77329-139BRISK winds and bright sunshine brought out the flight fanatics at the Swindon Kite Festival at the weekend.

Around 6,000 visitors were attracted to the show at the Wroughton Science Museum to enjoy the many brightly coloured kites on display as well as the wind rippling through strings, white plumes of rocket smoke.

Down on the airfield's old Second World War runways, enthusiasts kite-boarded and kite-buggied as fast as the wind would let them travel some reaching speeds of 25 to 30 mph, simply by harnessing the power of the wind.

The event, organised by the White Horse Kite Flyers, attracted a wide range of kites many of which were able to stay in the air most of the day due to the strong breeze.

David Robinson, secretary of the Flyers and one of the organisers, said: "We are delighted with how this year's event has gone. Last year we had to keep the kites firmly on the ground, but even then we had 3,000 visitors. This year we were looking to double that.

"There's always been great interest in kites, currently there is a bit of a lull, but you only need to see the smile that it brings to people and children when they finally get a kite into the air.

"As a hobby its hugely relaxing, all the stresses of the modern world seem to go away once you get your kite in the air they have an amazing effect on people."

The show also managed to attract a worldwide audience, with flyers attending from as far away as Australia, the United States and Europe.

Detlef Griese, a kite enthusiast from Germany, brought with him an exhibition of kites, some up 80 years old which were made by Arno Haft, who made his kites out of materials from his home.

Mr Griese said: "It is wonderful to be here at Wroughton for the exhibition. Our display displays the work of Arno Haft who designed and made kites at no cost at all. He showed that kite flying is not a hobby just for rich people, anyone can have a go."

For those flight fans who like a bit more power, then a display from the Southern England Rocket Flyers was well worth seeing with around a dozen rockets blasting their way to 2,000ft on their tiny motors, before blossoming parachutes carried the equipment safely back to Earth.

Unfortunately one went slightly awry when the rocket's parachute failed to deploy and came back down slightly harder than expected.

More photographs appear in today's Evening Advertiser

Anthony Osborne