ROBERT RUDHALL

Members will be saddened to hear of the death of Robert Rudhall on December 12^th 2003, he was 52. Robert had been suffering for some time with heart problems but he took each stage of his illness with his characteristic blend of stoicism and well timed humour.

Members of the Cockpit Community will best remember Robert Rudhall for his coverage of the very first Cockpit-Fest, back in 2000. His post event article in the August 2000 edition of FLYPAST, proved to be a huge step for the event, which this year celebrates its fifth anniversary. To each one of us who were at the event, and rushed out to buy Flypast to read the review of it, it is clear how strong his early influence was. To quote his own words from that time,

"From the response to this prototype gathering it would seem that Cockpit-Fest has a very good chance of becoming a firm date in the air event calendar"

That weekend he saw the birth of something special, and reported it as such. From that we have seen the growth of the event, the formation of the ICC, and the founding of its website, into something that is now regarded as international. Robert Rudall played an important part in our history; let us remember him at Cockpit-Fest V, Newark Air Museum, 12./13^th June 2004.

Bill O’Sullivan