Civil pilot licencing early 1920s

The following is a summary of my outstanding queries about the matters I raised in my previous messages in this thread:

ARNOLD BERTRAM ERIC GRAHAM – Cross Channel Service

Arnold Graham was involved in an air accident while flying an Avro 504K on 20th August 1922. Air Ministry Accidents Investigation Branch conducted an investigation and the report included the following:

“The pilot graduated in the service in 1917 and relinquished his commission on account of ill-health in November, 1919. He was granted a Civil Licence, for a period of 3 months, after two practical tests at Kenley in July last. From April 1919 until the day before the accident he had not flown an aeroplane as pilot in full charge, the dual control tests at Kenley and his employment as “Second Pilot” on the Channel Service since last July , being his only air experience during the period”

Oral history also suggests that he worked on the Channel Service for a time.

The questions that arise about his employment on the Channel Service are when, which airline and what type of aircraft.

It appears from the above that “…since last July…” refers to both the tests at Kenley and to the Channel Service although one cannot be certain. It is also unknown what the writer meant by “…since last July”. My understanding is that correct use would imply July 1921 as the previous month in 1922 should be referred to as “this July”. However, Peter Elliott, Head of Archives at the RAF Museum tells me that in the Royal Aero Club archive there is which states that in 1922 Arnold was licensed to fly Avro 504Ks.

From this further questions arise:

When did the testing of civil pilots commence?

Was it necessary, at that time, for second pilots to be tested?

Did Arnold’s employment on the Channel Service occur between sometime in July 1922 and when he started flying an Avro 504K on 19th August 1922 or was it earlier?

Regarding which aircraft he flew on the Channel Service, Adrian Constable told me, via the ‘Aviation Forum’ that:

“There were few commercial aircraft of that time, O/400 included, which actually had a “co-pilot” as we now understand the role. Most were single pilot operated and dual controls were unusual. Some, like the DH.34, had a seat beside the pilot for a navigator or engineer, but it was not unusual for neither of those roles to be required, so the seat would be occupied by an additional passenger (if one was available). The Handley page O-series cockpit was spacious enough for two seats, but generally the pilot sat on the right and while the space to his left did have a folding seat, it was more often simply a corridor to the nose ‘gunner’s station’, which might be occupied by one or two passengers.

I await correction by someone with a wider knowledge, but I think just about the only commercial aircraft which did have a ‘proper’ dual control cockpit, and carry two pilots regularly, was Instone’s famous Vimy Commercial, G-EASI.”

Based on information in ‘The Imperial Airways Fleet’ by John Stroud and other sources I cannot find any aircraft in service in July/August 1922 that could possibly have a dual cockpit. Aircraft that did have a crew of 2 usually appear to have had a pilot and mechanic. If he was on the Channel Service prior to July 1922 there may be possible aircraft although I can see no 0/400 that was still in service by the time Arnold had left the RAF.

I don’t think that I am going to get the answers I am looking for until I better understand the record I have seen. It is a report written in September 1922 about accident that occurred in August 1922. It states that “The pilot graduated in the service in 1917 and relinquished his commission on account of ill health in November 1919. He was granted a Civil Licence, for a period of 3 months, after 2 practical tests at Kenley in July last. From April 1919 to the day before the accident he had not flown an aeroplane as pilot in full charge, the dual control tests at Kenley and his employment as “Second Pilot” on the Channel Service since last July, being his only air experience during the period.”

I, initially, understood this to mean that he took his tests at Kenley in July 1922 as the flight when the accident took place would have been within the 3 month licence granted. However, ‘July last’ would normally mean July 1921. This opens up the possibility of him being a second pilot sometime between July 1921 and October 1921 but he would then not be licenced to fly in August 1922.

Also to be taken into account is the fact that all the 0/400s had ceased service before July 1921 and the only 0 series aircraft still in service by that date was 0/10s G-EATH, G-EATK, G-EATM and G-EATN. Is one of these aircraft a possible; did 0/10s have a co-pilot?

FHP had ambitions to be pre-eminent in the world’s airline industry. Aviation generally. To assist in accomplishing this, his various companies shuffled aircraft between them on an irregular but rather frequent basis. Handley Page Transport’s fleet turns out to be rather more complex than John Stroud discovered.

I agree with your identification of that aircraft as an O/400. I have yet to find any civil conversions with the fuselage-top fuel tanks as in the picture, although probably all the airframes invoved would have been built with them. This might suggest that it’s an RAF aircraft, or possibly an HPT aircraft pre-conversion, which would date the photo to around 1919. There are some apparent features above both engines, which might possibly be similar to the header tanks of the W/series, which is interesting, and might further point to HPT, or at least HP ownership. Depite fiddling in Photoshop, I’ve been unable to make out any identifiable markings so I don’t think I can go any further with that.

Further to my original posting I see in ‘The Imperial Airways Fleet’ by John Stroud that there was only one of the o-series that was handed over to Imperial: an 0/10 G-EATH. Apart from this aircraft all the 0 series had previously been operated by Handley Page and all ceased operation or various reasons in 1920/21 with the exception of 0/10 G-EATK scrapped in August 1922 and 0/10 G-EATN which crashed in France in January 1922.

I am attaching a rather poor quality photo from my father-in-laws collection of aircraft he flew in. It is untitled but I have taken it to be a 0/400. If anyone with better air rec skills can tell me otherwise I would be interested to hear from them.

From the information provided by ‘Ex Brat’ it would seem that it could be possible that he flew as co-pilot in an 0 series aircraft between October 1919 when he left the RAF and the introduction of civil pilot licencing sometime in 1919/20.
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There were few commercial aircraft of that time, O/400 included, which actually had a “co-pilot” as we now understand the role. Most were single pilot operated and dual controls were unusual. Some, like the DH.34, had a seat beside the pilot for a navigator or engineer, but it was not unusual for neither of those roles to be required, so the seat would be occupied by an additional passenger (if one was available). The Handley page O-series cockpit was spacious enough for two seats, but generally the pilot sat on the right and while the space to his left did have a folding seat, it was more often simply a corridor to the nose ‘gunner’s station’, which might be occupied by one or two passengers.

I await correction by someone with a wider knowledge, but I think just about the only commercial aircraft which did have a ‘proper’ dual control cockpit, and carry two pilots regularly, was Instone’s famous Vimy Commercial, G-EASI.

O/400s may have been out of use after April 1921, but the mostly similar O/700, O/7 and O/10 continued in service up until the formation of Imperial. At least one of them was considered a part of Imperial’s fleet after the merger, although opinions vary as to whether it actually flew for them.