Tracey Curtis-Taylor

[mikehallam]

There's a running debate on Pprune on this honoured lady pilot which seems to show beyond reasonable doubt that her achievement flying solo to Australia was not true as she in her publicity claimed, nor without modern instruments. Nearly all was flown with an accomplished male pilot in the front seat. The Daily Mail may be a bit of a rag but had a full page expose on her 'cheating' claims at the week-end.

I know she must have convinced the LAA of her prowess, got a write up and also several awards elsewhere. I am therefore surprised that no-one in the LAA openly admits to having read Pprune, or having done so hasn't mentioned it here.

It worries me it's not been raised on our forum: am I really the only LAA member to wonder what the LAA membership and management opinions are now ?

Leaving it hidden is IMHO, a slur on honest LAA pilots and on the genuine achievements of the trail blazers.

mike hallam.

[Trevor Harvey]

Mike.
The long running threads on Prune and Flyer forums were getting more and more heated and repetitive to the point of becoming slanderous. To start another one here seemed pointless to me as it is really up to the powers that be to make themselves aware of the truth. Personally I would think that anyone interested in aviation would have been aware of the truth, but being a rather small world they may have found themselves up against relatively high office and open to criticism for joining in what at first seemed a witch hunt. Excuse the pun!
Once the media get a grip of the story we may find that she has done more harm than good for the female pilot community.
She should have the awards and accolades rescinded publicly in my opinion, but that would require someone in management admitting to a mistake.

[Chris Martyr]

Oh Gawd No ! ! Please not on here .
Mike , I am sure I've seen your name before on the 'red/yellow' forum , where the real experts have just about gnawed this one to the bone.
We tend to be pleasantly devoid on this forum of the 'chit-chat' type background noyz that seems to afflict the others , even though, having said that , I have occasionally lobbed the odd Molotov cocktail into the FF bear-baiting arena , just out of pure mischief really !
Also, I'm sure that everyone , everywhere , aviation people and now , non-aviation people have now heard of this darn woman.
Hopefully , Herr Gritsch will re-build his once beautiful Stearman and send her packing ! OK , the crash may not have been her fault , but poor old Ewald has been made to look a bit of a wazzukk , thanks to this dame and her uncontrollable ego.
Trace,,,the games up luv .

[Ian Melville]

I've not seen the PPrune thread, but I have no wish for a repeat of the Flyer threads here. I am quite sure our top bass know the groundswell of feeling.

BTW has been discussed before, by the instigator of the DM article no less, http://services.lightaircraftassociatio ... tis#p22775

[2greens1red]

It might be worth reading the recent statement on her own website:

I, and the Bird in a Biplane Team believe it is helpful to respond to some commentary appearing in the press about whether the flight expeditions undertaken in 2013-2016 were flown solo or in company.

For the avoidance of doubt, I have always been the sole pilot of Spirit of Artemis.

In planning the expedition through Africa in 2013 there was an initial hope of a solo flight in the beautiful & original 1942 Boeing Stearman.

However, in the early stages of the flight this concept was intentionally and officially dropped as I and the Bird in a Biplane Team brought our flight planning and logistics increasingly in-house and the expedition evolved into a much bigger opportunity to extend the program with documentary filming, an extensive outreach program involving different charities along the route and sharing the experience of open cockpit flying with others.

I am deeply disappointed at the comments coming from a particular source making false assertions that my flight expeditions should have been executed as solo flights. They were not. They are all about a collaborative team effort and celebrating the brilliant achievements of women like Amy Johnson and Lady Heath who made history when aviation was in its infancy.

Tracey Curtis-Taylor
http://www.birdinabiplane.com

[Paul Catanach]

Coincidentally I emailed Steve Slater about this last week (he was out of the office) and I await his/the LAA's reply with interest.

To allow her to keep the Bill Woodhams award would be an endorsement of her behaviour, something I (an LAA member) object to very strongly. There are enough charlatans, fantasists, liars, Walts and thieves in aviation without us being seen to encourage them.

[Ian Hoolahan]

In a way it is strange that people think this discussion should not extend here but it is ok for Pprune and Flyer, AFAIK Pprune and Flyer have not given any awards whearas the LAA has and so actually more appropriate here.

[Paul Catanach]

I think some people simply don't want to read about it here because the topic has been discussed so much on the other sites. The answer is simple, just don't read the thread.

I agree that it is a subject for the LAA forum for the reason that 'we' gave the award.

[Brian Hope]

Mike, if you want to know what the opinions of the management of the LAA are then maybe you should ask them directly. I find the image of the board huddled around their computers all weekend following a Pprune thread rather amusing, I presume you believe they have nothing better to do with their time. The CEO and the Chairman just happen to have been at Aero Expo, meeting members and promoting the LAA to a wider audience, so maybe they can be excused for not being au fait with the up to the minute tittle tattle.
Not being management, I don't spend my time reading Pprune, nor even the FLYER forum on a regular basis, although I am aware the TC-T issue. Driven by Sam Rutherford with a passion that verges on obsession, his personal vendetta says as much about him as it does TC-T. Naturally he has done his best to drag LAA into the mainstream media mire but maybe now the world is a better place for the story having been aired in that most prestigious of British newspapers, the Mail (and no I don't read that either), he will consider his vital work done.
I do not condone TC-T's behaviour in any shape or form, she has been disingenuous, but to the best of my knowledge she hasn't killed or even maimed anybody, and in a world filled with death, misery and childish parliamentarians, I do wonder why there those that believe she deserves a place on the all-time list of the world's most heinous people.
For my part I published a story in Light Aviation about TC-T’s Cape to Goodwood flight about two years ago, long before any of the recriminations started. It was published in good faith and I'm afraid there is no magic potion that can undo that.
Likewise the Bill Woodhams Trophy was presented in good faith, also well before any of the current brouhaha. Whether that decision will be reconsidered I know not, if it is then news of it will be relayed via the magazine and the website. Likewise, if the management decides to make a statement on the matter, that too will be reported – though they may well have to drag themselves away from the machinations of the aviation forums.
Rgds, Brian.

[mikehallam]

Well obviously, Brian, two years ago all the lady's claims were accepted in good faith, hence awards and favourable press articles. Who could have expected this unpleasant turn of events, however spitefully or not the facts have emerged has no bearing on their validity.

Recent forum activity etc. has made her amend her claims: 'solo' has morphed into the almost as duplicitous 'sole' pilot ! Having deeply lied once even that's in doubt.

The purposes of this forum, inter alia, are to express and obtain views, so a valid place to write.

In fact it already worked to gather other members info. I've rapidly learnt that I'm not alone in my concern, that this forum had had a 'thread' here in May & someone has already written to the LAA. So no need for me to replicate it & bang another off to our Chairman, who I observe does look in here - and why not ?

How's that for the power of this facility ?

mikehallam.

[Peter Gorman]

I met TC-T at Stellenbosch Airport in 2011, when she was looking there for a Stearman to fly to England. Frankly, based on my impressions then, I am not too surprised at what has emerged recently ......

[Chris Martyr]

Hopefully, this self obsessed female will disappear into the ether now that it's all come down to earth with a bit of a bang. Perhaps she can go and do a bit of 'Inspirational Speaking' to Lewis Hamilton and get herself up onto the podium in F1. The bullshyyte industry is one of massive capacity and the opportunities are everywhere.
Only problem is , the "opportunities" tend to be on very short term contracts , and the aviation contract I think is well and truly terminated.
Even she can't have the audacity to try and drag this out even further, and if she is daft enough to attempt it , then I'm sure that the Daily Mail's 'aviation correspondent' will be more than willing to help her along , especially now that she is getting the true recognition that she so fully deserves.

But we're now starting to see people who are trying to "go after" the LAA , demanding explanations and apologies and even a handing back of the Bill Woodhams award . Yeah great ,,and if a bit of public humiliation can be thrown in too , then all the better !
Well , that would show the LAA in a really positive spirit wouldn't it ! OK , she wasn't quite as deserving of the award as was thought at the time , and it probably was a minor error on their part.

But WOW,,,what a wonderful thing it is to have 20/20 hindsight !
Just let it go OK . Life's too bloody short for petty acts of 'revenge' . Sywell 2016 is just around the corner and I'm sure that the award winners will all be truly deserving folk.
Or does the LAA have to check out character references, background checks , CRB records.........

Stop Press...Stop Press..This years Pooleys Sword winner has been voided due to being caught scrumping apples when he was 12 .
There's been enough mass-debating over Tracey on those other forums [ sorry] let's not bring this one down to their level [ or perhaps I already have]
And the cloak and dagger merchants can sling their hook as well !

[Paul Catanach]

Chris.


I think we all agree now that TCT pulled the wool over our eyes and is getting her just desserts (or desert if you count the latest crash). I disagree with you on the question of withdrawing the awards though. Not because I want to point the finger at the LAA or any other organisation but simply because she was given the awards for something it turned out she did not do.

There's no shame in admitting we've been had and it sends out the message that doing right is right.

[Harry Hopkins]

Paul,

You're making the assumption that she only got the award because it was thought she had flown solo.

To fly such a distance in the sometimes unpredictable weather and over so much inhospitable territory in a slow, open cockpit aircraft is still a significant endeavour.

Best wishes,

Harry

[Chris Martyr]

she was given the awards for something it turned out she did not do. .

I do of course see exactly what you mean here Paul, but she did actually make those flights . Albeit not quite so meritoriously as she would have liked us all to believe though.
I'm sure that she would love to be seen as a latter day Amy Johnson ! Hhmmm,, unfortunately , she's about as much Amy Johnson as Dame Edna Everage .
But as far as the LAA award goes . She received it for what they perceived at the time was deserved and to my mind , they did no wrong .
But,,,if she reckons that she'll get an award in 2016 though ,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,