Sandringham at Lee on Solent

I am sure there was a Sandringham moored off Hythe in the mid/late 1980’s-I would hazard a guess at 1987 or 1988 purely because of when I bought the boat-as I sailed round it a couple of times in my Solo dinghy whilst I was a member of the Weston Sailing Club. Which would this one have been?

The photo immediately said Ireland to me! I thought the Sandringham took off from Poole Harbour, wish I could remember as I was on it!

Correct on both counts. I have a postcard of the Sandringham showing the same location in Ireland as in that photo.

The photo immediately said Ireland to me! I thought the Sandringham took off from Poole Harbour, wish I could remember as I was on it!

Good point Argonaut! I looked at it and thought that was Studland village in the background.

It is actually Killaloe, maybe a double for Studland !

Good point Argonaut! I looked at it and thought that was Studland village in the background.

Sorry to correct you Propstike, but the photo was taken on Lough Derg on the River Shannon in Ireland. Captain Blair was married to actress Maureen O’Hara and they came for a tour of Ireland. Nice way to tour !

That shot is at Studland Bay, from where it operated various charters in 1977.

There is is photo here of the other one VH-BRC beached at Calshot (says caption) just across the estuary from Lee on Solent

http://www.aussieairliners.org/shortfb/vh-brc/2545.692.html

[ATTACH=CONFIG]233451[/ATTACH] Sounds like this one.

Thanks all, I’ll tell him.

Yes, it was definitely VP-LVE on its last journey to the Eastern Docks before dismantling and crossing the road to the new museum. I was there helping.

I think it was the Solent Sky aircraft that made its final journey to the museum where it now lives.

Richard

Would probably have been either the white/green ex-Hulton one G-BJHS (IIRC) that is now with Kermit Weeks’ collection at Polk City in Florida (that one has an “executive” type interior), or it would be the red/white/black example that is now in the Southampton Aviation Museum, VR-??? ex-Antilles Airboats.

The Weeks example stayed in UK for a while, and spent some time at Calshot Castle (It was definitely still there in spring 1984)before it went Stateside
I seem to recall the Antilles example was transported into Southampton harbour on a barge, which seems to fit your colleagues memory, but 1979-80 seems a bit early? (Or maybe I’m just suffering from the usual “was it really that long ago?!” that comes with age :-O).

Paul F

Sounds very much like the Antilles Airboats aircraft (VP-LVE), which was doing joy rides from Bournemouth Bay about this time. But certainly not barged anywhere.