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Turbi G-APBO
rian. Following the interesting article on the early history of the three Druine Turbis in the last LA magazine, I thought readers might like to hear of the more recent activity of my Turbi G-APBO. I bought ‘BO in 1992 from Dave Silsbury, who had overhauled it and installed a Continental C-75 taken from his Pietenpol Aircamper. Tim Cox once told me of flying this Turbi south from Usworth, Sunderland behind a poorly performing Walter Mikron. I believe he fitted a Cirrus Minor briefly, but I do not know if it flew with this engine. There is an example flying with a Cirrus Minor in Australia. Over nearly 30 years I have flown 388 hours (airframe now 758 hours, engine now 623 hours) with very little other than routine servicing required. On one occasion a broken tail spring required a rudder repair, and a propeller was stolen – this latter event noticed when I went to start it! Neil Harrison of the TK group flew with me once and remarked how much livelier mine was than the Mikron powered ‘TK. But of course, the
C-75 does not give such an attractive nose shape as the in-line Mikron. I have flown her to France on five occasions and particularly enjoyed the welcome at RSA Blois 2012 and RSA Vichy 2013, but have never seen one of the French Turbis. At Blois, a French pilot got into a very animated conversation describing how he had flown with the leading edge slots blocked up and warned me never to try it. Why would anyone do that anyway? The advent of tablet navigation aids has hugely eased long trips in an open cockpit. On my earliest trips to France the cockpit walls were covered in scribblings of frequencies for alternates, grass runways available etc. Two noteworthy flights were landing in heavy rain in a field just North of Lewes, only for a passing walker to point out the farm strip a few fields away; and when, with you ahead in your Jodel in 1996, we used a tiny weather slot to depart Abbeville at 0545 to return to UK. It’s been a delight to own, often admired, often misidentified, but now sometimes passed over in favour of a less vigorous flight in my Jodel. Yours, Rupert Hibberd.
Turbis and atomisers
Dear Brian. The April issue of Light Aviation spurs me to send you a picture of one of the three Druine Turbis that you may not have seen. Dr Frank Roche of the Rutherglen Flying Group was a larger-than-life character and one hell of a great enthusiast. On several notable occasions he and, usually, one or two friends used to drive down from Glasgow in those pre-motorway days to discuss Turbi construction details. His visit would be accompanied by a bottle of whisky, which would be downed during our three-hour-plus discussion. At the end of it all, he would drive
Above The pavement outside a Glasgow tram works where Dr Frank Roche put the Rutherglen Group Turbi together.
Above Rupert Hibberd’s Turbi, which he has now owned for nearly 30 years, is still looking great! 10 | LIGHT AVIATION | May 2021
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March 2021 | LIGHT AVIATION | 9
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