Avro 671 Autogiro, Thornaby RAF Station

t13116The date is probably pre-WWII as this particular plane (a Cierva C 30A) was used by Pathe to film the 1936 cup final from the air. The Redhill Flying Club instructor R.F Bulstrode flew this plane in the Isle of Man race in 1936.

Photograph and details courtesy of Cliff Thornton

4 thoughts on “Avro 671 Autogiro, Thornaby RAF Station

  1. Presumably the short time it was on the register implies that it crashed. Autogyros, in many respects are safer than helicopters, in that the blades of the autogyro will continue to rotate when the engine stops, with the aircraft descending downwards in a fairly controlled manner. However they do not have the flexibilty of the helicopter, being unable to hover or fly backwards and side ways.

  2. The autogyro was registered on the 7 February 1935 and withdrawn at Redhill on 10 January 1937 before being cancelled from the British civil aircraft register on the 7 March 1938 . Four examples still survive in UK aviation museums but ‘WZ was probably scrapped .

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