Record breakers
Posted: Mon Sep 04, 2006 7:21 pmA special event at Tangmere yesterday. On 7th September 1946, Gp Capt E M (Teddy) Donaldson set a new world record of 615.78 mph flying Gloster Meteor F.4 EE549 off the Sussex coast at Rustington. There were about 40 ex-Meteor pilots there to celebrate the 60th anniversary including my schoolboy heroes Neville Duke & Peter Twiss. Unfortunately Gp Capt Donaldson is no longer with us but the actual aircraft is preserved in the Tangmere Museum.
Neville Duke in the cockpit section of another Meteor. I couldn't help wondering what he was thinking about while sitting in there.
RAF Tangmere has a history of record breaking as the RAF High Speed Flight was based there for some years after the end of WWII. Neville Duke pushed the world speed record to 727 mph in a Hawker Hunter along the same course in September 1953 & three years later Peter Twiss became the first man to fly at over 1,000 mph in the Fairey Delta 2, 40,000 feet above the coast at Worthing. The actual record-breaking Hunter is also at Tangmere. Here's some living legends standing in front of it. Neville Duke with Peter Twiss on his right & Duncan Simpson (his successor as Hawker Chief Test Pilot) on his left.
Two old colleagues in conversation. Duncan Simpson was responsible for flight testing the Kestrel, Harrier & Hawk at Dunsfold.
One man was missing. Mike Lithgow, the Chief Test Pilot of Supermarine who took the record from Neville Duke in the Swift only 3 weeks later. He was sadly killed while testing the BAC 111. It's a dangerous job & these are all very brave men.
Neville Duke in the cockpit section of another Meteor. I couldn't help wondering what he was thinking about while sitting in there.
RAF Tangmere has a history of record breaking as the RAF High Speed Flight was based there for some years after the end of WWII. Neville Duke pushed the world speed record to 727 mph in a Hawker Hunter along the same course in September 1953 & three years later Peter Twiss became the first man to fly at over 1,000 mph in the Fairey Delta 2, 40,000 feet above the coast at Worthing. The actual record-breaking Hunter is also at Tangmere. Here's some living legends standing in front of it. Neville Duke with Peter Twiss on his right & Duncan Simpson (his successor as Hawker Chief Test Pilot) on his left.
Two old colleagues in conversation. Duncan Simpson was responsible for flight testing the Kestrel, Harrier & Hawk at Dunsfold.
One man was missing. Mike Lithgow, the Chief Test Pilot of Supermarine who took the record from Neville Duke in the Swift only 3 weeks later. He was sadly killed while testing the BAC 111. It's a dangerous job & these are all very brave men.
