Flight to be marked

The original on display at the Caledonian Ground, Dunedin, on September 7, 1910.
The original on display at the Caledonian Ground, Dunedin, on September 7, 1910.
Croyden Aircraft Company owner Colin Smith, of Mandeville, in a replica Pither 1910 monoplane,...
Croyden Aircraft Company owner Colin Smith, of Mandeville, in a replica Pither 1910 monoplane, which will take to the skies to mark the centenary of the original's first flight at Oreti beach, near Invercargill. Photo by Stephen Jaquiery.

An aircraft replica painstakingly built by studying photographs published in the Otago Witness is set to fly next month to mark the centenary of the original craft's first flight.

Herbert Pither, a former professional cyclist and inventor, built the Pither 1910 monoplane, which he is believed to have flown on Oreti beach, near Invercargill, in 1910.

With no reliable eyewitnesses to corroborate his claims of flight, Mr Pither seemed destined to fade into obscurity, before Colin Smith, of Mandeville, stepped in.

The Croyden Aircraft Company owner said he was determined to replicate the aircraft based on Mr Pither's account and was helped by photos from the Otago Witness, which showed the aircraft being admired by a large crowd at the Caledonian Grounds in Dunedin.

"Without these photos, we would not have been able to attempt the project."

Every detail of the aircraft was studied, sketched and painstakingly reconstructed in the belief the aircraft could achieve flight.

In February 2005, after a test run to check if the aircraft was stable, the replica Pither 1910 monoplane achieved flight at the Mandeville airfield on only its second run.

Since that time, the Pither had flown eight times, and would be in the air again at the annual Mandeville Fly-in on the weekend of February 20-21.

Mr Smith said he had hoped the aircraft would be flown along Oreti beach to mark the centenary, but it was decided for safety reasons to fly at Mandeville.

The centenary flight was also attracting interest from the Pither family, with descendants from as far afield as Australia, where Mr Pither moved to following his flying attempts, expected to attend, he said.

- hamish.mcneilly@odt.co.nz

 

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