This year’s Suffolk Show is set to celebrate its longstanding military associations at one of its most popular annual attractions.
Armed forces personnel will be out in force at the action-packed Military Discovery Zone, which will feature everything from noughts and crosses with a submerged military diver to a parachute flight swing.
The zone, hosted by 6 Regiment Army Air Corps, includes a host of free attractions for visitors, including a climbing wall, an Apache helicopter cockpit, military dogs, and mud-moving machinery in the ‘Digger Land’ area hosted by the 23 Para Engineers.
Visitors can take a look at military vehicles and machinery, as well as experience a ride in a Red Arrow or Typhoon simulator, or battle against friends and family in the popular Laser Combat Zone.
The RAF Regiment will be hosting demonstrations, including snipers, close combat weapons and armoured fighting vehicles, while RAF Police will be demonstrating their capabilities.
Local RAF and Army cadets are also organising a range of interactive activities and teambuilding exercises for visitors to try, and show-goers will be able to find out more about potential careers in the military.
Zone co-ordinator Major James Milnes said: “Servicemen and women all really enjoy meeting people at the Suffolk Show and talking about their roles in the military.
“It’s particularly poignant this year as we recognise 100 years since the end of World War I, and 100 years since the formation of the RAF.”
“We are currently working on a special project with the Lord Lieutenant Clare, Countess of Euston, the Royal British Legion and local schoolchildren to research the 284 war graves in Suffolk, just a small proportion of the more than 10,000 Suffolk people who died in the First World War.”
To find out more about the event on May 30 and 31, or for discounted advance tickets, go to www.suffolkshow.co.uk or call the ticket office on 01473 707117.
Advance adult tickets are £23, and children under 15 go free.
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