Westwood Heath
WESTWOOD HEATH: Temporary aerodrome later establshed aerodrome
Note: The use of this location can be divided into two parts. Initially used as a venue for visiting 'Flying Circus' operators, then approved as an established aerodrome.
Operated by: (Flying Circus era)
Sir Alan Cobham's National Aviation Day 1935 Tour British Empire Air Display 1936 Tour
From 1937: Coventry Air Training Club
Location: Just W of Lodge Farm, just S of Westwood Heath Road, 4nm WSW of Coventry city centre
Period of operation: Cobham's NAD: 4th June 1935 British Empire Air Display: 10th May 1936
Landing area: Roughly 400 metres SW/NE 250 metres NW/SE
A MICHAEL T HOLDER GALLERY
In February 2024, after having just a very minimal listing for this location, I began to suspect that perhaps more is known? So, I asked Mike Holder, a great friend of this 'Guide', to see if he could find anything? The results below were way beyond anything I could have expected.
THE COBHAM VISIT 4th JUNE 1935
The advert was published in the Coventry Evening Telegraph on the 1st June 1935.
This article, in two parts, was published in the Coventry Herald on the 7th June 1935.
NOTES: The 1935 Tour was the last of the Sir Alan Cobham's National Aviation Day tours. The first was in 1932. This tour started as a single tour at TITCHFIELD ROAD, Fareham in Hampshire on the 12th April and was planned to visit 72 venues. WESTWOOD HEATH was the 48th venue. Incredibly perhaps, incidents, let alone accidents, were very few and far between despite having no radio air traffic control.
It was divided into two tours on the 1st July and the No.1 Tour was planned to visit 88 venues, commencing at PENSHURST aerodrome, Tonbridge in Kent. The No.2 Tour started at the OLD RACECOURSE, Portholme Meadow in Huntingdon and was planned to visit 84 venues. Both of them finished on the 29th September. Thus it was planned that a total of 244 displays would be undertaken.
THE BRITISH EMPIRE AIR DISPLAY 10th MAY 1936
The advert was published in the Coventry Standard on the 8th May 1936. The local area view is from my Google Earth © derived database.
This article in four parts was published in the Coventry Evening Telegraph on the 11th May 1936.
Shown in three parts, this article was published in the Coventry Herald on the 15th May 1936.
This article was published in the Coventry Evening Telegraph on the 21st September 1936. It gives us an insight of just how much planning, and expenditure, was required to arrange these tours.
This Tour was planned to visit 111 venues. It commenced at Luton, Bedfordshire on the 8th April and WESTWOOD HEATH was the 28th venue. Not without incidents as the articles above prove.
COVENTRY AIR TRAINING CLUB
This Advert One was placed in the Gloucester Citizen on the 16th August 1937. The article in two parts was published in the Coventry Evening Telegraph on ther 14th August 1937. I was interested to see, in the advert, the reference to the Austrian Robert Kronfeld appearing with his Kronfeld Drone. It seems that this was incredibly noisy, so perhaps, earning a reputation later earned by the BAC One-Eleven, of being the most effective method of translating pound notes into noise.
These four items were all published in the Coventry Evening Telegraph. The short article on the 16th October 1937, the advert on the 21st October 1937. Article One was published on the 13th January 1938, and lastly, Article Two was published on the 1st March 1938.
LAST BUT HOPEFULLY NOT LEAST?
This has been a great example to prove the lesson that the more you learn, the more you realise how little you know. Certainly true in my case. Mike Holder does not give up until he has squeezed every drop out of the information available. So, is it possible that this was the hangar?
NOTES: In February 2024 Mr Graham Frost, another great friend of this 'Guide', pointed out that the de Havilland DH60X Moth, G-AAPW, was registered to two joint private owners and based here from 23.04.37 until 10.01.39. But, did they share the hangar with Coventry Air Training Club?
Michael T Holder
This comment was written on: 2020-05-28 13:04:32From the Coventry Evening Telegraph – Monday 11 May 1936 – At an Air display thousands witnessed two accidents ta Westwood Heath – a large passenger machine struck a hedge taking odd and had to land with a crippled undercarriage – no casualties. Then two planes collided while taking off and one of the pilots – Miss Pauline Gower received a cut forehead and slight concussion and was taken to hospital. Three passengers had minor cuts and shock. There were between 12,000 and 15,000 people present at this British Empire Display presented by Mr T Campbell Black, with the collaboration of Miss Pauline Gower and Miss Dorothy Spicer, at Westwood Farm - 52 23 09”N 001 34 45”W. They probably used the field that lies to the north of the farm.
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