Conington 1920s
CONINGTON: Civil aerodrome
(Now, more or less, MAIN HALL aerodrome. See seperate listing)
Operators: Cambridge Aero Club, Suffolk and Eastern Counties Aeroplane Club
Location: In/near Connington minor village, just SW of Fen Drayton, S of the A604, (now A1307) and about 5nm SE of Huntingdon town centre. Just S of the A14 which was built later.
Period of operation: Not known exactly ? Reported opened in 1928 and closed in 1929
A MICHAEL T HOLDER GALLERY
Note: The first excerpt is from Cambridge Aviation Chronicle by Mike Petty, published 31st January 1929.
Note: The photo was published in the Saffron Walden Weekly News on the 4th October 1929. The two examples published in Flight magazine were published on the 22nd November 1928.
Note: The photo of club members of the Cambridge Aero Club was published in the Saffron Walden Weekly News on the 4th October 1929.
Note: The 'Flying Times' article was published in the Suffolk and Essex Free Press on the 31st January 1929. The excerpt is from Action Stations Revisited by Michael J F Bowyer.
The local area and area views are from my Google Earth © derived database.
NOTES: As can be seen in the texts above, reference is made to an 'airline' being established between Cambridge and Ipswich. It was hardly a 'door-to-door' service between the two towns. CONINGTON being about eight miles north west of Cambridge, and HADLEIGH being about five miles west of Ipswich. The distance between the two aerodromes being some fifty-three miles.
But, this period does serve to illustrate just how quickly regional aerodromes/airports were being developed, much encouraged of course by Sir Alan Cobham's Municipal Aerodrome Campaign in 1929. Both Cambridge and Ipswich had their aerodromes/airports opening in 1929/30.
Calling it an 'airline' is somewhat over-egging the description, as it was more of an air taxi operation. Using, it would seem, probably two-seater types carrying one passenger. However, in those days, using two-seater types on regular regional services in the UK was not unusual in those days. Mostly if not always as an 'on demand' basis.
In the photo above, two Blackburn L.1B Bluebird Mk.3 examples can be seen. But I do not know which club was operating them. I can make out the registration of G-AABE and that was still flying in 1936, albiet being privately owned.
We certainly do need to thank Mike Holder for unearthing the information above. Broadly speaking this CONINGTON has pretty much disappeared. Google CONINGTON and all the references are for PETERBROUGH-CONINGTON, the ex WW2 GLATTON airfield. Mike and I are also wondering if this aerodrome site may have been used by light communications aircraft in WW2 as there is a domestic site near to the hall.
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