The sounds and the sights of the Second World War filled the Aero Club hangar on Saturday 2 June 2007 when it became the venue for a 1940’s dance held in memory of Phil Varley.

Phil was Chief Flying Instructor at the club in the late 1980s, before flying private jets out of Jersey for a number of years.  He died last September from a brain tumour and the dance together with a raffle and auction, organised by his wife Sharon and her friends, raised over £11,000 for the Jersey branch of Cancer Research UK.  Phil is remembered fondly for his sense of fun and for pushing everyone to use, not just achieve, their pilot’s qualifications.

Bob Wright’s maintenance operation and aircraft owners gave way on the night to 240 dancing diners, handsomely dressed in the fashion and uniforms of the World War Two era and surrounded by 1940s memorabilia and military vehicles.  Le Rocquier Big Band provided the perfect atmosphere for a fun night among the Island’s flying fraternity and friends. Winston Churchill, Vera Lynn and the Andrews Sisters put in live appearances ahead of an exciting auction, which culminated in Phil’s flying jacket fetching nearly £4,000 in aid of the cancer charity.

Dr Swing and his partner inspired the ‘dancing’ until the early hours and, by Monday morning, everything was back to normal – but memories of a wonderful night at the Aero Club for such a good cause live on.

Additional photos can be found in the Gallery section of this website.  These and many other photographs of the Phil Varley Memorial Ball, aken by RICHARD WILKINSON, can be viewed and ordered on the website http://www.photographyintheraw.com 

This article is an extract from  Jersey Flyer Summer 2007 (1.77 MB)