.
I'm glad to hear that the LAA side of things has gone in what I would regard as an appropriate direction.
But, as others have said, I don't believe for a second that this is the end of the affair. There's too much at stake for too many involved parties for that, in various forms including public credibility, corporate carelessness, misrepresentation, ego and money.
Ah, yes - money.
Money.
Money, money, money.
And you know what they say...
"When in doubt, follow the money."
Originally Posted by
deefer dog
It looks like here BIAB web site has been changed....or at least that pop up highlighting her side of the controversy seems to have disappeared.
Is this the text you had in mind?, dd? If so, it's still on the website (or at least for the moment).
STATEMENT
A small number of recent articles about my flights have suggested or implied that I have misrepresented or have sought to mislead people into believing that I undertook my flights alone and without support. I am considering taking legal action against the individuals who were the sources for these articles as I consider them to be part of a course of conduct designed to cause damage and distress.
The facts are:
I have never made false assertions about the nature of my flights and I dismiss the suggestion that they are "mired in controversy". Any controversy that has arisen has been as a result of the actions of the individuals referred to above.
As I have stated previously, I began with the intention of trying to fly the Africa flight solo (as the original descriptive materials from Nylon films show) but a combination of elements resulted in fundamental changes being made to the nature of that expedition. Several people flew with me on multiple legs between Cape Town and the UK. These included sponsors, film crew and my engineer, Ewald Gritsch.
The expedition was project managed by Nylon Films and they controlled the expedition website 'Cape Town to Goodwood' and its promotional information and sub-contractors. I have never sought to mislead anyone about the way that my flights were undertaken. It is clear from what I say about the Africa flight and subsequent expeditions that they were not solo flights and that I was accompanied by a support crew.
Ewald Gritsch is not my flying instructor and nor did he fly my aeroplane at any material time (click here to see statement from Ewald Gritsch himself). Specifically, he did not fly my aeroplane instead of me during any of the flights comprising the Africa, Australia or US expeditions. Ewald's primary role in all of these expeditions has been to provide engineering, technical and flight planning support. He is my principal crew and the only person who is fully qualified to look after the aeroplane in what have been some very testing circumstances. I say “material time” above because he has flown my aeroplane for the purposes of providing engineering and technical support and for recreational purposes.
As a result of the difficult experiences in Africa we adopted an entirely different approach for the Australia and US expeditions. These were managed through my company, Bird in a Biplane. At no time was there any suggestion that these later expeditions were solo flights, although some of the press coverage erroneously reported that they were. I cannot control what other people say about what I do, whether it be in the media or otherwise.
Ewald and I undertook all of the logistical planning for the UK to Australia flight and with the support of one of my principal sponsors, Boeing, and the Britain is Great Campaign, were able to build an extensive outreach programme around the expedition, connecting with young people and raising the profile of women in aviation around the world. This will feature prominently in the documentary film which is currently being edited.
I consider the real achievement of the past five years not just a flying feat, but the sustained effort of raising the funding and building the network of international support for my outreach programme which made the whole programme possible.
Tracey Curtis-Taylor
www.birdinabiplane.com
(
Source)
A couple of wee aside might be in order here:
1/ The "Source" url provided is "http://www.birdinabiplane.com/oct_statement/", the latter part of which bears of little brain such as myself might suppose to be a shorthand "October Statement".
When one view the link and looks at the tab name or one prints it (see attached pdf), one sees "Statement - 11th June 2016".
How strange.
Or maybe it doesn't say that at all and I'm just misreading or misinterpreting it - as so many people seem to do in this matter.
2/ Anyone familiar with the UK's Data Protection Act or its libel laws will immediately recognise the phrase "damage and distress". I'm sure this is just a coincidental choice of phrasing and not at all put there following legal counsel.
I've also attached a copy of
Herr Gritsch's statement for convenience (and, of course, posterity). I have to say that reading it, like reading the NTSB "report", has triggered WeeJeem's Niggles again, more of which anon
