Hear, hear! :ok:

The TCT team would like nothing more than for this thread to be locked and fade away.

There are plenty of factual issues that remain open awaiting answers and we would all do well to keep the focus firmly on them.

Agreed, so let's look at the facts from this little episode:

1 Oct 2015
- TCT seen discussing something with A N Other pilot with a chart at the back of G-JACS -FACT
- Ewald seen helping prepare this second aircraft (G-JACS) - FACT
- TCT departs Farnborough solo - FACT
- TCT lands at Merville for a "pit-stop" - FACT
- TCT flies on to Charleville for an ONS - FACT

9 Jan 2016 TCT and Ewald land at Sydney Airport - FACT

Somewhere between these two dates she picked up her passenger/co-pilot/navigator/engineer/radio operator *Delete as applicable. - FACT

Speculation:
I suggest it will be nearer 1 Oct 2015 than 9 Jan 2016. ;)
Given the range of the Stearman and TCT's unquestionable aviating skills at following a magenta (almost straight) line why the stop at Merville? Why not just push on to Charleville.
A little more digging will soon turn the speculation into fact too.

Satco has done a superb forensic of this whole saga.

The missing link now appears to be what happened between departure Farnborough and first stop in France?

It is unfair to just blame TCT. Ewald was a key player for both trips.

Boeing and Artemis were both party to the saga.

I have it on gold plated inside info that Boeing were the key influence when it came to her Air League award.

Boeing also lied in their press release ,when she was in the Middle East, that it was a solo flight.

In my opinion there was a clear strategy to elude to a solo flight at both the start in Farnborough and the end in Sydney.

Ewald can be seen lurking in the background in the departure video and adopted the same strategy in Sydney.

Finding the airport where he climbed in to the front seat soon after the departure video has to be the next piece in the jigsaw.

The fact she needed Ewald to be on board for the short 30 minute hop from RAAF Richmond to Sydney suggests a lack of confidence to navigate and land at Kingsford Smith and the waiting media.

The shenanigans where she waved to the press and he tried to hide is nothing short of farce.

I seem to recall her planned destination post Farnborough was L2K but there were crosswind problems?

Is there any news on the planned National Geographic documentary of her expedition?

Is the America voyage to be resumed without the primary sponsors?

The planning behind TCT's voyages go back several years.
source https://www.companiesintheuk.co.uk/l...d-in-a-biplane

So the TCT story starts in September 2006?

Or earlier?
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=cWJloqykD8o

If the trip to Australia was indeed not to be solo (as is being claimed by some) then the question needs to be asked, Why was there a need to depart solo from Farnborough in such a public manner?

I'd imagine Boeing are done with her due to their anniversary year celebrations being over and I highly doubt that Indian outfit that underwrote the (well used) insurance policy would be willing rewrite a new policy without Ewald listed as either pilot or co pilot and I wouldn't imagine he works cheap. Which leaves Artemis, who obviously have the resources to finance finishing the US expedition and the boss in that video seemed quite enamoured with Tracey, enough to get the cheque book out again remains to be seen.

I understand Artemis are no longer sponsoring TCT.

For those who are interested in her wearing of an old RAF brevit she proudly points to it here
1.53 in Megans youtube clip.
http://www.pprune.org/9631555-post3208.html

There must be some unknown significance to her addressing the unknown recipients of her pointed finger
on the wings?

National Geographic might be worth approaching as they were slated last year as buyers of the yet to be aired TCT documentary of her flight from Farnborough to Sydney.

Given the amount of negative publicity over the last 12 months it might have to look again at the way the documentary is edited.


Footnote;
I understand Terry Holloway has received a nasty phone call. Although in opposing camps Terry has been a real gentleman in his private pm's to me. There is no need for any sort of personal attacks in a discussion on here. I started this thread and want to emphasise I bear no personal malice to TCT or indeed anyone involved in the saga. My motive from day one has been to reveal the truth and nothing more.

Pprune and its moderators have played a major part in exposing this charade. The site is now a global first call for journalists and others wishing to discover background information on aviation.

There is a movie due for release very soon called The Mercy and staring Donald Firth and Rachel Weisz.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Mercy
It in many respects echoes the Spirit of Artemis saga that ended in Arizona.

If I was a PR advisor to TCT then I would suggest come clean and admit the truth instead of others digging away to discover the truth.

Whatever HRH Prince Michaels endorsement he will not emerge well to be seen in a video pushing an aircraft out of a hangar on a voyage of lies.

From SWB earlier today ;
You could try using the flight play-back facility on Flightradar24.com or a similar website to check the flights of both G-JACS and N56200 on those or other dates ? I don't subscribe so only have access to recent flights , G-JACS was last noted flying yesterday , but if you subscribe you can go back further into individual flight histories which may be of use in this case ? Link here ; https://www.flightradar24.com/55.09,0.35/6

This is one of those areas where aircraft spotters come in to their own.

However a French speaking pilot must be able to help to discover what happened post channel?

Where did N56200 land after Farnborough on her Boeing sponsored 'solo' flight?
http://www.boeing.com/resources/boei...essRelease.pdf

However Terry Holloway, well connected to Boeing via Marshall's aerospace stated....

Terry is no novice when it comes to the detail of UK to Australia flights.
see http://www.cruiseshipspeakers.net/sp...sp?ID=78330527

So my question to Terry is why did TCT need to go through the pantomime of departure when Ewald was clearly in the background preparing to do the serious flying from the UK to Sydney?

Was it pure coincidence the PA 28 from Fowlmere was there and TCT can be seen discussing her flight plan?

I agree. What was being discussed with another pilot at Farnborough in the video is pure speculation.

There is no argument that the flights were not solo- TCT has admitted as much (albeit belatedly).

The main argument now, imho, is whether the organisations that gave her awards for these flights were aware that they were not solo flights when they decided to make these awards.

Furthermore, now that they are aware of this, will they consider rescinding these awards as the LAA has done. As I said earlier, I think it would be much better now to concentrate this campaign on members of these organisations.

I appreciate that some will argue that the circumstances under which these organisations came to believe (if they did) that the flights were solo are relevant and will continue to investigate how much TCT and her team and sponsors contributed towards this. However, I urge them to stick to establishing the facts and avoid personal attacks and speculation.

The whole thread is about her suggested claims of solo flight.

To put the situation bluntly there would have been no TCT thread if she had stated it was not a solo flight.

The big send off and arrival was for a perceived solo expedition.

Hence Prince Michael of Kent pushing her Stearman out of the hangar.

UK Royal Persons do not normally stoop so low.

She claimed to be emulating Amy Johnson who flew alone in just around three weeks.

The video and still footage show there was an element of deceception as does the press releases most notably from sponsor Boeing Aircraft Corporation.

Looking at the facts some excellent mud diggers have been finding more info under the stones.

Satco has now highlighted the early stages of the flight and raised some questions.

Good for him.

This is a pilots rumour network.

I do agree with you on this but I also think there is a need to follow-up on the speculative trains of thought. These organisations that gave her awards won't change their views unless it can be clearly shown that the deception was intentional. Sneaking off to pick up Ewald would show this.

If he had not been at Farnborough and was collected later then that could easily be explained away by TCT et al - perhaps genuinely so. However, having him there and then flying him out "undercover" to meet up later shows this deceptive intent. All part of the smoke and mirrors we are getting used to.

Suffice to say that investigations as to what exactly happened on that day are underway:ok:

Sam Rutherford:
Hi Sam, did you tell the sponsors of this material change early on in the Capetown to Goodwood flight or were you told by someone else that they had been informed? Reason I ask is this does not fit in with Boeing still advertising the UK to Oz flight as solo in their Abu Dhabi Press Release in 2015. Surely they would have had it corrected by then.

SWB

Let's cut to the chase:

Dear Mr. Piper Cherokee G-JACS owner from Foulmere, if you're reading this thread would it be possibly for you to confirm that you took off in this aircraft from Farnborough on Oct. 1st 2015 with Mr. Ewald Gritsch as a passenger and dropped him at an airfield in either Southern England or Northwestern France? And if so what was the name of that airfield?

Many thanks PB84
P.S. That is one cracking looking Cherokee you got there.

Thank you, Jay Sata, for the note about the forthcoming film "The Mercy" starring Colin Firth, in the part of Donald Crewhurst, who sailed into infamy in 1968 in the Sunday Times Golden Globe "round the world" event. He pretended to be sending his messages on track, but was really only sailing back and forth mid-Atlantic. Eventually fell off his boat and disappeared.

Famous frauds make good film stories, so this may be a nice little earner for the TCT team and Ewald's fleet of Boeings.

In my specialty of gliding, a story goes round about a false claim of achieving Diamond Height (more than 20,000 feet) in a thunderstorm. Verified by a false barograph tracing that was eventually sussed. Does anybody know this guy's name?

I've got a copy of the Readers Digest from 1973 where the article appeared. It says Michael Field as told to Peter Browne

Michael Field's fake claim to fame -
 

Thanks, Robin. Pay dirt. There is a thread on a forum titled rec.aviation.soaring 4RZeYj-7PQ4 dated 15/1/2004 that has 8 responses, some of which give details of his claim and why it was turned down.

Fascinating. The detail that roused particular suspicion; he claimed it was so cold in the cunimb that his fillings fell out of his teeth. I hope you chaps can locate this interesting thread - Don't know how you could include the dental detail in a film, however.

His name is Derrick Gunning (link below with his pic) and it's an Archer. Unless my eyes deceived me it was Mr Gunning who chatted to TCT and helped with Ewald to pull the aircraft out prior to departing - very soon after TCT.

Where did G-JACS fly off to? I'm sure there are a number of us working on that now. With a bit of lateral thinking there are a number of sources that can be used to check.

The Team

Here it is folks!! A smoking gun? You decide.

From the pen of Derrick Gunning...owner of G-JACS


http://www.modair.co.uk/html/aileron_october_2015.html

More popcorn please. This thread just keeps giving and giving. Surely even Terry Holloway must be wondering why TC-T had need of a chase plane for two very short hops, and he might even question why the chase plane did not depart in tow.

If this was not a deliberate act designed to deceive I do not know what is. The next question must surely be "was it at Merville or Charleville when Ewald took effective command of the Stearman?"

Well at least she was gracious enough to thank him in the expeditions closing credits. The "techincal support" guy got a good mention also

Tracey Curtis Taylor - Aviatrix, Adventurer, Inspirational Speaker

That Stearman must be one unreliable bastard of a plane, it only got a few hundred miles out from Farnborough and needed fixed 🙈

"Well at least she was gracious enough to thank him in the expeditions closing credits."

........... "For services to my dirty washing!"? :O