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It started like any other working day for David Stiles, but it ended up with his action of using a garden implement helped save the life of a crashed pilot.

This happened at the College of Air Training (CoT) centre at the Hamble aerodrome in southern Hampshire. The centre had been set up in the 1960s when it was realised that there were insufficient ex-RAF pilots needed by BOAC (British Overseas Airways Corporation} and BEA (British European Airways} to be trained as civilian pilots for their expanding businesses.

The small airfield at Hamble continued to be used by the Air Training Corps (ATC) and Southampton University Air Squadron but was considered suitable for training school leavers and university graduates who had no flying experience to become pilots.

Following fifteen weeks of ground study, flight training commenced in the ubiquitous De Haviland Chipmunk gradually progressing to Piper Cheroke then on to twin engined Piper Apache and later Beechcraft Barons.

After two years cadets would leave the college with a British commercial pilot’s licence and a ‘frozen’ airline transport pilot’s licence, which could be converted into a full ATPL after further examinations and having accumulated the requisite flying hours. This latter qualification would be needed if the pilot had ambitions ever to sit in the captain’s seat.

The College of Air Training operated to such high standards meant that nearly half of all cadets failed to successfully complete their course. Its reputation encouraged the attendance of many foreign students that helped swell the successful trainees up to around two thousand before its closure in 1982.

With around sixty aircraft of different types at the training centre required a substantial maintenance team where David Stiles was responsible for radar and instrumentation. He, and three others, also had to drop their tools and act as assistant firemen should their elderly fire tender be required in an emergency.

The siren sounded at lunchtime on 7^th December 1968. A trainee from the CoT was on the landing approach when it was suddenly hit by another unsighted aircraft belonging to the ATC. The instructor immediately took control and with a damaged tailplane successfully landed the De Haviland Chipmunk. But where was the other aircraft?

The immediate thought was that the offending plane had crashed near the village school. Arriving in the fire tender it was met by school children pointing to the adjacent bungalow and having parked in the road the fireman and David rushed to the back garden to find the wreckage of an upside-down Chipmunk. Expert opinion was that following the coming together of the two planes the offending one went into a stall and crashed into a tall fir tree that cushioned its landing. The action saw it demolish a potting shed knocking out the 86 years old resident where he had been working but he walked away uninjured.

The pilot was unconscious being held upside down by his safety harness. A decision had to be made whether to go back to the fire tender, fix hoses to bring in foam which would take some minutes, or, attempt to save the pilot before the plane might soon go up in flames as fuel from the damaged wing tanks was seeping towards the hot engine.

The decision was instantly made to try to save the pilot. The Chipmunk sliding cockpit canopy could not be opened as it was now touching the ground. David and a colleague went to the wrecked tail of the aircraft and tried to lift the rear end sufficiently to raise the cockpit canopy off the ground. Greater height was needed.  Looking around the garden David spied a clothesline prop that might be useful. It was a strong straight tree branch with a large vee fork that hooked under the clothesline.

Using all their strength they lifted the tail and managed to fit the prop under part of what remained of the fuselage and gradually worked it along raising the aircraft sufficiently to clear the sliding canopy off the ground. Fortunately, the runners were still free so how to extract the unconscious pilot?  Smacking the centre clasp the harness released the pilot headfirst on to the ground and they were able to slide the now recovering pilot sideways out of the wreckage.

At that point the local fire brigade arrived and covered the plane with foam. An ambulance took the pilot to hospital where he fully recovered.

Two days later a statement was taken by the Chief Fire Officer and the local policeman. The engine was removed from the wreckage while the remainder was scrapped.

Had it been in wartime the response may have been different with some citation.  But the fully recovered pilot returned presenting David and the fireman each with a bottle of Teacher’s whisky for their heroic actions in saving his life.

A good month of support from our local printed media with some catching up by some publications.  The Basingstoke Gazette gave a small report in the newspaper about the Lasham visit but their web site was more fulsome including a photograph. This report was not circulated to the local media so as not to cause a dilemma with editors receiving the Charles Darwin report.

The Charles Darwin report was well received by most of the local magazines. The CommunityAd magazine for Bramley & Sherfield having a double page spread with professional graphics make the local magazines rather mundane with their desk top publishing style with some put together by their hard working editors.

A report by Chris Perkins

A group of club members and their wives/partners had a superb day out when they visited the Lasham Gliding Heritage Society at Lasham airfield, south of Basingstoke. In the nine years since their first visit much work has been carried out by volunteers to expand the whole set up. After being met outside of the Lasham Gliding Centre we were escorted around the airfield perimeter to the south side where the exhibition is housed and a group photograph was taken outside of the original hanger. We were then treated to an introductory talk outlining the history and development of the centre.

It was formed in 2012 when a bequest from one of the founders of the international Vintage Glider Club, Chris Wills, enabled the centre to build the first hanger. Over the years, the centre has grown and they now have the largest collection of historic gliders in this country – over seventy gliders with an age range from 1910 to the present day with several more stored in trailers outside on the airfield. Most are in flying condition or can be made airworthy.

We learned that most of the gliders have been donated by owners who want them to be preserved and if possible, kept in flying condition. A second hanger was built in 2018, and recently a much-needed modern workshop was constructed thus facilitating major restoration projects and routine maintenance. Each year, certain gliders are earmarked for restoration and returned to flying condition, thus ensuring, by rotation, that the immaculate condition of hanger exhibits is maintained.

The complete centre infrastructure has been financed by generous voluntary donations. In particular, the expansion to establish a workshop and briefing room complex, has been made possible by a large bequest from one of the former members Trish Williams.

After the briefing we were split into small groups for a comprehensive tour of the hangers and workshop. The volunteers gave us an in-depth excursion around highlighting the development of gliding over the years both in operational terms and technological development.

Two of the gliders the extensive collection of particular note were the “Clarke Chanute” and the “Colditz Cock”.

• The “Clarke Chanute” is an original machine, manufactured in 1910 by T W K Clarke & Co of Kingston on Thames. Due to its age it’s not airworthy and has been in storage since 1913 in the Science and RAF Museums. It was presented by the Aero Club Trust on loan to the Centre in January 2018.
  
• The “Colditz Cock” is a replica, one of two gliders, manufactured in 2012 by South-East Aircraft Services and loaned by Tony Hoskins. A non-airworthy machine, it was built to support the Channel 4 documentary on the Colditz Cock which was screened in that year. The sister glider was built in the same Colditz Castle attic that the prisoners had used to construct the original in 1944/45. The sister aircraft was launched under radio control from the Colditz Castle roof in March 2012 and made a crash landing in the planned landing field below the castle.

After, what was a most enjoyable and incredible three-hour tour we were escorted across the airfield, busy with gliding activity, to our start point where the majority of us made the most of the dining facilities offered by the “Flight Deck Café”. It’s open to the public as well as members and has an outside patio and seating area. The café serves an extensive variety of snacks besides an excellent selections of hot meals. All very reasonably priced.

Photograph taken by Stephen Thair in 1981 while being aerotowed on a glider flight

A good result as we come to the end of the summer absences as most magazines have a break although the Villager (Sherborne & areas) had their break for the September edition and unusually we failed to appear in the Kempshott Kourier.

As a result there are various reports to see.

Except during the Covid pandemic the Probus Summer Pub lunch has been held every year since 1996. Started by the then president David Carwardine, who had retired from a senior position at the Basingstoke fork truck manufacturer then known as Lansing Bagnall, each incoming president has been responsible for arranging this event where wives and lady friends are involved.
This year president Paul Klinger, a retired solicitor, had the responsibility of ensuring that all guests received their specified lunch selections which was managed successfully by the staff at Barton’s Mill in Old Basing.
Situated under the large awning the setting allowed a gentle breeze to keep temperatures down to a comfortable level during the heat spell.

August sees many of the local magazines take a break which leaves a few that carried our reports. In the circumstances four publications is considered a good result.

The Kempshott Kourier is behind with our reports as they ran with the trip on the Basingstoke Canal. The three others gave a full page to the 250th anniversary of the American Declaration of Independence including the Loddon Valley Link in Sherfield on Loddon, a rare but welcome change.

Another good month for support of our activities by the local media. This is mainly concerned with the 46^th AGM and the appointment of Paul Klinger as president.

Some magazines carried earlier reports which is due to a combination of calendar variances in their final copy dates  being before our meetings, others not being monthly publications and this month the Kempshott Kourier was so late that a decision was reached not to have a July edition.  

Thursday 18 June was a self drive trip to the Bovington Tank Museum, just west of Wareham in Dorset. Organised by Chris Perkins MVO, in his usual professional manner, this was a splendid visit augmented by the use of a guide for our tour.

This expansive modern facility has examples of tanks and other armoured vehicles from the introduction of the first tank in 1916, which changed warfare from mounted to mechanical, through to the latest Challenger 3 tank currently being developed by Nato. The museum claims to house the only German Tiger tank in working order.