Sproston Green
SPROSTON GREEN: Private airstrip
Note: The first three pictures were obtained from Google Earth ©. The local area view is from my Google Earth © derived database.
Operated by: Mr Muhammed Naviede
Location: Just W of the M6, 1nm SE of Sproston Green village. About 1.5nm SW of Holmes Chapel village and roughly 2.5nm ESE of Middlewich town centre
Runway: 07/25 800 hard
NOTES: We have Mr Graham Frost, a great friend of this 'Guide' to thank for pointing out this location. However, the back story behind this location is both fascinating, and indeed unique. There is quite a lot of information on the inter-web regarding Mr Naviede who was not only an experienced private pilot, but also a financial fraudster par excellence.
It is said that he had a personal wealth of £117 million, so commisioned the construction of this runway, without planning permission, in the early to mid 1990s, and, presumably used it? This being, can we safely assume (?) before he was convicted of a £45 million fraud and sentenced to serve a nine year sentence in July 1995. Presumably the runway was discovered by the planning authorities who ordered it to be destroyed? However, as the pictures above clearly show, some sections still remained in 2023 when this listing was made.
Being a tad cynical he must have made many enemies along the way, including some in high places, as convictions for high level financial fraud in the UK are few and far between. Plus it seems, towards the end he had received several death threats. Hardly surprising perhaps?
His story ended on the 20th August 2014, when having hired the Piper PA-38-112 Tomahawk, G-BNDE, (ex EI-BUR), from ELSTREE he flew to TURWESTON and then to WHITE WALTHAM. Taking off he then headed north and after circling around for about an hour sent a message saying the aircraft was in a spin and he couldn't recover. The AAIB found that this message was sent a couple of minutes before the Tomahawk went into a spin.
It is therefore hard to avoid the conclusion that he committed suicide. I was taught not to speak ill of the dead, but every rule has exceptions, and this is certainly one example. Without any doubt the world is much better off without having him around, and, speaking as a pilot, he committed the ultimate sin, by destroying in such a selfish way, a perfectly serviceable aeroplane.
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