"Daily Express" Air Display (July 19th, 20th and 21st)

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This was a peaceful affair, due to a minimum of flying, for a static display of aeroplanes at Hendon, representing 50 years of aviation, formed the basis. These ranged from the Shuttleworth 1909 Bleriot a 1951 Miles Aries. Interesting vintage light ‘planes. included a 1925 D.H. Moth, 1928 Moth, 1929 Heath Parasol, 1929 Parnell Elf, 1931 Spartan Arrow, 1931 Desoutter I, and a very fine 1931 Robinson Redwing restored by the college of Aeronautical Engineering, besides most of those mentioned in a special article in Motor Sport last February. These were backed up by the veterans at one extreme, modern aircraft at the other. Going round the exhibits we noted the car-type mirrors on the stands of the Tiger Moths, in which calm instructors observe harassed(?) pupils, frowned at a “for sale” notice on the G.A.L. Cygnet, remembered the Brooklands Lanchaster Forty on seeing the angular fuselage of the B.A. Swallow II, and photographed the Science Museum’s Pon du Clef. The Heston Phoenix had apparently risen from the ashes and the Avro Tutor and D.H. Dragon were other absentees.

The Comper Swift “Black Magic” was very fine; the outside exhaust system of the 1928 Gipsy Moth was nicely blued and it had “DH” Monograms on its wheel discs, while the very exposed transverse magneto of the H.P. Gugnune was intriguing. Ground-bound, we fail to undeasand why the 1,850-lb. Miles Hawk Speed Six racing single-seater is only 15 m.p.h. faster than the 3,250-lb. 4-seater Percivat Vega.Gull, both having a 200-h.p. Gipsy Six engine.

The Veterans were loaned by the Nash and Shuttleworth collections (Motor Sport, December. 1950), and many of the light aeroplanes were from the latter. Dick Nash was encountered using a 1912 .cantera. and John Bolster motored pilots to their veteran aircraft for the flying display in his 1911 Rolls-Royce. In the display the 1909 Bleriot made a hop and landed off the runway, the 1912 Deperdussin was off-colour, but S/Ldr. Banner, D.F.C., managed a circuit in the 1912 Blackburn. This was followed by a grand display by W/Cmdr. Martin, D.F.C., in the 1916 Sopwith Pup, which flew low over the enclosures and looped, and by A. J. Pegg, O.B.E., who looped, rolled and generally enjoyed himself in the 1917 Bristol Fighter which he had flown up from Bristol for the display. The rotating-wing craft followed and included a bit of military nonsense in which, a Jeep having hit a mine, two valuable Westland and Bristol helieopters were risked by landing them on the minefield to rescue the injured. The Jeep must have been a geod one, as it then put itself together and drove away. We were also shown how to land a Westland W.S.51 when its engine fails! The sailplanes concluded an all-too-brief show, John Buckley making a delightful landing before the guests enclosure in the Olympia EoN, only to run on into a Ford Eight and damage the port wing-tip. We must confess to being bitterly disappointed that none of the vintage and modern aeroplanes took to the historic Hendon air – W.B.

The Daily Express Air Race starts from Shoreham Airport at. 2.30 p.m. on August 6th.

Taking an afternoon out in the sun the other day we turned into Fair Oaka aerodrome, Chobham, Surrey, to watch some real aeroplanes flying, in the form of Chipmunks, Tiger Moths, Dragons and Ansons. We noticed that hero joy-rides are offered. every day of the week, and for the good old pre-war rate of 5s. We believe two people are taken at a time, in Austers, and this seems enterprise worth mentioning. Try it some time, you enthusiasts in Surrey, as a brief brake in your earth-bound motoring.

The next Meeting, at which the Motor Sport SiIverstone Trophy will be contested, is the S.U.N.B.A.C. fixture on September 1st. The six cars placed in the Motor Sport Handicap at the Aston-Martin O.C. Meeting on July 28th will automatically be eligible to start in the equivalent handicap at the S,U.N.B.A.C. Meeting. Entries for the other races close on August 16th, to J. D. Woodhouse, 106, Jockey Road, Sutton Coldfield.

Mr. Arnold Clarke asks us to correct our statement that his son’s car collided with Allard’s in the Empire Trophy crash. Clarke drove along the bank and did not hit anything else. Had the flag marshals been able to stop Pitt and Murray. Allard only would have been involved.