Waterloo Sands
WATERLOO SANDS: Early flying ground or airfield (Aka simply as WATERLOO)
Operated by: 1911: Liverpool Aviation School (aka Melly School & Liverpool School of Aviation)
Military users: WW1: RNAS/RFC/RAF as an Emergency, (others say Diversion) Day Landing Ground
Location: Sandheys Avenue, Waterloo about 1nm SSE of Crosby
Period of operation: Civil from 1911 to the outbreak of WW1 in 1914? RNAS in 1918 only? Civil use again after WW1 to?
A MICHAEL T HOLDER GALLERY
Note: The article in Flight magazine was published on the 6th June 1911
NOTES:
Alfred Dukingfield-Jones gave WATERLOO as being where he gained his flying experience in a Blériot Monoplane to gain his Pilot Certificate No:138 dated 19/09/11. In 2003 I made a note that I would love to know what went on here. Over a year later my wish came true courtesy of Nick Forder – Curator (Air and Space), Museum of Science and Industry, Manchester via Airfield Review. He sent me this: "Mr Henry G Melly founded the aerodrome at WATERLOO SANDS with two wooden sheds and a workshop after moving up from FRESHFIELDS in March 1911."
Ron Smith in British Built Aircraft Vol.5 states that initially Mr Melly had one single-seat and one two-seat Blériot, a third Blériot machine was later assembled here.
A SMALL WORLD
I had written to Nick Forder because he had written about AINTREE RACECOURSE history for Airfield Review. In his article he says, "It was on July 7th 1911 that Mr Melly departed from AINTREE for TRAFFORD PARK and completed the first ever successful flight from Liverpool to Manchester. And, guess who his ‘co-pilot' was? Mr Alfred Dukingfield- Jones who was Mr Melly’s first pupil. I wish I could have been part of a record breaking flight when I was learning to fly!
WORLD WAR 1
In WW1, (one report says during 1918 only?), WATERLOO SANDS was designated a Diversion/Emergency Landing Ground, along with SCALE HALL and SOLWAY HOUSE, for aircraft in transit up the west coast to Scotland.
JOY RIDES AFTER WW1
It now appears that the Avro Transport Company also used this site after WW1 for joy-riding flights using Avro 504s, probably Avro 504Ks. Other sites listed in LANCASHIRE are BLACKPOOL, FLEETWOOD, MORECOMBE and SOUTHPORT.
ANOTHER CLAIM TO FAME
Almost a century later, in 2005, the amazing 'Another Place' sculpture exhibit by Anthony Gormley was placed on this stretch of beach, just north of the flying site. I have been there and it really is moving and impressive. What I didn't see however, was a noticeboard giving information about how important this stretch of shoreline has been in our aviation history.
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