Marks Tey
MARKS TEY: Military aerodrome
Operated by: RFC/RAF (Royal Flying Corps / Royal Air Force)
Location: In/near Marks Tey, roughly 6nm WSW of Colchester town centre
NOTES: Rather incredibly it seems to me, I can find no supporting evidence for this aerodrome.
And yet in the papers Sir Alan Cobham prepared for his autobiography, before he died, he is very clear about this being a "fighter station". As an instructor at MANSTON (KENT) in 1919, he had orders to reposition a flight of seven aircraft, (Avro 504K's) to NARBOROUGH in NORFOLK, flown by student pilots. Not one aircraft had a working compass!
"....I got hold of some maps and studied them carefully, and planned my route so as to include a refuelling stop at Marks Tey in Essex."
See my listing for NARBOROUGH for a fuller account. But, I would like to add this: "...- we did indeed arrive at Marks Tey, a fighter station. The officers there seemed to regard our epic journey as a huge joke."
Given Sir Alan Cobhams total insistence for accurate record keeping, and maintaining a 'tight ship' in everything he was involved with later on, it seems hard to believe he mistook the name of this 'aerodrome' for somewhere else?
If anybody can kindly offer advice, this will be most welcome.
I really must heartily recommend the book 'A Time To Fly' published in 1978. Do please try to obtain a copy - my local library found one - eventually, bless them. I am certain, if wasn't for the unstinting help of my local library, this 'Guide' would be a much poorer endeavour.
We'd love to hear from you, so please scroll down to leave a comment!
Leave a comment ...
Copyright (c) UK Airfield Guide
