Childer Thornton
Note: This map only gives the position of Childer Thornton within the UK. If anybody can kindly offer more information and advice, this will be much appreciated.
CHILDER THORNTON: Private airstrip?
Operated by: Mr S W Sparkes
Location: In/near Childer Thornton on the A41 roughly just W of HOOTON
Period of operation: 1930s only?
NOTES: It seems Mr Sparkes kept a Percival Vega Gull here and won the annual competition for visiting aircraft at HOOTON on the Empire Air Day in May 1936. What was the flight time? Two minutes?
Ian Haigh
This comment was written on: 2020-09-29 11:33:24FYI: On Friday '23/8/35' , my uncle - Geoffrey William Haigh, a Wirral resident who was learning to fly, records in his flying log book that he had (cadged?) a '30' minute 'local' flight as a 'Passenger' in a 'Percival Gull' from 'Hooton', piloted by 'Sparkes'. Somewhat annoyingly ;-), this was a delayed log entry and sadly lacks both the a/c code & engine details entries. Your Site has confirmed some aspects of this incomplete log entry, for which many thanks. Uncle Geoffrey later flew various Vega Gulls from Gatwick & Croydon in the mid 1937s. Sorry, but no reference to Childer Thornton in the log book. The pilots based at Hooton that he flew with whilst training at that time included, Clapham, Halkett, Heaton, Whitelaw, (Members of the Liverpool & District Aero Club(?). I trust you already know of the wonderful Flight Global free 'Flight' mag archive, they helped my researches enormously.
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