R6915REf post 44. I don’t think I’ve been to that area since, very approx. 1964 so it will have changed beyond my recognition today. But looking at Mr. Google’s map of the area and the fact we used to go there for a beer (I was at work by that time – not school! Of course) at Pyrford Lock pub on a hot summer evening then I guess it’s got to be either Lock Lane or Wisley Lane. More likely to have been Wisley Lane as I was more likely to come down the A3. That said, I have a dim recollection it was on my left hand side, that it was on a bend in the road, and possibly on the edge of a housing estate. A very poor description – very sorry. As to your hint about a hangar, yes I think it probably was. Vickers used to put such buildings up in the local area away from an airfield as dispersed stores units. I suspect that would have been used by them for Wisley Airfield maybe under 2 miles away?
Another one was erected at what had became Brooklands Technical College at the side of what was the old Locke King ‘Mansion’ off Heath Road Weybridge. That hangar had been partly used as an engine store during WW2. I was a student there around 1957 / 59 and we knocked the internal brick bays down and turned it into an all weather basket ball court. Fairoaks airfield also had some Vickers hangars across the road from the old main entrance on the road from Ottershaw. I think there were several others in the district as well. I’ve no idea if they are still either. I hope this helps in some way, but sorry for such a poor answer!
R6915This is a fascinating thread, much more yet to come? Meantime, a couple of thoughts:-
At the Royal Aeronatuical Society Garden Party Wisley (1956?) all of the Nash Collection was present except, oddly, the Wellington T10 that had departed Wisley a a year or three previously after a lengthy refurb for the RAF ! Their last one I believe – as my father flew in it before signing off. From memory of that Party day and a long long school boy’s look at those Nash aircraft I would suggest that none of them were anywhere near to a safe flying condition. They had been in store, we were told, inside a BEA hangar at London Airport for some years and it was their first time on show for some years. Also at that Garden Party – not Nash Collection, the English Electric Wren ‘tried’ to fly. We were told that their apprentices had only recently completed the refurbishment needed to flying condition.
During that time there was another museum aircraft store and not far from Wisley either. The Science Museum had a store at Pyrford, we school boys tried hard to gain access but ‘our bunch’ never suceeded. We knew it included an AVRO 504K, one of our chaps went to school at Walton on Thames a teacher there was George Cox who produced some very accurate 1/72 scale drawings that were published in the Aeromodeller and he used that aircraft as his example/source after the magazine editor made appraoches to the museum managers. But he also said there were some other gems inside that building that he was going to draw up at at a later date. I wonder what they were?
R6915It begins to smell like another useless QUANGO exercise, with members of the various sub committees airing their views into a void. The void being the empty space they have created by removing any possible future viabilty for an airshow large or small in the UK. Extend the speculative thinking further and sideways, owners may well leave the UK scene, the industry that is in place employing many specialist technicians could move overseas and so on.
If any shows DO survive , the resultant inevitable hike in entrance fees will further encourage the development of ‘naughty fields’ and road side verges. We have 27 days to tell the CAA the strength of feeling and strongly point out exactly what there actions will do. Time is short.
R6915Aeromodeller magazine (might have been in one of their annual’s) around 1954 – 56 published a photograph of the lady examining a large control line model , I think of a Lincoln, when she visited a UK model aircraft flying display. If, big IF, I’m right the model was made by a chap with surname of Briggs. He later produced flying scale drawings of a Vickers Viscount (approx 60 ” wing span) and possibly other twins and four engined large models of their day for that magazine. Ms. Carr was well regraded in the model world at that time, so I recall!
R6915I would agree the defunct Fleet Air Arm base at FORD seems possible – because aside from the FAA aircraft connection the blurred range of hills in the background could be the South Downs. Come to that maybe Tangmere about 6 miles from Ford and could Thorney Island also be a (unlikely) possibility at that time?
The lead actor as the ‘Test Pilot’ seems to be Canadian born actor Paul Carpenter who was often appearing UK lower budget films in the 50’s and 60’s. But I’m sure someone will correct me on that and other details!
R6915I’m green with envy! If only I could begin to approach that level of expertise. Will you tell us please what camera, what lens (s) and anything else you use (eg a monopod ?) to aid your natural talents?
R6915K4235, indeed an interesting line of research. I don’t know the answer but I may know a man who does. He isn’t a Forum user but I will email him directly and send your Post #1 to him. He’s currently involved with a forthcoming documentary film concerning Salisbury At War. Some aviataion related filming has already taken place.
Chattis Hill was used for Salisbury area Spitfire production and I suspect it would be unlikely to have been used for Reading area production. However just in passing, have you considered Harwell? There was a strip there. And another possibility is possibly a strip that was located somewhere in the Ascot area. I cannot substantiate either but I have heard both sites mentioned in the past in conversation. Of course the Newbury area is another possibility, I suggest.
I will respond ASAP but Xmas intervenes of course so it may be a little while.
R6915May I add a little more background about the pre – restoration history of Walrus GRNLI. David Green, who was the Spitfire Society Founder was approached by a gentleman living in Gosport, Hampshire – sorry to say I do not recall the year – saying that a relative had a converted front fuselage section of what might be a Supermarine Walrus in his Gosport garden and it was now in the way. DG went over and found a previously road worthy home conversion touring caravan!
DG, of course said yes please but had nowhere to ‘park’ it. At that time the Society had office only premises in Southampton opposite the then Solent Aviation Museum (now Solent Sky Museum) . Result was that the Walrus caravan was parked in their staff car park for a quite lengthy period of time. Dick Melton and Charles Church heard about it eventually and the ‘caravan’ went up to the Popham workshops and restoration commenced. If I recall correctly Dick Melton did complete the main structure of the fuselage just before Charles Church died in a tragic Spitfire accident near Blackbush.
Dick Melton I believe eventually moved away to Lowestoft and the Walrus went with him. I guess the rest of the history is as given in Post #21 but at some point I believe that Aeroplane Monthly in that era provided a very accurate story of the whole saga.
R6915Has anyone heard who became the new Trustees at the EGM to save the day for this society?
R6915Without disagreeing in any way with previous choices I’ve found Alfred Price’s [I]The Spitfire Story [I] to be very useful as well. As far as the Hurricane is concerned some sections of Sydney Camm and the Hurricane by Dr. John Fozzard has been helpful too. But I do agree that the Hurricane deserves a very thorough consideration that will also include analysis of the Hawker company records about the reasons for some of the original design decisions.
Example; the Lewis gun installations on the fuselage / cockpit side shown on the original mock up in the Kingston works? How about a photograph and more detail of the DB 601 engined example built in Yugoslavia or didn’t it really exist?
R6915One shouldn’t forget the Cessna (?) that also ended up on one carriageway of the M27 adjacent to the end of the runway at Southampton International Airport, early one morning in a rain storm about ten years ago. That also caught fire. Extending the thinking further will that mean that commercial operations today will need some ‘adjustments’?
R6915re Post 5, Steve, I admire your very subtle response. My words would be a great deal harsher. As to proxy votes? Nothing has been said on that detail, so I would assume that any attempt now might be stonewalled by the Trustees. They refuse any dialogue with anyone who wishes to offer an alternative point of view – in my opinion, that is.
R6915I understand they are aware – sorry for the delay in answering! What good it will do – one can only guess.
However a group dedicated to saving the society has a title. :- The Spitfire Society Reform Group and it is their EGM that will be held on September 26th at 13.30 hours in the Old Sarum Airfield Museum buildings. Whilst current members only can vote all ex members and members of the public will be made most welcome espceially if they have relevant comments to make.
See you there?
R6915I had an email from a friend in Australia. He’s a member of the Australian Spitfire Association and he with Nat Gould and other members laid a wreath commemorating fallen comrades fighting in the Battle of Britain yesterday on their Cenotaph, Martin Place in Sydney.
It reminds us that no mention of the fallen Few who joined the RAF that summer in 1940 from overseas seems to have been acknowledged by the Media in the past few days.
R6915I was south of Goodwood (Pagham Harbour) slightly north of Selsey. The weather turned good for 14.00 BST but still very blustery for just long enough to see and hear the majority of the Flights after the delayed flight time. How on earth did Boultbee manage that? How did the Goodwood airfield staff achieve it and despite the horrible overnight conditions?
Lets just say a big thank you to all of those guys.
And to the owners and pilots who coped with tricky conditions on the ground and in the air today. A word of appreciation to HRH for giving up his seat in Boultbee Spitfire G-ILDA so that Tom Neil was able to take to the air in one of the formations.
Never mind the Corbyn garbage and forget the grid locked A27 and local roads. Remember instead the rounds of applause as the formations flew along the south coast shore line past crowds of people who came out despite the memory of the Shoreham tragedy just a few weeks ago still raw in their minds.
It was simply terrific spectacle and it saluted the Few to perfection.
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