Fifty years ago
MEMBERS of Parliament who were taken by the Ministry of Civil Aviation to see Heath Row aerodrome — or London Airport, as it is to be called henceforward — got back to Westmin- ster with slightly divided minds. The size of the aerodrome impressed them, and the various grounded machines aroused considerable interest. But the party had been told they would be shown the aerodrome from the air, and it was something of an anticlimax when the York which was to take them up in relays declined to leave the ground. This being apparently the only machine available at Heath Row, a substitute was hastily sent off from Croydon. It turned out to be a Dakota, which seated only fifteen (the visitors numbered over a hundred) and a Dakota gives a very poor view except for passengers who happen to be close to one of the small windows. I tell only what I have been told by one M.P., who came back in critical mood, feeling that the Ministry of Civil Aviation had a good deal to learn from the R.A.F. in the matter of efficiency.
The Spectator 29 March 1946
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