Centenary of first non-stop trans-Atlantic flight

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  • transtraxman
    Participant

    I am so glad to see these two unsung heroes,John Alcock and Arthur Whitten Brown, celebrated at last. You will find it difficult to find any serious website showing any homage to them. I hope Business Traveller homages them.

    They flew in an open two seater Vimy bomber from St. John´s in Newfoundland non-stop to Clifden, Co. Galway in Ireland, through freezing conditions, fog and rain for just under 16 hours to reach the other side of the Atlantic.
    They flew 1890 miles / 3024 kms. 14th to 15th June 1919.

    Theirs was an accomplishment which was not bettered till 8 years later when Charles Lindbergh flew from New York to Paris le Bourget, alone in 33.5 hrs. This is the more celebrated triumph but still the second.
    In those years many others flew across the Atlantic in hops or perished in the attempt. All should be remembered.

    “Yesterday We Were In America: Alcock and Brown, First to Fly the Atlantic Non-Stop” by Brendan Lynch (Author)

    “Our Transatlantic Flight” by Sir John Alcock (1969-04-06)
    by Sir John Alcock;Sir Arthur Whitten Brown (Author)

    and other books

    https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/extra/bM5diyl48K/alcock

    Today Marks The 100th Anniversary Of Transatlantic Non Stop Flight

    1 user thanked author for this post.

    capetonianm
    Participant

    On a fine day, and Ireland does have some, it’s a pleasant walk to the memorial on the site where these two brave pioneers landed.

    1 user thanked author for this post.

    Well, it was just me and only me at around 10.10am yesterday, Saturday June 15th 2019, and at around the time of the Irish landing exactly 100 years before….more or less to the time…to the day…..that I was standing intentionally underneath the famous ‘Vickers Vimy’ at the London Science Museum looking up at the plane hanging from the ceiling…just like Arthur Witten Brown’ the navigator did on the anniversaires of their heroic journey too reminisce the flight all alone at the museum just like I was doing yesterday, he stood staring at it very much alone there when Alcock died flying to Paris not long after. He was at the museum certainly in later life on every June 15th after Browns own son was killed in action in 1944.
    One day you all out there with your F and J class 1st world squabbles will reminisce about your lucky flying days and thus geographical experiences when your contemplating about your visit to that great hanger in the clouds..Rainy, Freezing, Frightening ?
    All those ‘Con Trails’ in the sky that have come after….some Supersonic…..some with you lot in them…..and me…..
    I was just about to leave after an hour or so when I heard….’Guten Morgen’ and then in English he said…Are you here the same as me and the only other person to remember the flight in this, pointing to the Vimy on the ceiling ?
    and in fact yes I was and now their were two people, he’d flown in from Munich apparently the day before, who were there 100 years to the time or near enough, the museum doesn’t open until 10.00am and to the exact day the 15th….staring and touching the machine,just as the Navigator did on his own in subsequent years, which preciously 100 years before crashed into that peat bog.
    Anyway, the museum was going about it’s touristy and crowded by this time business and it looked like literally everybody probably as usual when the museums open was ignoring the plane hanging low over the heads certainly on this really special anniversary….the staff didn’t register or know about today’s anniversary either…just another live for moment family day out……..
    …..”Top Of The Morning To You All”……’Ghost Flyer’…….

    3 users thanked author for this post.

    TiredOldHack2
    Participant

    I don’t know what makes me wince more: Americans who keep saying Lindbergh made the first non-stop Transatlantic crossing, or someone who uses ‘homages’ as a verb. 😉

    1 user thanked author for this post.

    Sorry…You started this retort!! and I’ve always enjoyed your BT contributions’ Hack Baby’……..Make up your mind Tired Old (Probably) Journalist…..I can think of many things that will make anyone ‘Wince’……feeling a bit let down, ‘Professional Hacking’ days have been usurped (Unfortunately In My Humble Opinion) by the rest of the general public ? Listen, I’m with you…. Apologies for my lack of Shakespearean English here Hack…. Your probably a major CEO or a Plumber and not the person holding the front page at all…Opps!….Anyway, but maybe your getting a last word in here describing your ‘Wincing Bout’ is really not about our American great friends or the Oxford dictionary but just because of my perceived ‘Slant’ towards the BT ‘Stockholm’ ‘Clique (Think About It) you could sense it couldn’t you rascal!!……Oh! Help! and that half smiling emoji thing tagged on to your little message that really spooked me and didn’t..er..placate the benign predicament that I think your ‘Wincing’ mind must have been in when you sent it to me….”Oh Hello Doctor don’t worry I’m just having a wince”…..where were we…Ah Yes…’Lindbergh Solo Flight Eight Years Later’ 1927….City to City
    …..That was another heroic feat this time by the USA…. Come on ‘Tired Old Hack’ we can’t all be “Fleet Streets Finest”……. and Yes… I’ve always loved your contributions on BT here as I said… ‘Ghost Flyer’…. that sounds cool doesn’t it ?


    cwoodward
    Participant

    I found this site interesting with a good deal of relevant factual information

    http://www.aviation-history.com/airmen/alcock.htm

    2 users thanked author for this post.

    …..Apologies for the ‘Retort ‘ last night by me to you ‘Tiredoldhack’ for your perceived criticism of my poor ‘Journalistic Skills’ you know, verbs and homage and all that, I tapped it out on the keyboard straight after my return home from a gruelling 12 hour Duty shift….and the next morning reflected on your fair criticism…..your probably more of a written prose expert than I will ever be…..keep contributing to BT……
    …..and vist the ‘London Science Museum’…….my Regards, AKa… ‘Ghost Flyer’……


    transtraxman
    Participant

    @TiredOldHack2 #943749

    As the offender who used “homages” as a verb I have to agree with you and apologise. During the last few posts I did not realise I was the culprit as I would not normally make that sort of mistake. I suppose it is the modern day influence of using verbs as nouns and nouns as verbs – a practice I detest.(Whatever happened to the Passive Voice in English?) e.g. “a new factory establishes in Derby” or “a new factory is established in Derby” – and so on.

    That said, I find much more grating, however, the misuse of “there, their and they´re”, “I should have done that” or “I should of done that”, the exclusive use of “there is”, when it should be “there are” in the plural, and the increasing practice of writing sentences without a subject, “Am happy with that” as against “I am happy with that”.

    I put this increased misuse of the language down to three things. 1) the school system encourages the use of communication even to the detriment of correction, 2) the obsession of the UK public with football where the experts/commentators are so frequently semi-literate ex-players who cannot put together two correct sentences, and 3) the strong influence of US TV programmes written by immigrants who have English as their second language or are second generation citizens who have been strongly influenced by their home uses of language. If you listen with a critical ear you can hear such misuse as ” He should´ve ran instead of walking”. There the use of the past form of the verb instead of the past participle (“run”) is a frequent occurrence at any level.

    This poster has been accused of being pedantic with the use of the language. I suppose I am but I come from an age of elocution lessons and solid English grammar in Infant as well as Junior school. These uses of the language make me cringe but who can roll back progress? To modern users of English I probably sound quaint, and I suppose I am.

    5 users thanked author for this post.

    capetonianm
    Participant

    I am also pedantic about correct use of English.

    Gr8s me 2 C stuff wrote in txtspk, like.

    I am not sure it should really be a concern here, not all of our contributors are native English speakers but their views and experiences are just as welcome and valid.

    1 user thanked author for this post.

    …..This post by you ‘Transtraxman/Tiredoldhack'(You have not got anymore names on here have you ?) is so valuable in content with the definitive way to set out the ‘Right’ formulations of words too suit the written context……I will print it off, keep it with me, learn it and certainly use it to enhance my on the spot duty reports that I have to write in situ wherever I am…..nowadays it seems people write just as they speak….’Like what I do Gvnor’…..Sorry….I am lapsing once again……but I can see you are a master of English prose and I take my hat off to you Tiredoldhack/Transtraxman….Apologies once again for my off the cuff answer to your reply late last night….you seem to be a good knowledgeable man of words….
    …..and I’m as English as they come………’Bow Bells and all that’!! …all the best and Thank you for all the comments here, Ghost Flyer!!

    …Just caught the replies as I left for another shift….


    cwoodward
    Participant

    Just my view.
    BUT
    Perhaps a little too much waffle chaps ?……..it’s not a tea WI party!

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