Aero hack,
I know you and the other youngsters here are winding me up but .....
We operated Marathons with Derby Aviation from Burnaston for quite a few years.
We pioneered air routes like Burnaston- Jersey, Cheltenham- Jersey and many others!
The main attraction of the Marathon was that it was single pilot operation. So always a seat for a free ride !!
We had Daks, and Marathons with Derby Aviation and they started naming the aircraft after Dales
The Daks were named Darley Dale, Derwent Dale etc
The Marathons were Millers Dale, Matlock Dale etc
When the last Marathon arrived ( ex WAAC Aircraft) while it was in the paint area some wag put Mrs Dale on it.
The Marathon like so many British aircraft had a spar life. When we reached this life we got an extension pending some tests by Miles designates ( Whever took over the design responsibilty)
We had one of th aircraft in the hangar on check, the boffins arrived and took a "coupon" from the spar web and departed.
The aircraft never flew again.
I'm afraid I can't remember what happened to the aircraft
Must be a senior moment
