by Hagar » Thu Apr 12, 2012 1:49 pm
I remember watching Wing Commander Wallis' first attempts at flying his prototype gyrocopter from our spotting point* on the river bank at Shoreham. These test runs took place in the evening after the airport was closed. The problem was in winding the rotor fast enough for lift in calm conditions, all done by hand while charging flat out across the airfield. This clip was shot some time afterwards when he'd sorted the bugs out with a flexible drive from the engine connected to the rotor via a clutch. [url]http://www.britishpathe.com/video/air-news-shoreham-aka-home-made-gyrocopter-is-big/query/shoreham+airport
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*You can see our spotting point in the clip - the old gun emplacement behind him when he takes off. It's still there today. Note that there were no fences round the airfield in those days.
Last edited by
Hagar on Thu Apr 12, 2012 2:00 pm, edited 1 time in total.