Loansdean
LOANSDEAN: Temporary Landing Ground
Operated by: Mr H J D Astley
Location: Just W of the A1, (the old A1), just S of Morpeth town centre, (which was barely a village by modern standards in those days)
Period of operation: 19th August 1912
A MICHAEL T HOLDER GALLERY
We have Mike Holder, a great friend of this 'Guide', to thank for unearthing this information.
The newspaper article was published in the Morpeth Herald on the 23rd August 1912.
This second newspaper article was published in the Newcastle Chronicle on the 24th August 1912. The local area view is from my Google Earth © derived database.
NOTES: It is perhaps rather difficult today to fully imagine what this aerial voyage by Astley actually entailed. Flying alone from London to Crieff in Perthshire was an extraordinary feat. We need to bear in mind that the amount of aerodromes in the UK could be counted on our fingers, so invariably it was a case of finding a suitable field to land in and await assistance, which nearly always arrived within minutes. I have not come across one account of a hostile reception, and indeed, quite the opposite.
By 1912, unless an aeronaut had been seen in his balloon during the previous century, the majority of people in the U.K. had not seen a human being in the air! The invention of the aeroplane soon changed that of course, and those aviators brave enough to venture away from their aerodrome were seen as 'super stars', and were more than welcome whereever they alighted whilst en route. Food and accommodation, plus fuel and oil, and a guard for the machine, as aeroplanes were usually called at the time, were speedily arranged.
It was common practice in those days, for aviators invited to give 'an exhibition of flying', to transport their machine by rail over most of the distance, then by road to the venue, where it was assembled and test flown. Which makes this solo endeavour by Astley all the more remarkable. However, it must be pointed out that the Circuit of Britain, sponsored by the Daily Mail, was held the previous year with a £10,000 prize. But of course this had been a managed affair with facilities and manned by a considerable number of officials and helpers.
Sadly, H J D Astley, who was in the top echelon of display aviators in 1912, did not live much longer. He died in a crash at a display at BALMORAL, County Antrim, Northern Ireland on the 21st September, a month later. A photograph of Astley, on his Blériot and out of control just a few seconds before the crash, can be seen in my listing for BALMORAL. Needless to say there was no AAIB in those days to make a detailed investigation as to the cause or causes of the crash, so although we might well guess, the reason(s) will never be proven. And indeed, even today, despite the considerable expertise and facilities the AAIB have at their disposal, this often remains the case.
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