Long Lane
LONG LANE: Temporary aerodrome
Operated by: Berkshire Aviation Company
Location: Unknown exactly, about 1.75nm NNE to NE of Chester city centre
Period of operation: 12th to 24th August 1926
A MICHAEL T HOLDER GALLERY
We have Mike Holder, a great friend of this 'Guide', to thank for discovering this venue and providing the maps etc.
The advert was published in the Cheshire Observer on the 7th August 1926.
The local area view is from my Google Earth © derived database.
NOTES: I think it is fair to say that the business of offering joy-rides to the public in the UK is not much appreciated today. Indeed, even after working on this project for about a quarter of a century, I do not know when the first 'joy-ride' flight took place. It was certainly in a balloon, and my guess is that it was more towards the end of the 19th century.
We do of course, have the problem of semantics. What exactly is a 'joy-ride'? For me at least, it is the business of offering passengers a flight in return for a fee being payable. Expressly for the purpose of sight-seeing. When the powered aircraft came along, in the UK around 1909, it soon became possible as those early machines, (as aeroplanes were called), were developed with more powerful engines, better propellers and more efficient wings, to carry two people - including the aviator, (or pilot as they later became called).
Again, I am not at all certain of the exact time frame, but by 1912 (?) flights for fare-paying passengers were becoming a feature during 'exhibitions of flying' being staged around the country. This aspect of aviation very quickly emerged after WW1 and the Avro company were a major player. The game-changer they introduced was modifying their ex-military Avro 504 design, typically the 504K and 504N versions, to carry two passengers in the front cockpit.
The Berkshire Aviation Company, co-founded by Alan Cobham, (later Sir Alan of course), also picked up on this type being an excellent business opportunity and the Avro 504K became the mainstay of their fleet right up into the 1930s. In fact they operated twenty-four examples from G-EACL to G-ABLL. As a general rule in the 1920s, they only operated one or two aircraft at each venue, the 'Flying Circus' concept not fully emerging until 1931.
If anybody can kindly offer advice and information regarding this venue, this will be much appreciated.
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