Southport beach - Merseyside
 

Does anybody have a photograph of the Fox Moth operating from Birkdale Sands / Southport that they could copy to me for reference??

The aeroplane in particular is Fox moth G-**EJ

What I have got somewhere is the numbered certificate issued and signed by Capt Norman Giroux when you went for a pleasure flight.

I flew in G-ACCB in 1954 and G-ACEJ the following year.

Tiger_mate
 

There may be a photograph in the following book:- Sun, Sand & Silver Wings. The Story of Aviation on the Southport and South West Lancashire Coast from 1910 to 2003 by John Mulliner.

Definitely G-ACEJ. It used to fly into Speke every now and again with Capt Johnny at the controls.

As an aside, I remember going up from Southport Beach in a Tri-pacer. That would have been in the early '70's.

Southport Beach
 

As a QFI at RAF Woodvale I seem to recall a C172??? operating off the beach during the summer season (or is my gin soaked brain playing tricks on me??). At about the same time some enterprising individual tried to set up a hovercraft service across the Ribble, which due to not hearing about any more, I assume, failed.

The author of the Sun, Sea and Silver Sands book has also written a brief article which was published on the web at http://www.seftoncoast.org.uk/articl..._aviation.html It has a couple of nice pics.

My first ever flight was on a Fox Moth from Southport Beach back in the early 70's.

The very same Fox Moth featured on this week's episode of Coast on BBC. It was nice to see G-ACEJ flying again - I haven't seen it since 1972!

There was also some nice early aviation footage on the program too.

fox moth
 

I have photos. I have flown in g-acej many times as a child. My father was the engineer for this plane for Giro aviation

KWhy

Keep taking the gin, your memory's intact. The 172 was operated by Inglis Aviation from 1985-1995, owned by Bill Robinson; in its last year, 1996, it became Beach Aviation Ltd. The Slingsby hovercraft (flown by Peter?) operated out of St Annes for two years (93/94?), and was used for training pilots from those organisations who had bought the craft - as a sideline, it was also used for pleasure flights around the Ribble.

TriPacer on Southport Beach
 

Akrotiri_Bad_Boy

As I mentioned on the Beach Landings thread, as a teenager, my wife had her first flight from the beach at Southport. I have located a couple of prints of the occasion, although they have suffered in storage. I have processed the scans (using MS PhotoEditor) which seem to show the aircraft as G-A*EV. The date would have been 1969, and she recalls the aircraft as a Piper.


http://i478.photobucket.com/albums/r...ft/sport2a.jpg

http://i478.photobucket.com/albums/r...uthportsml.jpg

southport
 

APWR pa22 was there summer 1981.standard piper green and yellow interlinked controls for roll end yaw, must look for the book ,perhaps it s on the "public library shelves".

Thanks for that jindabyne................ I'll keep my friendly bottle of Bombay Sapphire then and not discard it!!!

Southport Beach Ground Crew
 

Nice to see PA-22 G-AREV that operated off Southport Beach.:ok: The guy walking away from the aircraft is Chris Benyon, I know cos I was that man. I used to position it to the beach to get my PPL hours up so I could be a Flying Instructor, I also loaded and Prop Swung John Lewreys red painted DH 83C Fox Moth G-ACEJ. It was hangared at Blackpool Airport, we used to maintain it in one of the hangars, always changing the tail wheel as the sand wore out the bearings. Used to sow up holes in the wing when the ladies ripped it with their sharp heels. and of course be a fireman in an emergency.......Wonderfull to see..Thank you.

KYJ
 

As a QFI at RAF Woodvale I seem to recall a C172??? operating off the beach during the summer season (or is my gin soaked brain playing tricks on me??). At about the same time some enterprising individual tried to set up a hovercraft service across the Ribble, which due to not hearing about any more, I assume, failed.
http://images.ibsrv.net/ibsrv/res/sr...er_offline.gif http://images.ibsrv.net/ibsrv/res/sr...ons/report.gif


The hovercraft service I remember from the early 1970's was with a Saunders Roe SRN-2; My parents took the family on the hovercraft trip over to Blackpool as part of the day out to southport. Shame it failed but I can understand why; I think there were only a few passengers on the trip we took.

My first light aircraft flight was on the same tripacer on another occasion. Ahh memories!

EGGP

And before that was another Foxmoth, G-AOJH, owned by the late Harry Patterson and based at Speke. I accompanied it many times, and we set out the landing strip, and just operated. This was about 1960.

to thespasticflyer
a question - why do you make out you're in germany and drive a german car but reside firmly in the uk?
zeek hile.

In answer to the first question...

http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g1...H-83-1951M.jpg

dada
 

Well dada,
I do not make out I am in Germany, I worked in the German system for 8 years as a Civilian Parachute pilot at a British Army adventure training unit. I flew turbine Islanders, did in excess of 5000 parachute tasks, and AS at Southport I helped maintain the aircraft, from cleaning them to removing airframe bits and a turbine engine or two. Like Southport Beach it was a "Field Opperation" If you did not fix the aircraft it stayed on the ground.
I was in the German tax system and still am registered in the German National Health System. This means that if I am seriously ill, I drive to Germany and get it fixed, whilst in England one would wait on the beck and call of professionals!
By the By, in the "Echo Victor" pic you see I have a handbag on my shoulder, ladies often used to say "look after my bag till I get down" as the "Pie Chaser" was quite cramped in the back seats.
Mit freundlichen Grüßen.................

Fox Moth G-AOJH operated from the beach at Southport in that fantastic summer of 1976. I had a trip in it. I have a photo somewhere. It was wearing red and silver in those days.