Basingstoke flying sites
Note: This map only shows the position of Basingstoke town within the UK. This said, the location of the helipad at Basingstoke General Hospital should appear if zoomed in.
BASINGSTOKE WW1: Military aerodrome
It appears that the golf course was used in WW1 as a training facility. To date no other information has been found. Can anybody kindly offer advice?
BASINGSTOKE: Temporary aerodrome
NOTES: Used by the Berkshire Aviation Company in November/December 1922. Does anybody now know the location of this venue?
BASINGSTOKE: Temporary aerodrome
A MICHAEL T HOLDER GALLERY
BONUS PICTURE
Note: Mike Holder also unearthed this photograph of Jim Mollison turning up at this Cobham event, after he had set an England - Capetown - England record in a de Havilland DH60A Puss Moth, 24th to 28th March 1932. Mollison was of course by then married to Amy Johnson, and she then broke his record by eleven hours a few months later, also in a Puss Moth, (probably the same one?), from the 14th to 18th November.
Operated by: Sir Alan Cobham’s National Aviation Day Display Tours
Location: Old Golf Course (See WW1 aerodrome above)
Period of operation: 18th April 1932
A NOTABLE FIRST VISIT
NOTES: Without much if any doubt the same venue site for the earlier Sir Alan Cobham’s 1929 Municipal Aerodrome Campaign?
Basingstoke was the 75th planned venue for this Tour and was scheduled to be visited in early September. Starting in May and ending in October, one hundred and seven venues were planned to be visited. Mostly in England but with two venues in Wales and eight in Scotland. In the end, after a couple of crashes and other setbacks, he managed to visit 96 venues, which was still a considerable achievement. In the end, this was the 79th venue during his Tour and he arrived on the 13th September.
The aircraft Cobham mostly used for this Tour was the ten-seater de Havilland DH61 'Giant Moth' G-AAEV named 'Youth of Britain'. The punishing schedule he set for himself seems astonishing today, and quite likely impossible to replicate today. Also highly recommended are his memoires in 'A Time To Fly'.
Listed below are three sites I have found records for, having helipads. But further research appears to show no evidence. If anybody can kindly offer advice, this will be much appreciated.
BASINGSTOKE GENERAL HOSPITAL: Helipad
Operated by: The Hampshire Ambulance Service
Note: Looking at Google Earth I can find no evidence of a helipad. Advice will be most welcome.
BASINGSTOKE: Private helipad
Operated by: The Sperry Company and on their premises?
BASINGSTOKE: Private helipad
Operated by: The Mercury Motor Inn?
NOTES: Any further infomation about this and the two previously listed helipads, and the 'Flying Circus' venues of course, will be very welcome.
Terry Clark
This comment was written on: 2017-12-25 21:14:18Up until the early '80s, the AA, whose HQ is in Basingstoke, used a grass field south west of the town to land their Cessna 421. This field is now housing, the Cessna moving to Odiham and then when the aircraft was changed for a Learjet, they moved to Farnborough.
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