Windermere Waterbird replica flies...
 

Spotted this on the Flypast site (good to see Peter Kynsey keeping himself busy! ;)) Registered as a Replica Avro Curtiss 1911, the build was started by Gerry Cooper...

https://www.waterbird.org.uk/waterbi...as-a-seaplane/

https://www.nwemail.co.uk/news/20211...ff-windermere/

https://www.waterbird.org.uk/wp-cont...-high-res.jpeg

Lovely!

That picture immediately reminded me of one of my treasured books “All About Flying” by Gertrude Bacon.*

There is a chapter about early “hydro-aviation” in which she describes flying at Windermere and includes two aerial photos taken from the original Waterbird:


https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/pprune....e51ea4409.jpeg

I’m not lending my copy to anyone, but luckily the book is available online as a PDF:

https://ia802209.us.archive.org/2/it...acouoft_bw.pdf


* I have always felt that Flight’s Roger Bacon must have been inspired, as a young lad, by his favourite Aunt Gertrude!

She was a very adventurous, multi-talented women and a prolific author:

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gertrude_Bacon

Some interesting statements in that book!

https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/pprune....06597f83ff.png

There is an interesting wee documentary still available on UKTV - filmed partly at Gerry's Vintage Skunkworks at Wickenby,Gerry was responsible for building and test hopping the replica (as a landplane).One of the Warbird Workshop Series.

https://uktvplay.uktv.co.uk/shows/wa.../6249499726001

Thanks longer ron.

A wonderful documentary.