invaded by the Nazi Germans, many Czech pilots left the country and went to Britain, where they flew for the Royal Air Force. My grandmother (who was Irish British and living in London during world war 2) remembered showing some of them around London with friends.

It’s hard to believe that the whole of Europe was a war-zone only two generations ago. At the aviation fair there was also an area in which military tents were set up, also with all the old equipment, and it was very interesting to see it, almost like a trip back in time.