Most letters/e-mails would have pre-dated 28th October and would have made mention of facts as we saw it and some fairly damning images. Items that those who did not wish to believe could have ignored.

Only after that date did we get the video from Herne Bay, Sept 2014, where TCT clearly shoots her own protestations of innocence out of the water.

My suggestion is to e-mail again and ask for an acknowledgement.
:ok:

Mods, thank you for your patience with us. :ok:

Please do not merge threads as references within messages to earlier posts would get scrambled and lead to even more duplication of thoughts and ideas.

Ta very muchly
SWB

Cessnafly,

I understand your cynicism - I really do. The practice of nepotism makes my blood boil. The best university in the country awarded an honorary degree to a gentleman who was a road sweeper and had cleaned outside the university's buildings for many years. This, I believe, was a lovely thing to do and demonstrated that the university has heart. You may think I'm naïve but I have to believe there is still integrity in people and institutions. The TCT debacle has made us all frustrated and angry but the LAA has shown integrity and I believe that vote would have been even more decisive had the Herne Bay video been available then.
Well, I must get back to cooking the tea now. For the avoidance of doubt I'm doing it alone, solo and I am the sole cook!

Her RAF wings look like a set off someone's No5's (evening dress) they are certainly not a set of standard RAF wings, furthermore it must have been a very old friend if he earned them during the King's reign.

Regardless of where she got them, I find it quite offensive (as someone who has the right to wear them) that a Walt such as her has the gall to wear them.

Ivor

Got bored, so did some more digging and a few more niggles sprang to mind.

The Aviatrix film was made by Nylon Films and was Directed by Annette Porter and I got to wondering how the two ideas came together. Found this little snippet from a school visit by Anette Porter back in Nov 2015. She relates to hearing about the adventure with this:
"Annette’s fascination began at a dinner party when another guest told her about Tracey Curtis-Taylor, a female pilot who was going to recreate Mary Heath’s solo flight from Capetown, Africa, to London, England, in an open cockpit biplane. Ms. Porter was hooked and spent the next several years making the documentation of this ambitious, if somewhat crazy, journey a reality. "

I have underlined an important part; from the start the Director was hooked because of the SOLO aspect. (link: Documentary Film Maker Annette Porter Visits OS )

I then had a look on IMDB to see if there was any mention of a second film. It revealed just the Aviatrix and an unusual bit of text. The last sentence in the storyline section stands out as if it is a recent afterthought. I can't get any back history though. The Aviatrix (2015) - IMDb

I might be being presumptive but I was pleasantly surprised to see the Wikipedia site showing a reasonably fair resume of her Cape Town flight.

The Internet Archive never lies... here's the Storyline section from December last year... Very telling!

The Aviatrix (2015) - IMDb

Re the "25 feet over breeding whales claim" (at minute 54.30 ish on the BBC radio broadcast)

Because it is a passion of mine and something I feel strongly about, but also to avoid unwanted thread drift here, I have written a lengthy post on ditching and sea survival.

For those that are interested you'll find it here

http://www.pprune.org/private-flying...-survival.html

back to TCT.

Thanks Battery Master. I tried the wayback jobbie but it was saying no page found. Can you grab a screenshot please? It'll go nicely with this current one.

Strake, there must be several on here who are regularly editing the Wiki page to make it a bit more realistic and less puffery but those edits are, in the main, erased by others within hours, sometimes within minutes.
It is virtually impossible to keep something on Wikipedia that a determined person is trying to keep off, eg the accident history which has disappeared and Wiki editorial decision says accidents are not material to her career. How different that would be if she'd saved the plane by a miraculous bit of flying, as Satco's flagellant said above. My, we'd be drowning in a gushing torrent of self congratulation then wouldn't we?
Wiki is a great tool on routine and uncontested subjects but on contentious issues its use and policy is heavily skewed in favour of those with a gong to bang rather than the reality.

Perhaps it's time to have a "The Complete T-C-T" Wiki page.

I don't know if this is even possible but if it were, it might stop the incessant editing by certain people on the current page.

Do you mean something like birdandablokeinabiplane.com?

Ref her wearing of the King's RAF wings, please reassure me that she doesn't wear naval wings when she parades in her "honorary" Lt Cdr uniform ......

I can reassure you of that 76fan. There are no images I have seen of her doing so.

Earlier images have her with the RAF brevet on her right collar, later images show the wings had moved to her left chest where anyone who is entitled to wear them has them.
This gives the impression that she too is entitled to wear them which is just one of the many things about her that I find offensive.

No date on this but it must be over a year ago. Clearly visible wings on suit. blurry sponsor names though...Female pilot starts epic solo flight to copy Amy Johnson - Telegraph

From the article:

"Whereas Miss Johnson drew a straight line on a map of the world with a ruler between Britain and Australia and followed it, Ms Curtis-Taylor will follow a similar route but this time avoiding sensitive areas in the Middle East and no-fly zones."

I'll wager that Miss Johnson had a far better grasp of Great Circles than the Telegraph hack...

1 October 2015 - it is at the top-left of the article next to the journalist's name. :ok:

That article is the one with the "...on my own" quote which has been checked and verified by the journalist and the Editorial Compliance Team as an accurate record of what TCT - who has never said she was SOLO - actually said.

A bit later than planned, but the letter to Portsmouth has now been sent. If and when I get a response I shall let you all know. Copies of my e-mail will be sent to Jay for his records. If Sam wants to contact me via PM I can sent him a copy too. I have also copied the e-mail to the Students union there - they may be a little more proactive.

Self Promotion or what?

Apparently not satisfied with the rank she's inexplicably been awarded in the RNR our favourite Walt has now promoted herself. On her facebook site she signs herself off as "Hon Cdr"

Someone needs to put a stop to this nonsense!


Tracey Curtis-Taylor added 9 new photos.
25 July ·
Terrific day on Sunday as a guest of the Royal Navy Sailing Association out on the waters of the Solent to watch the Louis Vuitton America's Cup World Series Portsmouth. Wonderful to see a spectacular British result for Land Rover BAR - Team Portsmouth and the Royal Navy have done an exceptional job in supporting the Fleet.
Hon Cdr Curtis-Taylor

Old news i'm afraid. Added to the list of embellishments a long while ago.

Helpful as I am, I have found a job for TCT; building on her "career" at De Beers, I hear that these guys are looking for filing clerks.
DEWALT® Power Tools Official Site | Guaranteed Tough® | DEWALT :E

I have three questions.

On Oct 1st 2015 TCT departed from Farnborough on the first leg of her Australian trip. We see she is flying solo here, and according to her plan she was due to stop at Charleville in France. Did she actually make it to Charleville, or did she land somewhere else first? And did Ewald then jump in?

In Entebbe she flew into a restricted area over the presidential palace. Her claim was that this was because the ATC controller asked her to orbit left (his fault of course) because an airliner was catching her up from behind while on final. Do you think it might be possible to get records of arrivals at the airport on that date to verify this, and maybe even the ATC tapes?

I wonder if Entebbe ATC are aware of the fact that TCT has voiced her opinion that the controller on duty "didn't know his left from his right." Perhaps SATCO or any of his colleagues might have a way of informing their counterparts of the allegation that TCT has made? Maybe they have an entirely different story?

The latest LAA magazine has just popped through my letterbox. No specific mention of TCT and the rescinding of the Woodham's Trophy in the Brian Davies AGM report. Just a bit about all motions being passed after a heated debate about proxy voting.

The latest LAA magazine has just popped through my letterbox. No specific mention of TCT and the rescinding of the Woodham's Trophy in the Brian Davies AGM report.


To my knowledge the LAA have never rescinded any award in all their years of operation. In fact, no British aviation award has ever been rescinded until TCT came onto the scene.

Please now welcome self proclaimed 'Aviatrix' Tracey Curtis-Taylor with a few connections who has flown with some bloke under the guise of being SOLO.

Still shocked about this significant LAA news watered-down black-out?

I'm not surprised at the LAA not wanting to make a big deal about it.
It was an unpleasant business, they did the right thing, they are an honourable organisation, not rumour mongers.
They shot her down, why should they crow about it?

Bear in mind the publishing deadlines Brian Hope has to operate to.

Might see it in the January edition

She even goes as far as China to talk shyte

British aviator flies across the Dulwich College International schools - DULWICH COLLEGE INTERNATIONAL

"She answered their questions frankly"
I suppose there is a first time for everything.

Old Ernest would not be happy .

Anybody know what her social calender is looking like these days?

Taranto dinner and Brooklands have been mentioned so far and appear to be on top of making it difficult for her to turn up and give her usual talk.

I suspect she will be making a lot of cancellations and you will see a lot less of her at social events.

Has she made a public statment since Oct 24th?

(Typing at the same time as Pipes)

Sophi - The claim that the controller at Entebbe "doesn't know his left from his right" doesn't matter. A pilot who has properly prepared for a flight would be aware of probably the only piece of prohibited airspace on their route that day and question any usual request. And then we have the interesting question as to exactly when this instruction was given. A quick glance of the airfield chart shows that a left turn placing her in the prohibited area, as she said, could only be performed from an approach to Runway 12 or 17. So given that, what height was she and how many miles off the threshold was she? Furthermore, breaking off an approach and orbiting would be silly because there is a high probability that you will be collected by the thing you are orbiting to avoid, unless of course you are landing on another runway. So that probably means, she didn't orbit but instead wandered aimlessly through Prohibited Airspace over the State Building and the special forces barracks. How to make friends and influence people! As ever, very little of what TC-T says actually stacks up with reality.

And while I'm sticking the boot in again, I might as well carry on. TC-T has let it be known time and time again that she has been taught to fly by military instructors. Well so have I. And they have a certain consistently about them and that is in planning. Rarely do these guys get in the air and make things up as they go along. They plan beforehand and maybe even kick the arse of it. Whilst planning might not be her forte, you would have thought that at least some of what she has been taught would have stuck. Or was she just referring to the post debriefing libations?

PM

Spot on Piltdown Man, I too have looked into this claim. No matter how hard I try I cannot get an aircraft on any approach, doing a left-hand orbit (?) ending up over the Presidential Palace at Entebbe.

For those unfamiliar with the Palace, here it is shown a google map some 2.2 miles, and 90 degress to the ENE of the threshold of rwy17.

In a similar vein to the Winslow CRASH/ACCIDENT/INCIDENT/DINK (delete as applicable), the narrative does not stand-up to scrutiny.

Piperboy 84,
I have just looked at the China link and despair. This quote is galling:
'Tracey is the first guest speaker to host the Shackleton lecture, a series that commemorates Old Alleynian and renowned explorer Ernest Shackleton. Simon Herbert, Headmaster of Dulwich College Beijing said: “Tracey’s talks captured the essence of Shackleton. She inspired her audience through her sense of adventure, risk taking, courage, fun and humanity.'
What an insult to Shackleton. What next?

Thankfully I have no money invested with Artemis, as every time I see that word I just see the wreckage of both the Stearman and the Robinson, and the whole sorry saga of deceit. I cannot believe that they would still be wanting to be associated with the Charlatan

I get the impression that if the children at Dulwich College Beijing want to become pilots, a few daddies will be displeased. If junior doesn't want to be a surgeon, general, high court judge or a CEO then daddy will be forking out for an ATPL instead.


I doubt that the children in that school are in much need of empowerment.

Mods, I apologise now, but it might survive 5 minutes.
Saw this image and could not resist a caption. TCT feel free to use this as your FB avatar.

If you can make a mockery of a military uniform, a military badge, and military intellect; you are fair game for military banter. It goes with the territory :ok:

I doubt that the children in that school are in much need of empowerment.

You know that. I know that. Everyone here will know that and the Spirit of Artiface team will know that too.

But, it's not about 'outreach' to the younger generation, is it. It's 'outreach' to daddies pockets bringing the brand-name to the spot-light on the back of a highly publicised gross misrepresentation and deception.

Have I missed anything?

Yes Lind1795 - I agree. It's disgraceful.

Sophi, SWB. Piltdown Man.

I know a man who not only sat through one of TCT's fantasy speeches but also recorded it. From that recording:

Her words. Her voice. No ambiguity.

...and this is the same speech where she says the following about Winslow "and the aeroplane just somersaulted 360 degrees and virtually destroyed" but classes it in an official document as an incident. :mad::ugh::yuk:

Any evidence of how TC-T's Stearman managed to have been rebuilt so quickly. How do the airframe and engine hours compare? When she hit the R44 was the engine the same?

robin,
The subject of "evidence" of a very speedy rebuild had been discussed on this thread before.
All you need is the maker's plate.
Ewald's 3G factory pumps out Stearman 'restorations' at a prodigious rate.
That's his business.

As to whether the engine and prop had been changed after the Goodwood Robbie "incident", well, that question had also been asked on here earlier.
While I had heard of a report that, upon examination, the engine had been determined not to have been shockloaded, no really convincing answers seem to have been forthcoming.
Then there's the question of the two-speed prop mechanism.

A most interesting thing is that Ewald, in his most recent statement on the cause of the Winslow bingle, blamed the crash on "fuel contamination and other reason".
This, despite the fact that the NTSB's previously published final report had stated very clearly that a thorough examination of the Stearman's fuel systems found
NO evidence of fuel contamination.
Curious, eh?

To quote Ewald, "People don't know what they're talking about".
Yes, mate.

That then leaves us with the question of Ewald's "other reason".
Perhaps you could ask him about that, robin - and let us know.


I find it quite astounding that both of these people had continued to blatantly lie in the face of demonstrable facts and hard evidence.
.

Forgive the slight diversion, but the much missed Coffman Starter partly answered the question about PMK here in 2013.

There is a reference to his undergoing flying training, instructed by Sqn Ldr Derek Homer, in the Times of 5 Sep 1962.

As Coff speculated, it would appear that he undertook some sort of shortened Wings course, perhaps not dissimilar to the senior officers' course which has seen, amongst others, General the Lord Dannatt awarded AAC wings after a foreshortened course.

"She inspired her audience through her sense of adventure, risk taking, courage, fun and humanity."
Now imagine that on a resume. Straight to the circular filing cabinet, these are not qualities to admire in a pilot whether they be pre-solo, airline, instructor, display pilot and many things in between.
RISK TAKING?
Who took the risk though. T C_T, the pilot-in-command or the sponsors?

Guys, I think some of you need to take a step back and look at yourselves a little.

What are you trying to achieve?

TCT has been caught in lies/exaggerations various.

The evidence is out in the open, her reputation as an Aviatrix is trashed.
No, she has not accepted it, and probably never will, however her career of gallivanting around as an "inspiration" is over.

Wherever she goes she knows now that there will be many thinking her a fraud. It's a cloud that will follow her forever. Now her celebrity has fatally discoloured, many of her supporters will not want to be tainted by her presence.

Is that not enough?

Do you want her dressed in sackcloth and beaten?
Placed in stocks in the town square?

To try to add on all sorts of subsidiary "crimes" such as wazzing a palace or flying over a whale or taking risks as if they are somehow proof of her evil is more indicative of some of your issues than hers.

Adventure requires risk. Without it, it is just going flying. We are more than happy to excuse risk takers we respect in aviation, so lets not try to gild the lily re TCT.
Anybody who has flown around the more interesting parts of the world knows that sometimes you end up in the wrong place. Yes, extra planning might catch some of these things, but we all bong the occasional palace.

Getting hung up on whales is just faux outrage. I hovered over a school of big toothed whales once. They gave not one iota of F@&#.

Who cares if she wears RAF wings or where she wears them? Those of us who have wings know that they are for us, not some kind of emblem we wear to expect respect from the great unwashed. Nobody who has earned wings would for a second think that she is part of our particular band of brothers and sisters just because she can sew on some pretty cloth.


She lied.

She got caught.

Her legacy is suitably trashed.

Beyond this it is just a crowd baying for blood as entertainment.


You will note that Sam, who started this, has remained a gentleman throughout. He has merely stuck to his guns to correct falsehoods.

Others who have no reasonable reason to be as upset as they are are grabbing the vilification opportunity for their own entertainment.