Skegness Aerodrome.

Across the Board

Hi, I recently came across the threads re Skegness Aerodrome…Great to know it was so well thought of. I obtained my licence in the 60’s through the efforts of my good friend the great CFI Rex Larsen, flying all the Austers:APKN,AIBH,AHAL.AHSO. I was Chairman of the Club for a year or two. I had two garages at Chapel St Leonards and provided ‘digs’ for two resident pilots…Pete Blackburn & Tony Cowan. I tried to contact Neils Larsen (Rex’s son) but email address no good…anyone know where he is?
Went back to Rhodesia in ’72, now known as Zim********land, flying Cessna 182 for Goverment Lands Inspectorate….quite hairy when terrorist wars started.
I really did enjoy my times at Skeg, including fetching the bulk copies of the Nottingham Evening Post on a Saturday (all the results for the holidaymakers,) back to Boston and then Skeg in time for the newsagent’s sales.
Laugh? Call the airfield on the radio for circuit joining info and get the terse reply…’Land at your discretion!!
All great experiences I shall remember for ever. Bob Truman.

Auster G-AIBH taken at Skegness in the early 1960’s.

Having read this thread I have put Skegness on my list of airfields to fly into this Summer. Realise todays airfield is located some distance from the original but plan to walk over there for a visit as it is the sight for probaly hundreds if not thousands of first flight experiences for happy holiday-makers:cool:

There is nothing quite like the fixed grin of a child after his/her first flight in a light aeroplane

In this respect I feel it deserves to be remembered as an historic aviation site. The old airfield also represents the true spirit of leisure flying – years before the tentacles of red tape stifled general aviation in the UK.

Hello, Pitstop, Gooney Bird, bravo533, Rojread,

Thank you for posting further memories and the photo of Skegness Aerodrome…:)

Clive.:)

I don’t know what became of the Chipmunk but its US registration N38MW was cancelled on 5 January 2020.

Thanks Avion. My eyes didn’t detect that square “0”.

Thanks also Mothminor for the information.

Laurence

The Chipmunk pic must be pre-10th June 1977 as I’ve found a reference to N99140 being flown out of Alconbury on board a C-141A bound for McGuire AFB on that date.

Great photos PaulyV. Thanks for posting 🙂

I think that you’ll find, Laurence, that the Chipmunk is N99140, formerly WD376 and G-BDDC and latterly N38MW.

PaulyV: Can you give the details of the Chipmunk N9914D in your photo, above? I can’t find any references to it, and the only aircraft with that registration was a Super Cub. Thanks.

Laurence

I can’t seem to stay away.  I suspect there are more images to come but attached is an image of my Dad taking G-ATKE into the skies on his first solo flight from Skegness.  I read that the plane unfortunately met a sticky end, taking a donkey out in the process.  I have updated this image having discovered notes my dad made on the back of the image (DWV being his initials) – seems this dates to January 1977.

Thank you for posting the photos 🙂

…and for helping keep this thread alive 😉

As a little lad I used to keep an eye out for the Lincs Aerial Spraying Renault 4 vans, white with a red stripe and,….a sure clue that the Pawnee wasn’t far away….and often coming to treat the back field here too 😉

Thank you again for posting on,

C.

Wonderful. thank you. keep em coming.

Looks very green for 1976, we had a really hot summer that year unless it was May time

..and two photographs taken from our garden in Withern during the very late 1970s/early 1980s. This used to happen every year with various aircraft throwing themselves around just feet above our bungalow roof, especially the helicopter which pivoted to change direction just above our garden, often accompanied by a wave from the pilot.  I clearly remember having to come inside because we felt ill from the fumes on more than one occasion, only to run back out after a few moments because it was such an exciting thing to witness.  

I am guessing the Piper(?) is the very same one as in the calendar image above. Any got an idea of who it might have been who entertained me every year with their daring pilot skills?

Two more images found in the slides, these from around 1976.

Lovely memories, thank you.

Hello Paul,

           Thank you for posting on this thread….and for the photos and memories added 🙂

   Thank you,

               Clive.

I should add after reading this thread a little more I now know his instructor was called Rex Larson and I have captured his trilby on the right in the photograph above.  The memory of his black labrador has also come back to me as a result of reading through.  Thanks everyone.