Del Boy: The Yellow Peril of the Sky
Sir David Jason at the age of 68 still lives flying around in yellow vehicles. Though we’re not talking about a 3 wheel van going air-bourne while driving as Del Trotter. According to Evening News 24, David Jason showed a touch of class when he flew his own helicopter into Norwich on a trip to highlight the work of the region’s air ambulance. Not such a yellow peril as David Jason is a skilled pilot.
He touched down at the East Anglian Air Ambulance’s headquarters at Norwich International Airport in an impressive-looking chopper bought for him by his wife. Being a bright yellow it really had a touch of Trotter too it, you could say it’s the sort of machine Sir David’s alter-ego Derrik Trotter could have only dreamed about owning during his days flogging dodgy gear around the streets of Peckham – that is at least until he and his young brother Rodney finally became millionaires in one of the most watched episodes of the classic BBC show in the mid 1990s.
But Sir David, who is also famous for his role in A Touch of Frost, was in Norwich to highlight the latest technology of East Anglian Air Ambulance which has the only chopper in the country fitted with a device to detect power cables.
The actor, who has just finished filming the last part of the ITV detective series and will soon appear in a black comedy called Albert’s Memorial, wanted to raise awareness that the charity receives no money from the government and relies solely on donations from members of the public and businesses.
He said: “My wife bought me a helicopter flight for a birthday present and I wanted to do it because it wasn’t easy – they are hard to fly but there is a great deal of pleasure in mastering the complexity of flying, it is great fun. “As a pilot myself I know how dangerous power lines are and this place has just fitted a helicopter with a new piece of audio equipment that warns the pilot when he approaches the power lines. When you come close to them they seem to disappear into the background and so it is easy not to see them.
Not the First time we’ve seen a yellow helicopter
This isnt the first time we have seen David Jason show affection for Yellow helicopters. Last year he showed he hasn’t lost his affection for Del Trotter by providing the crowds at Fairford, near Swindon, whre he officially opened the 2007 Royal International Air Tattoo.
Below is the video taken of what may be to date the last ever screening of Del boy:
The East Anglian Air Ambulance charity, which has two working machines and one for backup, said: “Power cables are the biggest fear of any helicopter pilot – some of our colleagues at Kent Air Ambulance hit some power cables and were all killed as a result. The device gives an audio and a visual warning when the helicopter is close to power cables, by emitting a series of beeps which get faster and faster when electrical currents are detected in the air. So if you see something bright and yellow in the sky above – if it’s not the sun – it may be our very own Sir David “Del Boy” Jason.
What a plonker!!!! :-)
A legendary plonker at that our David