ISSUE 3 – SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2014 – FREE
Ludlow’s golden boy of geology Glass sculpting Behind the scenes at Rickards London to Ludlow with Aubrey King-size figures from the Furniture Scheme Organic living Holidaying in Borth Riding for the disabled
“What David and Rick hadn’t realised was that their grandfather had been harbouring pieces from an old WWI aircraft in his shed.” on the day I meet David, a man with an extremely busy schedule, the sun is hazy and the Shropshire weather muggy and stifling. I spot him immediately, a tall, rangy, elegant man wearing a rather natty Indiana Jones hat and a twinkle in his eye. As we talk over coffee, his energy and enthusiasm is boundless. Despite the fact that his daughter is due to give birth at any moment, he spends hours with me, poring over photographs, taking me on a whirlwind tour to see the nearly finished plane and talking at a hugely entertaining rate of knots about everything from early cars and experimental technology to his encounters with aerobatic pilots.
David’s passion for aircraft began at a very early age – his mother used to delight in recalling how, in his pram, he was always pointing at the planes going overhead. From there he graduated to Airfix kits before going on to building a microlight with his brother, Rick. Since then, he’s built and flown hang gliders and light aircraft, become the chairman of the BMAA (The British Microlight Aircraft Association) and was, until recently, the editor of Microlight Flying Magazine. Building his grandfather’s plane though was always going to be a deeply personal and challenging project. With David based in
Shropshire, Rick in Worcestershire and friend Theo Willford in Dorset, the job has been a huge undertaking and has seen them travel all over the world (via the US and New Zealand) to make their dream come true. As David confesses, “It’s more than a labour of love, it’s been an obsession.” David was 33 when his grandfather died and, like the rest of the family, he was more than familiar with tales of great exploits during WW1 from regular visits to his grandparents, who lived just half an hour away from the family home. Continued on page 20 >
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