Flights over the Meads – the aeroplanes which used Runnymede as an airstrip
Who can forget the glorious sight of the RAF Red Arrows soaring over Runnymede to mark the 800th anniversary of Magna Carta and in 2020 the 75th Anniversary of VE Day?
Or the fascinating tale of the wartime US plane which crash landed in Long Mead in 1943?[i]
But these were not the first aeroplanes to be linked with the historic spot. Much earlier, when passenger flight was a new phenomenon, local residents and their visitors had the chance to view the area from above on planes which actually took off from Runnymede, then owned by the Crown.
This was in the summers of 1928 and 1929 when a joyride cost the princely sum of 5 shillings (25pence) – equivalent to approx. £15.82 today.[ii]
Most of the planes came from the Henderson School of Flying which had been established at Brooklands in 1927 by Colonel George Lockhart Piercy Henderson, a World War I flying ace who had earned money since the war ended by giving joyrides. In November 1928, he sold the flying school to Captain Henry Duncan Davis, who later renamed it the Brooklands School of Flying.
It is not clear if the takings from the Runnymede joyrides, known as ‘Flights over the Meads,’ went back to the school or into the pockets of the pilots themselves! One trainee pilot, Don Robertson who joined the flying school in 1928, recorded in his memoirs that “On weekends we used to fly over to a field by the river at Runnymede, taking up joyriders at 5s a head. My job was to sell tickets but it was well worth it as I was getting two cross-country flights free.”[iv]
Learning to fly was expensive: Don Robertson paid £4.10s an hour. “…a tremendous sum but I took five hours dual and three solo before getting my license, so the total cost amounted to £36.” This would be equivalent to £2,278.60 today[v]
The planes used were probably Avro 548s of which the Henderson School had several. These could hold 3 people including the pilot.
The Henderson School pilots were not the only ones offering joyrides. Egham Museum possesses as DOC4113 in its collection (below), a slightly worn 1929 ticket for ‘Flights over the Meads’ offered by Skyways Ltd.
The date is verified by the pilot Bill Knox who sent it to a friend as a unique birthday greeting in 1972.
Skyways Ltd was a company established by Bill (or William) Knox in 1929 to provide “instruction in aviation and aerial navigation, aerial and ground signalling”. This company continued until after World War II, when the name was transferred to a newly formed airline operating a variety of air transport services.
Rather than the coincidence of two different sets of pilots discovering the suitability of Runnymede as an ad hoc airfield, it is probable that Bill Knox had learned to fly with the Henderson School.
Not everyone appreciated the flights: Egham’s Magna Carta Commemorative Committee complained about the flying activities during their meetings in 1928 and 1929[vii].
In December 1929 Lady Fairhaven purchased the land at Runnymede from the Crown with the intention that it be gifted to the National Trust.
There were no more joy-rides.
With many thanks to Sarah Corn and Steven Franklyn who supplied digital copies of items I could not see for myself due to lockdown restrictions.
Margaret C Stewart
[i] Pears, Callum (2018) Egham’s Flying Fortress – Egham Museum [Accessed 17 December 2020]
[ii] Calculations taken from Bank of England Inflation Calculator Inflation calculator | Bank of England [Accessed 14 January 2021]
[iii] Classic British Aviation Industry Advertisements 1909 – 1990 (aviationancestry.co.uk) [Accessed 10 December 2020]
[iv] Robertson, Don (1996) The Urge To Fly. London: Quiller Press. Quoted at Runnymede – UK Airfield Guide [Accessed 10 December 2020]
[v] Calculations taken from Bank of England Inflation Calculator Inflation calculator | Bank of England [Accessed 14 January 2021]
[vi] Classic British Aviation Industry Advertisements 1909 – 1990 (aviationancestry.co.uk) [Accessed 10 December 2020]
[vii] Minutes of 1928 and 1929 mentioned in Magna Carta Project – Feature of the Month – Runnymede and the Commemoration of Magna Carta (uea.ac.uk) [Accessed 17 December 2020]