Frank Mcclean: The Godfather Of British Naval Aviation
by Philip Jarrett /
2011 / English / EPUB
29.1 MB Download
During aviation’s pioneering years Francis Kennedy McClean used his
vast inherited wealth to help the now famous Short Brothers company
to become established as one of Britain’s greatest aircraft
manufacturers and, in doing so, helped the Royal Navy’s first
pilots into the air. In short, he was the Godfather of British
naval aviation.
During aviation’s pioneering years Francis Kennedy McClean used his
vast inherited wealth to help the now famous Short Brothers company
to become established as one of Britain’s greatest aircraft
manufacturers and, in doing so, helped the Royal Navy’s first
pilots into the air. In short, he was the Godfather of British
naval aviation.
But McClean did much more than even that. He was himself a
balloonist and pioneer aviator, flying with Wilbur Wright in France
in December 1908. He provided the Royal Aero Club with one of the
first flying grounds in the UK, personally purchased no fewer than
sixteen airplanes from Short Brothers before the First World War
and also acted as the company’s unpaid test pilot. Convinced that
aviation was destined play a vital role in the nation’s defense, he
made his own airplanes freely available to the Territorial Army and
Royal Navy for pilot training and ensured that the Navy had a
suitable site from which to fly, thereby founding England’s first
naval flying school, at Eastchurch in Kent. One of his better-known
exploits was a flight up the Thames to Westminster on 10 August
1912, during which he flew between the upper and lower spans of
Tower Bridge and passed beneath the other bridges. Despite all
these achievements he remained unassuming, modest and
reticent.
But McClean did much more than even that. He was himself a
balloonist and pioneer aviator, flying with Wilbur Wright in France
in December 1908. He provided the Royal Aero Club with one of the
first flying grounds in the UK, personally purchased no fewer than
sixteen airplanes from Short Brothers before the First World War
and also acted as the company’s unpaid test pilot. Convinced that
aviation was destined play a vital role in the nation’s defense, he
made his own airplanes freely available to the Territorial Army and
Royal Navy for pilot training and ensured that the Navy had a
suitable site from which to fly, thereby founding England’s first
naval flying school, at Eastchurch in Kent. One of his better-known
exploits was a flight up the Thames to Westminster on 10 August
1912, during which he flew between the upper and lower spans of
Tower Bridge and passed beneath the other bridges. Despite all
these achievements he remained unassuming, modest and
reticent.
McClean’s great influence and significance are revealed for the
first time in this informative and entertaining book.
McClean’s great influence and significance are revealed for the
first time in this informative and entertaining book.