I have just been told that Mike Beach passed away on sunday. Mike was a aircraft and glider builder. He also restored some vintage gliders, some of which are now in Brooklands museum. He had been ill for some time. After he finished working on full size aircraft he went back to aeromodelling. I had the pleasure of helping Mike rig gliders many times.
Dave
By: The Blue Max - 22nd February 2012 at 10:28
Sad news, Rest In peace Mike and Blue Skies.
By: DazDaMan - 22nd February 2012 at 00:03
Sad news.
Funnily enough, I acquired a copy of an old Aeroplane magazine with a feature on Mike’s SE.5a in it last year. It had flown with the Shuttleworth’s genuine article at an airshow after completion.
By: Propstrike - 21st February 2012 at 22:01
He was a much respected builder, and in 1978 completed the first UK 7/8 scale replica plans SE 5a, and what a beauty it was. Now there are perhaps eight or nine of them, and the great War Display Team have fielded up to four at a time.
Based at Booker for years, Mike’s attracted a lot of attention. Naturally, plenty of people fancied the idea of a quick go in it, and some acquaintance once enquired ”What would you need in your log book to get in the pilot’s seat of this? ” to which he replied ” the name Mike Beach ” 😉
He subsequentley built the Bleriot replica G-LOTI, now at Brooklands.
By: DragonRapide - 21st February 2012 at 19:34
Sad news – even with my peripheral knowledge of historic gliding, I have an idea of the significance of Mike Beach to the preservation movement.
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February 21, 2012 at 4:43 pm