Page 22 - Cranwell Photographs

Above left: The Cranwell Light Aeroplane Club was formed by staff and pupils of the college in 1923 under the guidance of Flt Lt Nicholas Comper. The club's first aeroplane, the CLA 2 (the CLA 1 only reached the design stage) - competed in the 1924 Lympne Light Plane Trials and, flown by its designer, Flt Lt Comper, won the reliability trial. Encouraged by their success, the Club decided to enter the 1925 Trials with a new aircraft. Comper's design for the CLA 3 was for a single seat parasol monoplane seen here. Powered by a 32 hp Bristol Cherub engine the aircraft had a top speed of 100 mph and won the International Speed race. In 1926 the aircraft was entered in the King's Cup Air Race but had to force land due to engine trouble. It was scrapped in 1929.
Top: Aerial view of the south airfield taken in 1924. The Lighter Than Air Section had already gone but the original road leading to it, still in use today and now called Lighter Than Air Road, can be seen to the right of the picture. The F-type hangars are conspicuous in the foreground.
Above right: The CLA 4 was unusual in that it was a biplane with an inverted sesquiplane layout, the upper wing being shorter and narrower than the bottom wing. The club decided to build two CLA 4s and both were entered for the 1926 Lympne Trials. G-EBPB was completed with a Cherub engine and flew in the Trials but was eliminated with a damaged undercarriage. It did fly in various other events before being scrapped in 1933. The second aircraft, G-EBPC, was unable to compete in the trials because of a lack of engine; it crashed in March 1927.
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