Oh no, SWB...
You're not suggesting that TCT may not have been, just not 'solo', but not even 'sole pilot at all times', (as per her 'amended' claim) throughout the odyssey, are you?
I do hope you're not alluding to the possibility that she might be a bit of a 'fibber' then.

Because, I'll have you know that those responsible for the conduct of affairs within the HCAP just happen to know everything she's told them is true. - So there!
Please don't rock the boat now .. There's enough people with egg on their faces already. :hmm:
.

Me? Not I Sir, it is just idle curiosity fueled by a desire to learn. ;)

Conspiracies aside, but am I the only one who cannot access the Portsmouth News article? It is listed there under the DEFENCE heading (LOAD MORE+), but when I click on it, I get taken back to the Portsmouth News home page, yet other articles published around the same time still work fine.:confused:

FbW, re your post #1682, above..
Yes, there are two separate issues being discussed on here at the moment.

The first and most immediate relates to the motion being put forward at the LAA's AGM over whether the decision to award the Bill Woodhams Trophy to TCT for her "Feat of Navigation" on the Africa jaunt should be reconsidered.

The second is the AWPA's Carol Dehn's request for assistance in locating copies of contemporary 'Bird in a Biplane' posts as well as BiaB and sponsors' press releases etc, relating to the London - Sydney jolly.
At least in my days within the media, copies of resource material for published articles must always be retained on file - particularly press-releases and media briefings, together with their covering letters.
These days, we also have commercial 'internet archives' which should prove to be helpful.
Hopefully, Jay Sata can unearth some of the material the AWPA seek.
.

Well according to the Sydney Morning Herald:

More at Aviator touches down in Sydney after flying from Britain in an open cockpit , including an e-mail link to the reporter.

ABC News also states:

More at: Pilot lands in Sydney after epic journey from Britain in 1942 aircraft - ABC News (Australian Broadcasting Corporation)

Problem is Beags, the good lady will insist that "that was not what SHE claimed..."
The fact that she didn't deny it being clouded by the usual obfuscation we have been witnessing. .

Yes, mate. But she's had ample opportunity to correct the 'error' - as have her PR mob.

No doubt an e-mail to both reporters would prove worthwhile?

ABC also says:

My emphasis; original page is here.

I see that the motion to withdraw the Woodham's Trophy from TCT is now on the agenda of the LAA AGM.

Apropos nothing in particular..... I see that a Crete to Cape (South Africa, lest there should be any doubt) rally is taking place in November and there is a place still available. Quite a number of biplanes are taking part so Tracey's Stearman would feel at home. Just wondering if she might be entering......??!!! See that Maurice Kirk is also an entrant....

Good old Maurice.

Whatever you may think of him, he is a true adventurer.

Good luck and fair winds.

I have just found this article, apologies if it has been shown before, but it is quite damning. The Telegraph, October 2015 - Article by Nicola Harley:

Female pilot starts epic solo flight to copy Amy Johnson - Telegraph

Note the quote from TCT. BOOM, and the gun is smoking.

Bang to rights. it's a fair cop, Gov.

Shame she won't take that approach

No doubt TCT will claim that she has been misquoted and that what she actually said was

"..here I am flying to the other side of the world with my 20,000hr mechanic up front, a whole team doing all the flight planning, a state-of-the-art GPS that does all the sums, and a wad of cash to break through any red-tape and keep the champagne flowing; all I will do is wiggle the stick thing from time to time."

Maybe this is the proof that AWPA need.

Jay, I have had a promising e-mail response from the writer of one of the Australian articles, I have sent you an e-mail so that you can follow up on it if you choose.:ok:

I wonder where our local got the impression she was solo?

No Cookies | NT News
No Cookies | NT News

Video of her solo flight landing in Darwin after crossing the Timor.



Jay, you might ask TCT to sue you for libel, should get some media inches, oh, and there are we contributors to said libel as well.

A very interesting article. TCT goes on to gush..... ""My plane, the Spirit of Artemis, really is the love of my life. All I have to do is look at it and I fall for it all over again"


I thought it was owned by Ewald ?


The self-aggrandisement is unstoppable. "I would have been perfect for the military". I suppose another 3 aircraft destroyed would make her an ace.

Don't you just love it?

Aside from any questions about actual ownership, elsewhere, she's carried on about .. "my beautiful, original Stearman".
Oh yes, Tracey.. Now, would you mind telling us just which parts of it are original (aside from the maker's plate, that is)?
Or ... don't you know?

"I would have been perfect for the military".
Ahem.
And, in just which capacity would that have been, my dear?
(I have my own idea - but better that I don't express it here.)

Do tell us more, 'Your Waltiness'.

.

So how does Miss Curtis-Taylor get out of this one? Well here are some ideas for her PR team:

Reading the article carefully: it doesn't specifically attribute the claim that the trip will be done solo to her personally. They can claim that the paper misunderstood, and point out that it is the paper that said the flight would be "solo" and not her. It surely would have been churlish to ask them to publish a correction to what is, after all, just a minor point of detail?

Also, they can point out that it was really generous of her to allow Mr Gritsch to share some of the experience of making this solo flight in her plane. It must have been a real thrill for him to have the opportunity to see what real flying is like, especially being piloted by such a famous expert aviatrix in her own beloved genuine vintage aircraft: "My plane, the Spirit of Artemis, really is the love of my life. All I have to do is look at it and I fall for it all over again." Who could avoid shedding a tear reading that?

It is also great to see that, whilst she says she was turned down by the RAF, she obviously bears no grudge as, once again, with the selfless generosity of spirit that has characterised her behaviour throughout, she is wearing RAF wings in the picture at the top of the article.

The AWPA, LAA, HCAP et al. would have to decide if they believe all that or not, but given the history: I would imaging that HCAP at least would do so without hesitation. So it's worth giving it a go!

Me? I need another sick bag! :yuk:

A simple solution would be to ask Nicola Harley.
She wrote the article and interviewed TCT. Often these interviews are recorded for future transcription. The text in the image I showed earlier clearly has it in quotation marks with Tracey Curtis-Taylor written beneath it; indicating it is a direct quote from her. There would be no need for Nicola Harley to embellish a quote, any artistic licence or adding gold-plating to the story can be done in the main body of the article.

"When I was younger I was told by the military that I couldn't join because I'm a woman, and now look at me - I'm flying to the other side of the world on my own."
Tracey Curtis-Taylor

From Elle Magazine, also October 2015-

"In an industry still dominated by men, Tracey Curtis-Taylor is paving the way for female pilots to do extraordinary things. At 53, she has embarked on a 13,000 mile solo flight from Britain to Australia in a vintage open cockpit bi-plane. Her journey is both a nod to great women of the past and a sign to young girls that even a dream as gigantic as this is possible to fulfill."

Thanks for pointing that out: I must have missed it. Silly me! Ah well, back to the drawing board :cool: