Right Hand Thread:
I don't think she holds a UK CPL or Instructor Rating. They were from New Zealand.
As of early November 2016,the opening line of TC-T's Wikipedia page used to include this statement:
"Tracey Curtis-Taylor (born 1962) is a British aviator who has worked as a commercial pilot and flying instructor in New Zealand."
As others on this thread have pointed out, ever since this controversy began, that Wikipedia page has been constantly and regularly edited by people very sympathetic to TC-T. The quote above has now disappeared entirely - why? Probably because it is not entirely truthful.
Contrarily, in
this interview with JetGala magazine TC-T boldly states:
"I love the early planes. It’s completely romantic and whimsical but that’s my approach to flying. It became a hobby. I’m not interested in modern procedural flying. I’ve never been a professional flyer. I’m just an enthusiastic aviator."
I'd be surprised that anyone who has gained the qualifications necessary to earn a living from flying, would then deny ever having been a professional flyer? I suppose there is an outside chance that she
perhaps did the exams necessary for the issue of a CPL,
maybe even passed the appropriate flying tests for a CPL, but was never hired by any commercial outfit. However, given TC-T's apparent track record on claims about her flights, I think there is
plenty of doubt about her supposed commercial qualifications. We only have her say-so on it, but if anyone can prove otherwise, this forum would be grateful to see the evidence. But I don't think anyone is holding their breath. After all, all TC-T's biographical details, be they on gushingly-worded award certificates or scattered around the internet, seem to have been cut and pasted from the same, single source - TC-T herself.
terry holloway:
I understand the pride in RAF wings only too well. One doesn't serve for 34 years without "getting it"!
Sadly, despite your years in the RAF and affinity for aviation, I don't think that you really "get"
anything about this sad saga, be it the deceit or anything else.
terry holloway:
I give up in trying to argue ......!
Well, your position to stand on shaky ground almost certainly accounts for your frustration, but it is self-inflicted. You might like to think that the majority here will also give up, but I very much doubt they will, because the
facts are clear and plentiful. Perhaps you prefer to take comfort in the immortal words
uttered by Steven Fry's character, General Melchett, in the final Blackadder TV series:
"If nothing else works, a total pig-headed unwillingness to look facts in the face will see us through."
Good luck with that, Melchie!
