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A History of the Aeronautical Society's Flying Ground
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 04 July 2016
The year 1909 was certainly the Golden Age of aviation in Europe, but another year was to pass before practical flight became a reality in England. In this country in 1909 not only was the need felt for an efficient aeroplane, but a good flying ground was also lacking. The year saw three brave attempts to establish such a ground, those of Noel Pemberton Billing at Fambridge, the Aero Club at Shellbeach and the Aeronautical Society at Dagenham. Only at Shellbeach did any flights take place, and all of the grounds were to be abandoned as unsuitable by the end of the year because of their rough terrain. Of Fambridge and Shellbeach some history has been recorded, albeit not enough, but Dagenham has been sadly neglected, even in the Society's own histories. This paper is an attempt to rectify this omission.