Project to honour aviation legend takes off

Inderdeep Bains • Published 13 Mar 2009 13:00 0 Comments

A PROJECT to honour Windsor's aviation legend Sir Sydney Camm has been launched with the help of big wigs from the UK aerospace industry.

A reception was held in Windsor on Wednesday to mark the official launch of the Sir Sydney Camm Commemorative Society's (SSCCS) memorial projects which will see a full size replica Hawker Hurricane placed in Alexandra Gardens and a bursary scheme in the name of the great designer established for budding aeronautical engineers.

In keeping with the town's historic links with aviation, the reception was held at New Lodge, which was used as a landing strip on the inaugural test flight of Britain's first ever Air Mail service in 1911 between Hendon and Windsor.

During a short presentation outlining the aims of the projects, Captain John Foster, who had the experience of flying the Hawk, Hunter and Harrier emphasised the importance of inspiring the UK's potential young aeronautical engineers.

He said: "If we could discover one student, just one, who had half the talent of Sir Sydney, then we would be delighted. We aim to help young people and an industry in bad need of home grown talent -

it's a win-win situation."

The society hopes that the £50,000 required for the Hurricane and £250,000 minimum required for the bursary can be raised relatively quickly, despite the current economic conditions.

To coincide with the launch, a website outlining the projects' aims has also gone live enabling people to find out more and how to donate. Captain Foster said: "Sir Sydney's Hurricane helped define a pivotal moment in this country's history. We couldn't have won the Battle of Britain without it. It's a shame that its taken almost half a century for us to try and repay that contribution. We would ask potential donors to give generously."

Details about the project and how to donate can be found on www.sirsydneycamm.org

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This article appeared in Royal Borough Observer 13 Mar 09

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