Bekesbourne
BEKESBOURNE: Military aerodrome later civil aerodrome (also known as CANTERBURY)
Note: This picture was obtained from Google Earth ©
I also have to thank the Airfields of Britain Conservation Trust web-site for helping to confirm this location.
Military user: RFC/RAF (Royal Flying Corps / Royal Air Force)
Home Defence Flight Station and Squadron Station
51 [Home Defence) Sqdn (Royal Aircraft Factory B.E.12?)
56 Sqdn (Royal Aircraft Factory S.E.5a)
Civil users: Between wars: Kent Gliding Club and The Kent Flying Club
Location: About 2.5 miles ESE of Canterbury
Period of operation: WW1: Military 1916 to 1919
Civil from 1930 to 1939
Site area: WW1: 98 acres 1061 x 411
Runways in the 1930s: N/S 457 grass NE/SW 439 grass E/W 777 grass SE/NW 640 grass
A MICHAEL T HOLDER GALLERY
Note: The magazine article was published in Flight magazine on the 10th January 1930.
Note: This first picture is of a stunt during an airshow held by the Kent Flying Club event in 1932, 'somebody stealing an aircraft'. The aircraft in question being G-AAGT, a de Havilland DH60G Gipsy Moth.
NEWSPAPER MATERIAL
Note: The first item was published in the Dover Express on the 6th May 1932. The second item was published in the Whitstable Times and Herne Bay Herald on the 29th April 1933.
The third item, an advert, was also published in the Whitstable Times and Herne Bay Herald, this time on the 15th July 1933.
In August 2021, Mike Holder kindly provided these items.
NOTES:
FLYING CIRCUS VENUES
Venue (23rd May 1932) for Alan Cobham’s National Aviation Day UK Display Tour
Venue (20th April 1933) for Alan Cobham’s UK No.1 Tour
Note: It now appears this event took place on the 27th April.
Venue (21st July 1933) for British Hospitals Air Pageant Tour of the UK
Venue (19th May 1936) for British Empire Air Display Tour of the UK
Venue (6th May 1937) for Coronation Air Displays Tour
Note: Although highly probable, I certainly can’t guarantee exactly the same site was used for all these venues. Even adjacent fields, let alone those nearby were sometimes used belonging to different farmers/land-owners.
*CANTERBURY aerodrome was listed as a waypoint for Geoffrey Stephenson's epic cross Channel glider flight, (the first UK glider to do so), from DUNSTABLE DOWNS to Le Wast near Boulogne on the 22nd April 1939. I assume this must be BEKESBOURNE especially as it was then the home of the Kent Gliding Club.
MORE INFORMATION
In June 2023 Mr Graham Frost, a great friend of this 'Guide', discovered much more information from which I have taken a few excerpts.
"...Robert Christian Ramsey formed Kent Aircraft Services and re-opened Bekesbourne aerodrome on his land for civil flying in 1930." Then: "In 1931 Mr Ramsey founded the Kent Flying Club with one DH60 Moth." It is well worth noting that Mr Ramsey was one of the first pupils and gained his licence in April 1932 aged 71. I think of great interest is the Club acquiring the Cierva/Avro 620 Autogiro C.19 Mk.IV, G-ABUH, which it registered on the 19th February 1932. It was then sold to Australia as VH-USO in December 1934.
"During August 1934 the Club switched from Moths, having gone through three, to Miles Hawks. Dual instruction cost £2 and solo flying cost £1.10s.0d" That would be per hour of course. "In 1936 a new organisation appeared on the scene in the guise of Air Sales and Service Ltd, which took control of both the Club and the aerodrome." It is I find very interesting to see, time and time again, the myth that the U.K. was not prepared for WW2 being perpetuated. In this case, when the Civil Air Guard scheme was announced in July 1938, to train pilots ready to join the RAF, this Club signed up. "With the general scramble to get extra aeroplanes to cope with the Civil Air Guard scheme the Club had a mixture of Miles Hawks, Tipsy Trainers, DH98 Moth Minors and even a DH60G Moth."
NOT QUITE THE END
When war on Germany was declared on the 3rd September 1939, the aerodrome closed. "The RAF returned briefly during the evacuation from Dunkirk when No.2 (Army Co-operation) Sqdn used the aerodrome for their Lysanders, but in June 1940 Bekesbourne finally closed for flying." Interesting is it not, that this account makes no mention of gliding.
Graham has also discovered three more aircraft that were based here. First is the privately owned Bacon/Butts (the builders) HM.14 Pou du Ciel, G-AEBR. based here from 10.02.36 to around July 1938. Then there are two Tipsy Trainer 1s, G-AFRT and G-AFVP, both registered to Airsales & Service Ltd on the 16th August 1939. As Britain had declared war on Gerrmany on the 3rd September, both of these aircraft were presumably put into storage, G-AFVP being scrapped during WW2. Oddly enough, although de-registered, it appears that G-AFRT survived WW2 only to be destroyed by fire in Slough in 1952.
Later on, Graham also found that the Miles M2H Hawk Major, G-ADCY, was registered here to Robert C Ramsey, (possibly for personal use?), from 20.02.35 until 26.06.40. A few days later it was impressed as BD141 on the 30th June 1940. Presumably for service with the RAF. Most if not all RAF Stations had at least one or a couple of light aircraft available for use as 'run-abouts'. I suspect this where many if not most ex-civil light aircraft ended up?
AND
In July 2023 Graham also discovered that the Miles M.2 Hawk, G-ADVR, was registered here from 02.05.35 until 30.08.39 to Airsales & Service Ltd. It might have been a cancelled export order originally, as the registration YR-ITR appears to have been applied. Presumably it was used by a flying school operation at some time here between times? It crashed here on the 30th August 1939.
Rod
This comment was written on: 2017-04-11 16:42:03Hi - the exact location of Bekesbourne is 51°15'16.16"N 1° 9'22.61"E You will find Lysander Close, Aerodrome Road, and De Havillands just to the west of that point.
Reply from Dick Flute:
Hi Rod, Many thanks for the advice. Best regards, Dick
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