Carnmoney Hill
CARNMONEY HILL: Early experimental flying site
Operated by: Mrs Lilian E Bland
Location: Just N of Belfast
Period of operation: 1910, possibly into 1911?
NOTES: It appears that initially Ms Bland built, (and presumably also designed?), a glider in or around 1910, (possibly a tad earlier?), on which she taught herself to fly. An engine was then fitted around this point in time:, it was called the Bland ‘Mayfly’ and it appears this machine flew late in 1910.
There seems little doubt that she flew the ‘Mayfly’ quite successfully and as Ron Smith remarks in his book British Built Aircraft Vol.5 – “So successfully, in fact, that a new husband whisked her off to Canada at the end of 1911, bringing her aeronautical experiments to an end.”
I’ll trust you will agree, this really was a remarkable achievement? So - why doesn’t Ms Bland now rate amongst the other now popular pioneers of this period?
ANOTHER ASPECT
In 2011, I came across an expanded account in Powder Puff Derby by Mike Walker from which I shall quote extensively: “Lilian Bland, a young Irishwoman who covered sports events for the newspapers and photographed birds for her own satisfaction, became fascinated by the idea of powered flight after a relation sent her a postcard from France with a picture of Louis Blériot’s Channel-crossing plane on it.”
It is probably nigh on impossible today to imagine the effect of seeing an aeroplane in flight had on most people one hundred years ago? The fact is that even today some people try to design incredibly basic aeroplanes, to capture I suppose to some extent, the lure of flight experienced in those far off days?
“Always a practical person, she decided to use the workshop her uncle, General Smyth, had installed at his house outside Belfast to build her own plane. This wasn’t so unusual at the time, particularly in Great Britain, where, as Hilda Hewlett, See BROOKLANDS - SURREY), was forever pointing out, aircraft manufacturing had not yet established itself.” (My note: It was certainly very unusual for a woman to be involved in aircraft design, manufacture and flight testing!) I believe that Hilda Hewlett and Lilian Bland are the only examples in the UK?
“Looking at the Wright brothers designs, Lilian constructed a series of gliders of increasing size until she had a craft she thought would be big enough to support the weight of an engine.” After a series of tests, “Lilian was satisfied and ordered an engine from England, which was fitted the moment it arrived.” (My note: Mike Walker might make little of this, but, fitting an engine to an aeroplane – even in those days – was a considerable task.)
“There was no petrol tank, so the aeronaut jury-rigged one, using an empty whisky bottle. There followed a series of tests which were reported in Flight magazine with mounting excitement as the craft taxyed then began to make short hops.”
BEING A BIT PEDANTIC
Being a pedantic old sod I would question the use of the term ‘aeronaut’ here, although it still is technically correct . As I now understand it, the term aeronaut was applied to balloon and airship pilots in those days? For fixed wing pilots the term aviator, (and pilot of course), is now generally applied. For female pilots the term aviatrix was also applied, but possibly not until quite a few years later?
GETTING AIRBORNE
“Lilian couldn’t believe it was happening at first; she had to run back and check the point where the wheel, (My note: Wheels surely?), stopped leaving tracks in the grass to prove to herself that it was true.” Accounts such as these were, and are, of immense value to me. It is such a shame that invariably these authors have little if any understanding of aircraft; - how they work and how they fly. What surprises me is that invariably it doesn’t occur to them to make contact with an experienced pilot to check that their descriptions are broadly speaking correct. Time and time again I read accounts which I feel are probably accurate in content, but fail in detail.
I HAVE FLOWN
Whatever, back to the story: ‘I have flown,’ she wrote to Flight, ‘All this time I have been learning my engine and gettings things shipshape. Then for five weeks we had fearful weather and are having it still…at last, on Wednesday, I got her out again and she rose to 30 feet, which I carefully measured. It was dead calm so there was no wind to help her….The aero engine is splendid although I frequently have fights with it to get it to start…I am naturally awfully pleased, having made and designed her myself. It is a small but promising start anyway.”
MAKING LITTLE IMPRESSION
“As she became more experienced The Mayfly …was remodelled again and again until she felt the design was ready to be offered to the public. There was no response” Hardly surprising I suppose; even those designers and builders in the thick of it in the south-east of England were having a tough time gaining sales. But then Mike Walker says something I think of great interest, “….her gliders continued to sell…” IF this is correct I now need to try and find the site(s) where these gliders were being flown from? Any ideas? IF correct these sites are of considerable significance to the history of gliding in the UK.
To round the subject off Mike Walker says, “…there was just no demand for the do-it- yourself ship from Belfast. Glad to have done it and flown, Lilian was not particularly upset; she felt that the plane was not really up to commercial standards. She offered it for sale and the A.V. Roe engine,” - “according to historian Peter Lewis, ended up in London’s Science Museum.”
MORE INFORMATION
In January 2017 I was kindly contacted by Peter Vercruijsee who corrected several mistakes in the accounts listed above. The first being that the listing of CARNAMONEY was incorrect - it was CARNMONEY HILL just north of Belfast. I have now corrected the map accordingly to the coordinates he has supplied.
To quote: "These coordinates are at the middle of the hill, not the exact place where she flew which I do not know. But I guess it will not be too far from where she lived, at Tobarcooran House which is somewhere near 54.67314N 005.95026W "
I had identified Carnamoney, derived from another account, but this was about 35 miles west. One of the many perils in trying to produce this 'Guide'.
To continue: "She flew her Mayfly glider there from early 1910. After she had bought an engine more room was needed and she moved to Randalstown for the experimental flights. The first flight there with an engine was made 31 August 1910. The location is the Deerpark Estate, also known as Shane's Castle Estate. The rough coordinates are 54.72956N 006.26727W"
Mervyn Boyd
This comment was written on: 2017-11-27 23:08:59I live in what was Lillian blands back garden literally 200 feet from the house ( not a lot of it left now there is a barn which was prob the workshop ) if you ever decide to visit I can show you the sight or the flight .. Regards Mervyn Boyd
Reply from Dick Flute:
Hi Mervyn, Many thanks indeed for getting in touch, and the kind invitation. As it happens this has come a little too late as I was in Northern Ireland touring around just a few months ago - a stunning and beautiful part of the world - with fabulous weather! At my age I cannot be too sure if a return visit might be possible - so many other places to see as I am sure you may well imagine. Best regards, Dick
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