History of Aviation in the Solent Area - 4

As the Spitfire was being unveiled at Eastleigh Airport in 1936 the Short Brothers at Rochester were constructing the first of the giant 'C' Class flying boats. The four-engined 'C' class was designed and built to operate out of Southampton, being sheltered water and at the base where the great liners plied the oceans from this Country all over the world. In the same year the Queen Mary sailed from Southampton on her maiden voyage. The irony is that the 'C' class flying boat would actually spell the demise eventually of the great liners. Once operational the 'C' class flying boats created many records and reduced the travelling time across the British Empire from approximately six weeks to six days, the main task being to carry the mail.

In 1938 a 'C' class flying boat crossed the Atlantic Ocean carrying passengers non-stop, heralding the new dawn of aviation. The Second World War however brought a temporary halt to this advancement. The 'C' Class flying boats were built alongside a military version which became the Sunderland spouting gun turrets and bomb racks. These aircraft were used in Coastal Command for air sea rescue and submarine hunting. The local area became crucial for military operations. Calshot in Southampton Water which had previously had an interesting aircraft history became the home to Squadrons of Sunderlands from the Royal Air Force.

By 1940 the area was at fever pitch with the production, development and operation of all sorts of fighting aircraft. The industry was now employing thousands of technicians and engineers. Cunliffe Owen which had originally been set up at Eastleigh Airport to design and build aircraft were now carrying out war work which mainly consisted of the assembly of American aircraft which had been brought through Southampton docks. Airspeed of Portsmouth were building the Oxford twin engined trainer aircraft and the large wooden gliders used by the Army. By 1940 production of the Spitfires at Woolston was at full capacity. This was now an open-ended order for the aircraft to replace many of which were lost during the Battle of Britain.

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