PLYMOUTH |
The Encyclopaedia of Plymouth History |
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Between April 11th and September 30th 1933, the Great Western Railway provided the air service from Plymouth's Roborough Airport. The aeroplane, a Westland Wessex, was supplied by Imperial Airways especially painted in Great Western Railway colours. It could carry just six passengers but it had three engines. At 2.30pm on a bleak Tuesday April 11th 1933, Captain Gordon P Olley left Cardiff with the first service to Plymouth. On board were Mr Geofffrey Luttrell, Mr A Maynard, Mr S B Collett, Mr A S Quartermaine and Mr F C A Coventry, all from the Great Western Railway Company, and a reporter from the Welsh newspaper the "Western Mail". They reached the aerodrome at Haldon Hill, west of Exeter, in 44 minutes. They were whisked away to a reception at the Teignmouth Golf Club. Some of the passengers left at this point and were replaced by Mr Cleobury and Mr Hill, two residents of Torquay, Mr K W C Grand, the publicity agent for the Great Western Railway, another official, and two press reporters. When they finally reached Plymouth's Roborough airfield they were greeted by the Lord Mayor, the Earl and Countess of Mount Edgcumbe (his Lordship was a director of the GWR). The service proper started the following day, Wednesday April 12th 1933. There were two flights in each direction per weekday. The first left Cardiff at 9.15am, Haldon at 10.10am and was due at Plymouth at 10.35am. It left again at 11.25am, departed Haldon at 12 Midday, and was due at Cardiff at 12.50pm. Cardiff to Torquay cost £3 single or £5 return. Cardiff to Plymouth cost £3 10s single or £6 return. Torquay to Plymouth cost £1 15s single or £2 return. The second return journey of the day started at 1.45pm, leaving Haldon at 2.35pm and due to arrive Plymouth at 3.05pm. At 3.55pm the plane left again, arriving at Haldon at 4.20pm. After ten minutes it departed for Cardiff, where it was due to arrive at 5.20pm. From Monday May 22nd 1933 the service was extended from Cardiff to Birmingham's Castle Bromwich Aerodrome but there was only one service each weekday. Birmingham Corporation provided free landing and housing facilities at Castle Bromwich and the Air Ministry gave special permission for the use of the aerodrome. The service left there at 9.30am, following the arrival of a connecting bus service from Birmingham Snow Hill Station. The plane then departed from Cardiff Airport at 11am and was due to arrive at Haldon Aerodrome at 11.50, where a bus connection was provided to Torquay's Vaughan Parade. The plane then left Haldon at 11.55 and was due to arrive at Roborough Aerodrome at 12.20pm, where a bus was waiting to get passengers to North Road Station at 12.40pm. For the return journey, the bus left North Road Station at 3.30pm and the plane departed from Roborough at 4pm. Following connections at Haldon and Cardiff, the plane was expected to touch down at Castle Bromwich at 6.50pm, where a bus would transfer passengers to Snow hill Station by 7.20pm. It was claimed that the air journey from Birmingham to Plymouth would take 170 minutes as compared with a rail journey of 320 minutes. The fares from Birmingham to Plymouth were £3 single or £5 10s return. The First Class rail fare between those two cities was £2 5s 3d. The fares included transfers by bus between the aerodromes and railway stations. A local flight from Plymouth to Haldon and on to Torquay could be taken for 12s 6d single or £1 5s return. Each passenger was allowed to have up to 35 lbs of hand luggage, with every excess pound costing 6d. Heavier luggage up to a maximum of 150 lbs would be conveyed free of charge by rail to the passenger's destination. Air mails would also be carried but this was a private arrangement and not in co-operation with the Royal Mail. It cost three-pence on top of the normal postage charge. The service closed for the winter period on September 30th 1933. During the first season 714 passengers, 104 lbs of freight and 454 lbs of mail had been carried and 62,400 miles were flown. This service was operated by Railway Air Services from May 7th 1934.
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