Palace Farm
PALACE FARM: Temporary aerodrome (Aka FORTY ACRES FIELD)
Operated by: Sir Alan Cobham's National Aviation Day Display Tours
Location: Just S of Wells city centre
Period of operation: 4th May 1932 and by the No.2 Tour on the 15th May 1933
A MICHAEL T HOLDER GALLERY
We have Mike Holder, a great friend of this 'Guide', to thank for doing the research regarding these two venues.
The article was published in the Wells Journal on the 22nd April 1932.
The two part article was published in the Wells Journal on the 6th May 1932.
This second two part article was also published in the Wells Journal, but this time on the 19th May 1933. The advert preceeded the visit, being published in the Wells Journal on the 5th May 1933.
This last article, was also published in the Wells Journal, but on the 12th May 1933.
NOTES: Sir Alan Cobham was somewhat behind the latest 'Flying Circus' trend in the early 1930s, the first recorded examples of fleets of aircraft being employed was in 1931. But, having realised the potential, once he got started his ideas were sensational. Interesting to note that he detested the term 'Flying Circus', so, how ironic that these days he is recognised as being the king pin figure of the 'Flying Circus' era.
As far as I have managed to ascertain, the longest tour in 1931 was by C D Barnard Air Tours, visiting it seems 63 venues. By comparison Cobham's 1932 Tour, starting on the 12th April at HANWORTH and ending at CHINGFORD on the 16th October, was planned to visit 174 venues. He then shipped his fleet to South Africa to tour around during the UK winter season, visiting 68 venues, the last being on the 17th February.
However, in 1933 he and his team went way beyond the 1932 programme; this time with two Tours. The No.1 Tour was planned to visit 116 venues, including two visits to Ireland, north and south each time. His No.2 Tour, staying on the British mainland, was planned to visit 161 venues, making a total of 277 venues. Each one of which, incidentally, had to be officially licensed. A self-confessed workaholic, he even so expected his aircrews and groundcrews to match his ambitions.
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