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I.I. My sincere thanks for this piece of information relating to G-BASE. I had always believed BASE to have begun life as a Hanson Home Counties hack engaged in the endless pursuit of ad hoc charters; certainly this was her role in the early 80's when I used to see her almost everywhere I went. From Hanson she became a 'Beamish' bird (ie: Carl Beaman & Co.) and in the end seems to have been exported to Malaysia.
But, prior to Hanson she had a life about which (until yesterday) I was never aware! BASE was bought (one assumes new from CSE being a Bell) and registered to Endeavour Aviation (Brighton) from March 1973 to November 1978. While Ferranti certainly used Tommy's earlier 206 G-AVZG, I am now fairly certain they would also have used BASE given her dates under Endeavour's patronage.
Tommy Sopwith's second Bell 206 G-BASE seen at Cranfield on 2nd September 1977 (Photo: Peter Nicholson)
De Havilland: Thank you for this wonderful piece of background information. When I.I. brought up BASE yesterday, and upon checking her original ownership details, I noticed her allocation to Endeavour but wasn't sure if this was a Sopwith company.
I was however aware that Sopwith Sr. raced the sailboat Endeavour in the America's Cup and the reason I knew that is because the chap who sold my father
his first boat, George Nicholson, had mentioned that his father, Charles Nicholson, had designed the America's Cup contender for
the Thomas Sopwith!
Sir Thomas Sopwith smokes his trademark pipe at the helm of the Endeavour during a leg of the 1934 America's Cup
It would be wonderful to hear more recollections of Sopwith Jr. and Endeavour Aviation and to discover images of the remainder of his fleet, especially his rotorcraft: G-AVZG, G-GINA and G-IINA.
Sav
ps: I.I. and De Havilland please accept the Savoia Medal of Appreciation to for your brilliant nostalgic contribution! 
To Industry Insider & Ahh de Havilland for
their superlative nostalgic reminiscences