Air Pictorial scans
Gnome de PPRuNe
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Blimey, that is a treasure to bring pleasure! I reckon nearly all of the aircraft on the first UK page still exist - if not entirely completely! I'll have a proper gander later...
Cheers!
Cheers!
I can merely echo the comments of those above.
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Gnome de PPRuNe
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Only two that I can see on that first G- page that are no longer with us in some form - Tiger G-ACEZ (and I'm not sure it is definitely totally completely kaput, think I've seen reference to its continued existence in "kit" form) and the DH-86 G-ACZP which was damaged on a Viv Bellamy organised trip to Madrid in the '60s and eventually scrapped sadly. One aeroplane belongs to a regular on these august pages...
The Avia 'BEE is in Australia and I believe DH-60 'BJJ and DH-89 'CPP are both in Canada. The Klemm 'AXK is believed to be stored somewhere in Kent, damaged in '62 and its last registered owner had died. The former Chrisair DH-84 G-ADDI is in the US.
Edit: G-ABJJ is back in the UK with Ben Cox!
The Avia 'BEE is in Australia and I believe DH-60 'BJJ and DH-89 'CPP are both in Canada. The Klemm 'AXK is believed to be stored somewhere in Kent, damaged in '62 and its last registered owner had died. The former Chrisair DH-84 G-ADDI is in the US.
Edit: G-ABJJ is back in the UK with Ben Cox!
Fascinating stuff !
Re surviving airliners, I can't think of any ex G- examples off the top of my head, although there may be a few. A handful survive from the Overseas Airline Fleet Lists, albeit not airworthy: an Air France 707, SAS Caravelle and Qantas 707, possibly others.
I was pleased to see among the photos a nice one of our local resident:
Note the "Four Darts".
Also of interest is what must be one of the very first G- out-of-sequence registrations: G-ARWG, a Druine/Rollason Condor registered to Roy Watling Greenwood.
Re surviving airliners, I can't think of any ex G- examples off the top of my head, although there may be a few. A handful survive from the Overseas Airline Fleet Lists, albeit not airworthy: an Air France 707, SAS Caravelle and Qantas 707, possibly others.
I was pleased to see among the photos a nice one of our local resident:
Note the "Four Darts".
Also of interest is what must be one of the very first G- out-of-sequence registrations: G-ARWG, a Druine/Rollason Condor registered to Roy Watling Greenwood.
Thread Starter
Fascinating stuff !
Re surviving airliners, I can't think of any ex G- examples off the top of my head, although there may be a few. A handful survive from the Overseas Airline Fleet Lists, albeit not airworthy: an Air France 707, SAS Caravelle and Qantas 707, possibly others.
I was pleased to see among the photos a nice one of our local resident:
Note the "Four Darts".
Re surviving airliners, I can't think of any ex G- examples off the top of my head, although there may be a few. A handful survive from the Overseas Airline Fleet Lists, albeit not airworthy: an Air France 707, SAS Caravelle and Qantas 707, possibly others.
I was pleased to see among the photos a nice one of our local resident:
Note the "Four Darts".
'Know Your Airliners' Handley Page Herald
Gnome de PPRuNe
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Sabena had a surprisingly large fleet.
Sept '63 has been brought to our notice . One of our Rofs [ retired old fogies ] still has an Aeronca which came to the UK on floats ; donated to the Sea Tiger [ article in Sep'63 ] .
Further down in a/c registrations .. Restored to register is a Dh 60G Moth ... She's still happily a/b at our local a/d [ close to where she was then based ] , now owned and flown by the son of the '63 restorer .
Like so many , had to save up from Saturday job ... It was a tossup between Air Pic , Airfix mag , Airfix kit , saving for a motorbike in 3 yrs time !
rgds condor .
Further down in a/c registrations .. Restored to register is a Dh 60G Moth ... She's still happily a/b at our local a/d [ close to where she was then based ] , now owned and flown by the son of the '63 restorer .
Like so many , had to save up from Saturday job ... It was a tossup between Air Pic , Airfix mag , Airfix kit , saving for a motorbike in 3 yrs time !
rgds condor .
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Gnome de PPRuNe
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Used to regularly see that Aeronca "floating" around near my school in the late '70s when it lived on the strip at Tongham - see it lives even closer to my Alma Mater now! Only saw its former floats once when the Sea Tiger made a low pass or two at White Waltham. The only other time I saw the Sea Tiger, it was just a fuselage being debent at Redhill after its first accident, think it was also modified then to permit a quick swap between floats and wheels.
Very many thanks indeed.
What on earth did Aviation Traders do with all those Prentices?
I see that G-AORF, the first Chipmunk I flew, was once owned by Viv Bellamy.
I see that G-AORF, the first Chipmunk I flew, was once owned by Viv Bellamy.
I remember an article in a magazine not yet mentioned - Meccano Magazine of about 1960 or '61 - where one of them set off for Australia with a husband and wife who were emigrating. It was named 'Koomela' (presumably oz); don't remember its reg.
There was some discussion as to whether they would get there using the 'original' RAF 4 - channel VHF radio especially as they only had limited crystals which did not include 121.5.
Always wondered if they got there.
I only ever saw a Prentice once when I was controlling at the PFA Rally at Cranfield one year.
There was some discussion as to whether they would get there using the 'original' RAF 4 - channel VHF radio especially as they only had limited crystals which did not include 121.5.
Always wondered if they got there.
I only ever saw a Prentice once when I was controlling at the PFA Rally at Cranfield one year.
I remember that, I think it was G-AREF; it was operating from Tongham/Runfold when I first arrived at Farnborough in '74; always called us up before takeoff in case there was traffic in the Farnborough circuit. There was a Stearman (G-AZLE) at the other Tongham strip, Whitelane Farm about 2 miles east and I think this moved to Runfold when Whitelane Farm closed along with an Aviat Husky.
Gnome de PPRuNe
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G-AREX it was, didn't realise there were two strips at Tongham, thought the Stearman was at Runfold too.
Three of the Prentices (Prentii?) ended at Biggin, I recall two fliers there when I first visited, one was and still is owned by Susan Saggers, the other is now part of the RAF Museum collection; a third seems to have been owned by Cobby Moore and I only ever recall it as a hulk outside the Surrey Aviation hangar.
The vast majority were scrapped at Southend or Stansted; seem to recall Freddy Laker thought civilianising them would provide a cheap light aircraft for the air minded masses but there was no market. Only about a dozen survived the axeman I think. There's video on YouTube of one decreasingly low passes at a Barton airshow in 1959 - eventually the pilot essayed a slow roll which ended in a burning heap of scrap metal.
Edit: 252 bought by Aviation Traders, 28 were converted according to Wikipedia.
Three of the Prentices (Prentii?) ended at Biggin, I recall two fliers there when I first visited, one was and still is owned by Susan Saggers, the other is now part of the RAF Museum collection; a third seems to have been owned by Cobby Moore and I only ever recall it as a hulk outside the Surrey Aviation hangar.
The vast majority were scrapped at Southend or Stansted; seem to recall Freddy Laker thought civilianising them would provide a cheap light aircraft for the air minded masses but there was no market. Only about a dozen survived the axeman I think. There's video on YouTube of one decreasingly low passes at a Barton airshow in 1959 - eventually the pilot essayed a slow roll which ended in a burning heap of scrap metal.
Edit: 252 bought by Aviation Traders, 28 were converted according to Wikipedia.
Last edited by treadigraph; 26th Oct 2023 at 13:34.
Ah yes, Echo X ray.
At least I got the first bit right!
Whereas Runfold was east - west on the line of the Hogs Back, Whitelane Farm was one way; land southerly towards the Hogs Back and take off northerly away from the Hogs Back.
A friend of mine happened to drive round there one day in about '76 and there was a Twin Comanche nose poking through the hedge!!
At least I got the first bit right!
Whereas Runfold was east - west on the line of the Hogs Back, Whitelane Farm was one way; land southerly towards the Hogs Back and take off northerly away from the Hogs Back.
A friend of mine happened to drive round there one day in about '76 and there was a Twin Comanche nose poking through the hedge!!
The vast majority were scrapped at Southend or Stansted; seem to recall Freddy Laker thought civilianising them would provide a cheap light aircraft for the air minded masses but there was no market.
My second-ever flight was a joyride in a Prentice at the late-lamented Ramsgate Airport. A bit of a letdown after my first flight, which was in a Dragon Rapide!
Gnome de PPRuNe
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The seven seater Prentice seems to have been G-APJE, Chrisair operated their famous red DH-84 Dragon G-ADDI from Ramsgate in 1963 and also a Prentice; Biggin Hill's Jock Maitland also did Prentice joyrides from Ramsgate, bit earlier I think.
Not sure I'd heard of Ramsgate Airport before, probably thought references meant Manston!
Not sure I'd heard of Ramsgate Airport before, probably thought references meant Manston!
Not sure I'd heard of Ramsgate Airport before, probably thought references meant Manston!
Present day:
1959:
Some more evocative photos here:
https://aviationarchives.info/catego...nicipleAirport
A very interesting history. Whitney Straight was one of the original owners:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ramsgate_Airport
Gnome de PPRuNe
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That terminal is a beauty!
(Speaking of Art Deco, the famous Purley Way lido is just over the hill from here - when the site was demolished in the 1980s to make way for a gardening centre, the Art Deco diving platform was left intact and I believe is now under a preservation order. Another redevelopment into a housing estate looms, arranged about this monument to 1930s taste...)
(Speaking of Art Deco, the famous Purley Way lido is just over the hill from here - when the site was demolished in the 1980s to make way for a gardening centre, the Art Deco diving platform was left intact and I believe is now under a preservation order. Another redevelopment into a housing estate looms, arranged about this monument to 1930s taste...)