Berriedale
BERRIEDALE: Regional airport
Note: These two pictures were kindly provided by Mr Michael T Holder, the second picture being obtained from Google Earth ©
Operated by: Allied Airways (Gandar Dower Ltd)
Location: Just NE of St Margaret's Hope
Period of operation: Not known, but certainly from the mid to late 1930s
NOTES: I have Mr Michael T Holder to thank for finding this regional airport, which was probably little more than a field with a windsock.
He also found this article in the Aberdeen Press and Journal, on Monday 19th July 1937:
PLANE DAMAGED IN ORKNEY
FOUR PASENGERS GET THRILL
"Four passengers and the pilot on a plane of Allied Airways (Gandar Dower) Ltd, had a thrill while the plane, one of the machines used on the inter-island service, was landing at Berriedale, the airport of St Margaret's Hope, Orkney on Saturday."
"The plane was piloted by Capt. Hayfer, a new pilot to the company, but a man who has a fine record of over twenty-one years' flying to his credit, and in coming in to land one of the wheels struck a low ditch of which the pilot was not aware."
NO ONE HURT
"The wheel was bent up into the fuselage and the machine came to a sudden stop. None of the passengers was hurt. In addition to the pilot the plane carried one of the company's officials, two passengers who were on a day holiday trip to the islands, one passenger who was bound for St Margaret's Hope and one passenger who was going to Stromness to join the Aberdeen-bound plane. The mishap occurred about 1.30 in the afternoon."
TAKEN TO STROMNESS
"The passengers were transferred by motor boat and taken to Stromness where Mr Bailey, another of the company's pilots, picked them up. The two holidaymakers had their day in the islands cut short as they were taken back to Thurso, while the Aberdeen passenger was able to complete his journey in the normal way."
"The St Margaret's Hope passenger was Mrs Murray who was in the plane which crashed in flames at Thurso a fortnight ago. The machine will be shipped to Aberdeen for inspection and overhaul."
It appears the reporter missed a trick here. I would certainly like to know if Mrs Murray intended to travel by air again? Then again, judging from the countless reports and articles I have read over years, it seems that accidents were remarkably few and far between, which, considering the often poor weather, high winds and very basic landing sites is testimony to just how good these pilots were. And, by and large, most of the primitive airliners were single crew affairs.
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