An Airman's Lost Letters

I made a long overdue visit to the Shuttleworth Collection recently, for their Shuttleworth Uncovered display. The Shuttleworth Collection has been on my radar for many years now, especially since we started this blog of Olivers letters. For this event there was a special Sopwith line up, and although none were flying, we were treated to several engine runs of the Brooklands Camels 130hp Cleget motor. To finally see this stubby little aeroplane close up was an amazing experience, but to smell the castor oil and hear the throaty roar of the motor was even better, and will stay with me for a very long time. And this is one of the last 10 Pup's built by the Sopwith Factory in 1919. They converted them into a two seaters and called them 'Doves'. Richard Shuttleworth acquired it in 1936 and converted it back into a single seat Pup. We had a fantastic afternoon at Old Warden, can't recommend a visit highly enough. Now planning my next visit ... Click here for t...