Post by khardwk on Dec 23, 2009 0:33:41 GMT 1
Celebrating 100 years of flying on Merseyside.
As many readers of this site will know, it is 100 years ago that Samuel F Cody made the first flight on Merseyside in a heavier-than-air-machine – an aeroplane!
Cody came to Aintree Racecourse in late October 1909 with the aeroplane he had designed and built himself- his 1C or Flying Cathedral aircraft, to prepare for an attempt at the £1,000 prize (Today’s value approx. £75,000!), that Sir William Hartley, the very successful jam maker, aviation enthusiast and philanthropist had offered for the first person to fly non-stop between Liverpool and Manchester. (This was not the machine in which he made the first ever aeroplane flight in Britain on 16th October 1908, but rather a development from it with a higher powered engine and some structural ‘improvements’).
Cody made a series of ‘hops’/short flights around and within the boundary of the racecourse in early November and then on 15th November a flight outside the course for about 3 miles, landing at Maghull. This ‘long distance’ flight is usually recognised as the first ever flight of an aeroplane in the greater Merseyside area.
Bad weather, ... fog, fog and more fog, throughout late November and December prevented Cody making an attempt at the flight to Manchester until the 29th December. It was as much in hope as expectation that he decided to try that day, because the prize offer expired early in the new year (1910) and Cody was desperate for money to keep his aircraft development programme alive. Above all though, the weather was still very ‘minimal’ around Aintree. However he took off from the racecourse at 12.17 hrs. on the 29th heading for Manchester. Very poor visibility made the necessary low level flying – between 80 and 200 feet – very hazardous, and after a rather zig-zag route as far as St. Helens he finally decided he could no longer continue in any safety at all and landed in a field at Valencia Farm in the Eccleston/Portico district of St Helens.
This was of course the first aeroplane ever to be seen in St Helens and it caused great excitement!
Continuing bad weather prevented Cody from flying back to Aintree the following day so the aircraft was simply dismantled and ‘roaded’ back to Aintree. Cody did not make any further attempt at the inter-city flight and subsequently took his aircraft back to Farnborough by road.
I suggested some months ago that the centenary of this highly historical Merseyside flight should not pass unrecognised, especially in St Helens where aviation firsts are quite rare. The St Helens Heritage group took up the idea of a celebration with three of us from FoLA, and together we plotted a recreation of the 1909 flight on the 29th December this year – 2009, exactly 100 years to the day since Cody's flight.
So plans are in place to recreate the 1909 flight with the Keenair Tiger Moth (G-AMCK) very kindly provided and flown by Martin Keen. The plan is for Martin to position to Aintree mid-morning on Tuesday 29th. He will then take off from the Racecourse at 12.17 hrs ‘exactly’ and fly a similar route to Cody to Valencia Farm, Eccleston and there make a series of celebratory passes near the spot where Cody landed, or even complete a landing, at the time that Cody landed 100 years ago – around 12.36 hrs! The Tiger Moth will then return to LJLA directly from Eccleston.
There will be a short ceremony on the ground by the (Valencia) Farm Shop, just off the main St Helens to Prescot road (A58 - St Helens Road becomes Prescot Road) by the bottom of Eccleston Hill. The Farm Shop is well signed and limited car parking will be available in the shop car park. The Mayor of St Helens will unveil a specially commissioned plaque amid some ‘Period Frivolity’ and the official party will then retire to the The Grapes Hotel just up the road for a much needed ‘banquet’. Subject to available space in the hotel, non ‘VIPs’ will be welcome to join the celebrations on a pay as you eat basis.
We hope to achieve some good press coverage of the event BUT all the flying will of course be SUBJECT TO SUITABLE WEATHER CONDITIONS, and times and flight plans may have to be varied on the day.
We would like to acknowledge the enthusiasm and generosity of many people, but especially Martin Keen of Keenair, the Management of Aintree Racecourse , Philip Pickford of Rotary Wing UK for ground handling services at the racecourse and Mr Birchall owner of the landing site and Farm Shop.
As many readers of this site will know, it is 100 years ago that Samuel F Cody made the first flight on Merseyside in a heavier-than-air-machine – an aeroplane!
Cody came to Aintree Racecourse in late October 1909 with the aeroplane he had designed and built himself- his 1C or Flying Cathedral aircraft, to prepare for an attempt at the £1,000 prize (Today’s value approx. £75,000!), that Sir William Hartley, the very successful jam maker, aviation enthusiast and philanthropist had offered for the first person to fly non-stop between Liverpool and Manchester. (This was not the machine in which he made the first ever aeroplane flight in Britain on 16th October 1908, but rather a development from it with a higher powered engine and some structural ‘improvements’).
Cody made a series of ‘hops’/short flights around and within the boundary of the racecourse in early November and then on 15th November a flight outside the course for about 3 miles, landing at Maghull. This ‘long distance’ flight is usually recognised as the first ever flight of an aeroplane in the greater Merseyside area.
Bad weather, ... fog, fog and more fog, throughout late November and December prevented Cody making an attempt at the flight to Manchester until the 29th December. It was as much in hope as expectation that he decided to try that day, because the prize offer expired early in the new year (1910) and Cody was desperate for money to keep his aircraft development programme alive. Above all though, the weather was still very ‘minimal’ around Aintree. However he took off from the racecourse at 12.17 hrs. on the 29th heading for Manchester. Very poor visibility made the necessary low level flying – between 80 and 200 feet – very hazardous, and after a rather zig-zag route as far as St. Helens he finally decided he could no longer continue in any safety at all and landed in a field at Valencia Farm in the Eccleston/Portico district of St Helens.
This was of course the first aeroplane ever to be seen in St Helens and it caused great excitement!
Continuing bad weather prevented Cody from flying back to Aintree the following day so the aircraft was simply dismantled and ‘roaded’ back to Aintree. Cody did not make any further attempt at the inter-city flight and subsequently took his aircraft back to Farnborough by road.
I suggested some months ago that the centenary of this highly historical Merseyside flight should not pass unrecognised, especially in St Helens where aviation firsts are quite rare. The St Helens Heritage group took up the idea of a celebration with three of us from FoLA, and together we plotted a recreation of the 1909 flight on the 29th December this year – 2009, exactly 100 years to the day since Cody's flight.
So plans are in place to recreate the 1909 flight with the Keenair Tiger Moth (G-AMCK) very kindly provided and flown by Martin Keen. The plan is for Martin to position to Aintree mid-morning on Tuesday 29th. He will then take off from the Racecourse at 12.17 hrs ‘exactly’ and fly a similar route to Cody to Valencia Farm, Eccleston and there make a series of celebratory passes near the spot where Cody landed, or even complete a landing, at the time that Cody landed 100 years ago – around 12.36 hrs! The Tiger Moth will then return to LJLA directly from Eccleston.
There will be a short ceremony on the ground by the (Valencia) Farm Shop, just off the main St Helens to Prescot road (A58 - St Helens Road becomes Prescot Road) by the bottom of Eccleston Hill. The Farm Shop is well signed and limited car parking will be available in the shop car park. The Mayor of St Helens will unveil a specially commissioned plaque amid some ‘Period Frivolity’ and the official party will then retire to the The Grapes Hotel just up the road for a much needed ‘banquet’. Subject to available space in the hotel, non ‘VIPs’ will be welcome to join the celebrations on a pay as you eat basis.
We hope to achieve some good press coverage of the event BUT all the flying will of course be SUBJECT TO SUITABLE WEATHER CONDITIONS, and times and flight plans may have to be varied on the day.
We would like to acknowledge the enthusiasm and generosity of many people, but especially Martin Keen of Keenair, the Management of Aintree Racecourse , Philip Pickford of Rotary Wing UK for ground handling services at the racecourse and Mr Birchall owner of the landing site and Farm Shop.
Please help us wish for good weather and support the event on the day
