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Aviation History
1934
1934 - 0237.PDF
FLIGHT, MARCH 15, 1934 Calshot By MAJOR F. A. de V. ROBERTSON, V.D. a fine day there are few more charming spots inGreat Britain than Calshot. For those who know it not we may explain that it lies at the junctionof Southampton Water with the open Solent. Every year thousands of passengers on the Southampton-Co wes steamer pass close to it, and now and again they see the steamer heave to while a launch comes out fromthe seaplane station and takes airmen off to the little pier. Several times during the last seven years, when the R.A.F.High Speed Flight has been stationed at Calshot, either training for a Schneider contest or preparing for an attackon the world's high-speed record, Calshot has been the chief centre of interest in the whole of the British Isles.Those high-speed occasions recall very pleasant memories to the correspondents who were given free run of thestation, for waiting for something to happen on the con- ciete of Calshot is vastly preferable to hanging about insimilar circumstances on most inland aerodromes. At Cal- shot there is always something of interest to watch—ifnot a racing seaplane or a flying boat, then at least an Atlantic liner starting for New York or returning there-from. On a clear day one has three shores to watch, with Lee-on-Solent just across Southampton Water, and theIsle of Wight to the south. The centre and the oldest feature of Calshot is theCastle, which many suppose to be a Martello Tower, but which is not so. It certainly dates from days when therewere no flying machines. As a flying station Calshot has quite an honourable length of history. In 1912, follow-ing the formation of the Royal Flying Corps with Naval and Military Wings, the Admiralty chose Calshot to beone of a series of seaplane stations round the coast. Its CRAFT OF THE SEAPLANE TRAINING SQUADRON : The machines from left to right are Fairey "Seal,"Avro "Tutor," Saro " Cloud," Hawker " Osprey " and Supermarine " Southampton." (FLIGHT Photos.) 237
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