Geforce, First of all, congratulations on starting a debate which has, at last, encouraged some intelligent input here.

However, I fear (correction, I am relieved) that your enthusiam for an EU constitution is unlikey to be mirrored on this forum. Those whose interests lie in aviation, especially historic aviation, are perhaps more mindful of the events of the last few decades, its conflicts, and its consequences. That is not at all to imply that we are all still fighting the Battle of Britain;- as individuals, we should be open-minded and forward- looking. However, within a substantial proportion of the UK population, there is an enduring suspicion of the ‘European Experiment’.

The financial, legal and constitutional implications of deeper integration are so complex, and contain so many uncertain ramifications, it is unsurprising that the project is so widely feared by those who suspect they have much to lose. Though politics is played out on an international stage, its reality is the way it affects the lives of individuals, and for many people in the UK, their actual experience of the effects of rulings from the EU has not been a pleasing one.

There is a sense of a relentless, and accelerating trend to interfere in every aspect of the way our lives are lived, from what we eat , how we work, and our leisure pursuits. How many people know that right now, for instance, the BGA, which has safely overseen the British Gliding movement for 60 years or so, is under threat from Brussels, who want it replaced by a statutary body, with all the formalised licencing and inspecting that goes with it. And who will pay for all these changes? And having paid, in what sense will they better off?
Perhaps it will, at last, end this constant torrent of glider crashes, and the huge, unacceptable toll that they inflict on the British public .

Of course, one can wheel out endless anecdotes, and instances of bungled law-making, but the main issue is much more concise.

It is by no means certain what we ( the UK) have to gain, but what we have to have to lose ( and are already losing) confronts us every day. And the worst bit is, once we are in, there is no going back, and only then will we begin to understand what we have given away.

Yes, wysiwyg, weight is always an issue with Lutons, and when our syndicate operated BBEA, on hot days ( poorer performance)the chunkier members were so weight-limited they could wear nothing heavier than the group thong.

One fellow (after months of preparation) set forth to The Isle of Mull, for the annual fly-in. Sitting on, and around his tent, clothing etc, he got airborne, but the Luton simply refused to climb above 100 ft, and his low-level circuit was almost entirely out-of-sight, though glimpses could be seen of the fin, where the trees were a bit lower. He got back round OK, but his share was up for sale the next day!

For nutty Luton Minor stories, one must refer, of course, to Arthur Ord-Hume, and his various books, which include the tale of flying a Minor from Elstree to the Isle of Wight, with a bicycle hanging underneath. Perhaps people were lighter in the 50’s.

So does a landing count as one movement, and a take-off one more? If so, that would seem to suggest that there can be only …..(umm..)… (strain…) FIFTEEN visitors !

Pretty crumby. They used to get 70 + at Finmere, on a good day.
Some qualifying criteria will have to be imposed, no tin, for a start, no nose wheels, no microlights…………..

I used to fly one of Luton’s finest- it was a Minor indulgence, and I never heard of one having wing tanks, as mentioned in the above spec.

Only a Luton pilot would appreciate the full horrific implications of 400 miles range, ie the potential to be stuck in it for an appalling 4 hours or more.

Stick your head next to an unsilenced VW Beetle engine for an hour or two, whilst bobbing around in a fume-filled wooden box, sitting on a very hard seat, and wait until cold and vibration have robbed you of all feeling in your extremities;- virtual Luton flying !

Actually great fun, and aviation thrills do not come any cheaper. 20 mins would last you a whole week.

A great set of pictures there ;- any chance of the Marauder air-to- airs, while you’re in a posting mood ?

Going back to the Storch, is it a MS.500 , and if so, might it be it be the old G-AZMH?

Hmmmm?

Sunderland and Tornados. Looks rather like a photo-montage to me. I wouldn’t dare say that out load, though.

Typo’s ? I do not know what they are, and I am certain I have never maid one.

I did think I was wrong once…………but I was mistaken.

A Popular Flying Association mag from last summer refers to a UK Piet Website http://WWW.pjshenton.go-plus.net/mainframe.htm. Sorry not had time to check it out, but might be useful.

Having had a go an Aircramper, I confirm that it offers vintage- style aviating, ie low and slow, on a budget, and is a probably a very good group aeroplane. Passengers of a more generous girth (alright- fatties ) will find their aviating ambitions frustrated by their inability to get in, as the front cockpit is very snug.

Handling will be influenced by the built-quality, but is not considered particularly sparkling. Then again, it has never set out to be a hot-ship, just good cheap fun, and pretty safe too.

For a ‘vintage’ two seater, it seems to be good value, recent examples offered around £12,000- £15,000. The ‘built it yourself’ option may not actually be much cheaper, and even that assumes that your 2,000 hours ( say ) of labour is at zero cost.