Hall Caine Airport

Origins

The flat surrounding area made an ideal location for an airfield. Originally the site was known as Close Lake Airfield, due to it occupying land on Close Lake Farm which itself was part of the estate of Sir Thomas Henry Hall Caine and was tenanted by John Brew. It comprised a field of approximately 30 acres affording a take off length of approximately 400 yards.

A small number of light aircraft had made use of the flat landing field situated on the Isle of Man's northern plain during the early 1930s, primarily these were aircraft visiting the Isle of Man for the TT Races. The first recorded passenger flight took place from Close Lake Airfield on Tuesday 11 October 1932, when a De Havilland Fox Moth, G-ABVI, owned by Hillman's Airways and piloted by H. W. Easdown arrived at the airfield following a flight from Romford Aerodrome via Stanley Park Aerodrome (Blackpool), touching down at Close Lake just after 13:00hrs. After a short stay the aircraft departed with the two passengers (Mrs. A. E. London of Leytonstone - bound for London and Mrs. G. P. Crellin of Ramsey - bound for Blackpool).However both lady passengers had a far from uneventful flight. Strong winds were encountered on the journey and the pilot was unable to land at Blackpool. Continuing through lowering cloud and freshening winds they eventually landed near Haddon Hall in Derbyshire, due to a shortage of fuel.

The sporadic use of Close Lake continued into 1933, a further documented flight was that of a DH.80A Puss Moth which arrived on January 21st, 1933, its passenger visiting the island to undertake some shooting on the Glen Auldyn Estate.Another arrival was at the end of April, the aircraft ferrying a family to the Isle of Man from Blackpool and then proceeding to take a party of local people including the Ramsey Harbour Master, together with John Brew and his son (the tenants of Close Lake Farm) on a pleasure flight around the locality.

Development

By the early summer of 1934 Close Lake Airfield was being seriously considered as an aerodrome for the Isle of Man. A two aerodrome concept was to be the favoured, with Close Lake serving the north of the island and Ronaldsway serving the south. Close Lake's superior weather record over Ronaldsway was made apparent in June when eight aircraft landed on the airfield, six of them carrying passengers, as a consequence of being unable to land at Ronaldsway due to fog.Three of the aircraft belonged to West Coast Air Services, then engaged in operations from Ronaldsway and operating in connection with the TT Races, whilst the others were operated by Midland & Scottish Air Ferries and one was a private aircraft on charter to the Daily Mail.

During July 1934, a local architect, Joseph Teare, was given the task of surveying the site at Close Lake and on conclusion his findings were forwarded to the Air Ministry. The fact that the north of the island was largely the favoured site for an Isle of Man Aerodrome had also been borne out by Sir Alan Cobham, who had identified in the region of six suitable sites between Ballaugh and the Point of Ayre during an earlier survey.This was followed in early August 1934 when Derwent Hall Caine flew into Close Lake and also undertook a thorough survey of the main landing area as well as the surrounding fields.

On behalf of the Air Ministry, Wing Commander Allen, the son-in-law of a former Lieutenant Governor of the Isle of Man, Sir Claude Hill, visited Close Lake Airfield on 20 August in order to verify the findings of Teare.

The findings were favourable and the Lieutenant Governor duly granted a temporary civil licence for an aerodrome on Close Lake Farm to Derwent Hall Caine in August 1934.The licence was granted for 45 acres although at that time the landing site consisted of 30 acres. However, there were plans to introduce an additional 23 acres to the landing ground. The temporary operating licence was replaced by a permanent licence granted by the Air Ministry in September.

During September a programme of improvements were undertaken at Close Lake Airfield, part of which consisted of the distribution of 400 tons of silt taken from the bed of the Sulby River, the silt used for filling in purposes.In addition the landing ground was equipped with a Nissen type hangar (measuring 60ft x 30ft), a petrol pump and a telephone (Kirk Andreas 7).

Close Lake was seen as a better suited site for the development of an aerodrome than that at Ronaldsway. The attributes at Close Lake included it being only three miles from rail and sea communication and eight minutes drive from Ramsey. In addition Close Lake was said to occupy a better surface, the short folds in the land had been filled in as stated, the site possessed no obstruction for aircraft landing into the direction of the prevailing (southwesterly) wind and the land could be easily drained. One short-coming which was identified however, was Close Lake Airfield's proximity to high ground approximately one mile to the southeast in the shape of Skyhill. In comparison, the land at Ronaldsway was regarded as being uneven with the large folds in the surface which required filling in. In Ronaldsway's favour was its closer proximity to the island's capital, Douglas (25 minutes drive as opposed to Close Lake which was 45 minutes drive), although as early as 1934 Ronaldsway's susceptibility to sea mist and fog had been identified.

In late September 1934 a deputation from Railway Air Services and accompanied by the Tynwald Aerodrome Committee visited the Isle of Man with a view to identifying a suitable landing ground for operations. Three sites, including Ronaldsway, were visited in the south of the island, and the deputation concluded their visit at Close Lake.

An air mail service was inaugurated in August 1934 by Railway Air Services, but ceased in late September. The main reason cited was an unsuitable landing ground for winter operations, Ronaldsway deemed not up to the required standard, and whilst Close Lake was deemed suitable with regard to the load bearing of the ground it was considered too small to handle the size of aircraft used for the contract.

Hall Caine Aerodrome

Both Sir Thomas Henry Hall Caine's sons, Gordon Hall Caine and Derwent Hall Caine, were particularly keen on the development of an aerodrome on the site, as they saw it as another bit of the island as being associated with their late father. They were said to be extremely interested in the progress of the Isle of Man and in particular its transport infrastructure. They also wished to include Ramsey's municipal authority in the project, as they were both of the opinion that the aerodrome would bring immense benefit to the town.

At the time there was talk of linking the aerodrome with another landing ground at The Strang, just outside Douglas, but this was discounted by Derwent Hall Caine as the problems of converting it into a licensed aerodrome were too great. However, as part of the development at Close Lake Airfield, arrangements for the conveyance of passengers to other parts of the island were undertaken.

Construction

Further work on improving the area began in early April 1935, when Derwent Hall Caine landed his Leopard Moth at Close Lake, in order to oversee some of the work. Staying at the Mitre Hotel Ramsey, the intention of his visit was to make the numerous arrangements necessary prior to the commencement of the regular air service between the aerodrome and Stanley Park Aerodrome (Blackpool).

Various tasks were undertaken. The removal of hedges and fences, the leveling of ground and the addition of extra land to the north and west of the site. This led to a take off run available of 800 yards in all directions and increased the area of the airfield to 70 acres.

Amongst the ambitious plans envisaged by Derwent Hall Caine was the inclusion of the airfield as part of an air network running the length of the country from Jersey and staging through numerous destinations including Close Lake, terminating at Campbeltown.

Although the work on transforming the field had not been completed, Hall Caine was nonetheless satisfied with the state of the airfield. Although heavy rain had fallen, the surface had stood up to the wheels of a motorcar, which had made no impression on the ground. This was considered a pretty good test for the aerodrome, for if the wheels had of sunk into the ground then evidently it would have been impossible to operate aircraft of any notable size.

In an interview with the Ramsey Courier Derwent Hall Caine stated that from the introduction of air services, the site was to be known as Hall Caine Manx Airport. This was subsequently changed to the Hall Caine Airport, Ramsey.With all parties duly satisfied, Hall Caine Airport officially came into being on April 30, 1935.

1935

On completion of the expansion, Aircraft Exchange and Mart became the lessees of the aerodrome as scheduled services were about to commence.Mr. W Thurgood of United Airways Limited along with several other members of his management, visited Hall Caine Airport in early April. Satisfied with the standard of the aerodrome, Thurgood announced that a skeleton service between the mainland and the island was to be introduced immediately, and this in turn was to be upgraded to a full scheduled service beginning in May.The occasion was marked by an official ceremony at Stanley Park, those in attendance included Sir Philip Sassoon, Alderman J. Skillicorn (Mayor of Douglas), the Mayor of Carlisle, Sir Kingsley Wood and Derwent Hall Caine.

Whitehall Securities Ltd, owners of United Airways Ltd and their sister airline Spartan Air Lines began to build on their fledgling operation, introducing a schedule from London via Stanley Park Aerodrome (Blackpool), Hall Caine and then onwards to Dublin (Collinstown).

By mid May the United Airways service between Hall Caine and Blackpool was operating four times a day and twice daily to Crosby-on-Eden, Carlisle, using Spartan Cruisers. Another service was started by Northern Airways Ltd and operated in conjunction with United Airways. Northern's owner, Mr George Nicholson, had formed Northern and Scottish Airways Ltd. at Newcastle with a view of developing routes to the Hebrides and the Western Isles. However, on 17 May 1935, N.S.A. commenced a service from Glasgow (Renfrew) Airport to Hall Caine, operating Fridays, Saturdays and Mondays, using a De Havilland Dragon. The maiden scheduled flight between Renfrew and Hall Caine captured the headlines by setting a record between the Glasgow and the Isle of Man of 50 minutes, the flight having Mr. Nicholson and several representatives of the Scottish press on board. Initially the Glasgow service operated three times weekly, but by early July it had peaked at twice daily.

The Manx headquarters of the operation were situated at Hall Caine with Captain Oscar Garden, a renowned aviator who had made what was described as a "sensational" flight from England to Australia in 1930 appointed by United Airways to supervise the flying operation.William Goudie was engaged as Traffic Officer, tasked with overseeing the ground operation. During an inspection at the aerodrome by the local police on May 7th, it was found that petrol was being stored without the required licence for the storage of dangerous goods, resulting in Goudie receiving a small fine.

A busy day of operations occurred at the end of May when 78 passengers were landed from London, Blackpool and Glasgow; of which 42 had flown across to watch the 1935 Mannin Moar. This was also the day when Hall Caine received its first "celebrity passenger" as amongst those was George Formby who combined his visit with the Mannin Moar as well as the preparation for his film No Limit.

The fact that the Spartan Cruiser was designed with three engines instead of two, was the cornerstone of the company's advertising of their service across the Irish Sea - although they were to later use both De Havilland Dragons and Rapides, which were twin-engined aircraft.

Of the four services operated, one originated from Stanley Park Aerodrome (Blackpool) and carried on to Crosby-on-Eden, Carlisle, while the other three started from Speke Airport, Liverpool, and came via Blackpool.

As United Airways Ltd. also flew from Heston Aerodrome, London to Stanley Park Aerodrome (Blackpool) twice daily, it was possible to connect London with Hall Caine.Connections via London (Heston) were also available to the Isle of Wight and Jersey.

In the summer of 1935, United took delivery of an Armstrong Whitworth Argosy from Imperial Airways who had used the type on the Middle East routes from the early 1920s. The aircraft used by United was a Mk 2 version built in 1929. Registered G-AACJ and named City of Manchester, it was powered by three 420 h.p. Armstrong Siddeley Jaguar IV engines, and its steel-tubed fuselage offered commodious accommodation for those days. The aircraft was converted to carry 28 passengers for pleasure flights around Blackpool, but it was also to be a frequent visitor to Hall Caine when traffic demanded. Nothing quite like it had been seen on the Isle of Man up to that time, and it attracted a lot of attention when it circled twice over Douglas before making its first visit to Hall Caine.

Hall Caine Airport's traffic peaked over the August Bank Holiday, 1935, with 16 arrivals carrying a total of 112 passengers. This compared to 32 arrivals at Ronaldsway with 376 passengers over the same period.

A daily service to Glasgow was maintained during October and November by which time the Glasgow route had covered 54,000 miles, carrying 1,957 passengers and 19.9 tons of freight. Also in October a service was inaugurated between London, Blackpool, Hall Caine and Belfast.

Blackpool and West Coast Air Services resumed the air mail service from February to October 1935. From 1 November, United Airways secured the main contract from the Post Office which was then passed on to their subsidiary Northern and Scottish as a result of a round of amalgamations which took place at the end of 1935.

United Airways Ltd was wholly amalgamated with Spartan Air Lines and Hillman's Airways, and the three names were replaced with British Airways Ltd. This company was to join Imperial Airways in 1940 thus forming the British Overseas Airways Corporation.

As the mail service continued, the Post Office insisted that all air mail letters from Douglas and the south of the Island were to be handled at Ronaldsway, while the mail from Ramsey and the north was to be collected at Hall Caine. This meant a connecting flight between the two airports.

1936

The beginning of 1936 saw heavy rain falling across the Isle of Man and the aerodrome was subjected to some flooding in early January.

In the summer of 1936 Northern and Scottish, now acting for British Airways Ltd., were operating the following routes involving Hall Caine: Glasgow (twice daily by the end of September); Liverpool - Blackpool (two or three flights a day); Belfast and Carlisle (daily).

The mail link between Hall Caine and Ronaladsway also offered limited passenger availability. The service departed Hall Caine on weekday mornings at 07:00hrs, returning from Ronaldsway at 09:20, with a one-way ticked costing 5 shillings and a return 7 shillings and six pence.

At this time a scheduled bus service from Douglas was introduced, allowing passengers to connect at regular intervals with services from Hall Caine. The service departed the Central Bus Station in Douglas, calling at the Sefton Hotel and the Villa Marina. The service continued on to Parliament Square, Ramsey prior to arriving at Hall Caine.

A busy day was recorded on Saturday July 18, when 160 passengers were landed at the airport.

Floods again affected the area of the Sulby River in July causing the river to break its banks. However operations from the aerodrome were unaffected.This did however lead to the further dredging of the Lough Molla and Close Chairn watercourses in Lezayre, thus reducing the potential of future flooding.

George Formby returned to Hall Caine at the beginning of August. He arrived from Blackpool in a privately chartered aircraft with a party of friends in order to undertake some sightseeing.

In the first two weeks of August Hall Caine handled 1,200 passengers, some of whom were passengers of Railway Air Services whose Ronaldsway services were affected by fog. Again Hall Caine's weather record proved its worth at the end of August when it was again able to offer itself as a suitable weather alternate for Ronaldsway, which was again affected by coastal fog.

The summer of 1936 also saw a record time set for a flight between Hall Caine and Ronaldsway. A mail flight, piloted by Capt. Wilson flying a British Airways Dragon Rapide with the assistance of a substantial tail wind, is reported to of made the flight in a time of six minutes. The ground speed attained on the flight is reported to of reached 259 mph in what were reported to have been perfect conditions,

Further records were established at the end of September for flight times to and from Hall Caine. The first was on September 26, when Capt. Ramsay, in command of a British Airways Spartan Cruiser covered the 72 nautical miles from Carlisle to Hall Caine in 27 minutes from take off to touchdown. This was followed by a new record between Glasgow and Hall Caine, when Capt. Hankins recorded a time of 39 minutes for the 110 nautical mile sector.

Scheduled services intermingled with charter operations, one such being arranged for members of Douglas Borough Council who visited Belfast in order to arrange the purchase some horses for the Douglas Bay Horse Tramway.

For the autumn of 1936 and into the winter of 1936/7 there was a daily Liverpool - Blackpool - Hall Caine - Belfast - Glasgow service. In the preceding seven months to the end of 1936, 7,000 passengers had been landed at Hall Caine Airport. Spartan Cruisers, Dragons and Rapides were employed with an occasional visit from the Argosy though the latter was becoming increasingly expensive to maintain and was de-registered at the end of 1936. It was also during the latter part of 1936 that a Tynwald Committee were looking into the viability of installing RDF at Ronaldsway and in addition were also considering the same for Hall Caine.

An article by Mr John Swann in the B.E.A. Magazine (July 1956) vividly recalls a spell of duty during September 1936 at Hall Caine when he was standing in for Mr J.W.S. Spinner, the station Superintendent, who was on leave. The Station at that time had an engineer, Mr D.L. Robertson, and two members of staff on air traffic control duty, Mr A. Kelly and Mr C. Collister.

1937

In 1937, Northern and Scottish cancelled all services to Hall Caine with the exception of the Glasgow route. In fact, the name of Northern and Scottish was set to disappear when Whitehall Securities amalgamated all their Scottish interests into Scottish Airways Ltd on 12 August 1937. After this, Hall Caine was not to be used for scheduled services again.

Flying School

In August 1935, the first flying school on the Isle of Man was set up at Hall Caine Airport operated by Aircraft Exchange and Mart. There was an initial difficulty in sourcing adequate training aircraft due to the government's Air Expansion Programmehowever an aircraft was procured and as part of the operation an additional hangar was constructed in order to accommodate the training aircraft, a Puss Moth. The Chief Flying Instructor was Flight lieutenant R. Duncanson, an experienced instructor with over 20 years flying experience and who had come from a previous position at the London Air Park. The instruction was carried out initially on the Puss Moth and this was subsequently joined by a Spartan Three Seater. At this time Hall Caine Airport was the only airfield on the Isle of Man which was licensed to carry out flying instructionoffering tuition towards the qualification for a pilot's A Licence.

Another source of revenue was pleasure flights. Aircraft Exchange and Mart quickly realised the potential and the pleasure flights proved popular during the summer months.Keen to publicise the opportunities at Hall Caine, Flt Lt. Duncanson took to the skies in Lord Patrick Stuart's Hendy Hobo and performed a series of aerobatics over Ramsey Bay.

Demise

Following the cessation of scheduled services there were a few private visitors, until the coming of war in 1939. The fact that Hall Caine Airport was 20 miles from the main centre of Douglas was not in its favour and, as the Ramsey Courier of the day sadly observed, "with many airlines trying to make ends meet, there was bound to be contractions of services".

On the other hand, Mr. William Lambden in his work, The Manx Transport Systems makes reference to the fact that the Isle of Man Road Services Ltd. had carried over 10,000 passengers on their special airport route from Hall Caine to Douglas during the 1936-37 period.

Location

One of the attributes of having an airfield on the northern plain of the Isle of Man is the weather record and this proved favourable for Hall Cain Airport.

The northern plain of the Isle of Man has always enjoyed a better weather record than that of the south where Ronaldsway Airport is situated.

Because of its coastal location, fog is a particular problem at Ronaldsway with certain wind directions, and mainly affects the airport during the summer months. During the operational life of Hall Caine Airport there was much friendly rivalry between the crews of the airlines flying to the Isle of Man, and opportunities to gain extra revenue were always welcome. From its earliest days Close Lake had been a convenient diversionary airfield for aircraft flying to Ronaldsway; initially taking the form of private aircraft but increasingly commercial operators could rely on Hall Caine being able to offer itself as a suitable alternate. This occurred on numerous occasions with Hall Caine accepting the mail flight when it was unable to land at Ronaldsway. Another instance occurred on Tuesday 6 August 1935, when a West Coast Air Service aircraft from London was unable to land at Ronaldsway and subsequently diverted to Hall Caine. When Ronaldsway was "out" due to bad weather, N.S.A. staff were quick to suggest that passengers get a refund and fly with them to Hall Caine which never suffered from fog. From the period of June to September 1936, there was total of 39 diversions from Ronaldsway Airport to Hall Caine as a consequence of fog affecting the south of the island.

Subsequent use

The airfield was again used, albeit briefly, by a local Gliding club in the 1990s, but they relocated to Andreas airfield.

Accidents and incidents