Westlands and the general Strike
Westlands Delivers the news
Westland's answer to newspaper distribution interrupted by the 1926 General Strike
The following is courtesy of Jack Sweet.
In 1925, the
Trades Union
Congress (TUC)
pledged to
support the
miners in their
dispute with the
mine owners.
Following the
owners locking
the miners out,
the TUC called a
General Strike
on 3 May 1926,
the first and
only General
Strike in
British history,
involving
workers in the
construction,
iron and steel,
transport and
printing
industries. The
government
however was
fully prepared
and all
essential
services were
maintained,
mainly by
volunteers. On
13 May, the TUC
called off the
strike as it had
not achieved its
purpose. The
miners were
still locked out
and they
remained on
strike until the
following
November when
economic need
forced them back
to work.
During the
strike, the
Western Gazette
wrote that -
“Westland
Aerodrome was
something in the
nature of an
air-port for the
distribution of
newspapers.
Aeroplanes from
all parts
assembled on the
Westland
Aerodrome,
leaving in the
early hours of
the morning
laden with
papers which had
been brought
from Plymouth by
road. Well over
300,000 were
deposited there
during Friday
night, and of
these, 132,000
were conveyed by
air to
Birmingham,
Nottingham,
Cardiff,
Bournemouth,
Monmouth,
Gloucester,
Oxford, Swindon,
Reading,
Newbury,
Tonbridge and
Weymouth. The
remainder were
distributed by
road. Twelve
machines were
used, the
journey to
Birmingham being
made by a
Handley-Page
twin engine
passenger
machine, which
attracted much
interest. The
papers were on
sale in
Birmingham by
7am. Major
Openshaw, one of
the Westland
pilots, made the
journey to
Oxford. The
somewhat
dangerous feat
of piloting her
machine from
Netheravon to
Yeovil, mainly
with her left
hand, was
performed by a
lady pilot, Mrs
Eliot-Lynn, who
had injured her
right wrist
while starting
up after a short
landing. She was
not prevented
from carrying
out other flying
duties later.
Six Avro
machines took
32,000 papers to
Cardiff on
Monday morning.
The organisation
for the whole
scheme was
carried out by
Mr J C Joynt (of
the Westland
Works) and Mr H
Marshall
(London). It
speaks highly of
the Westland
Works that the
scheme was able
to be put in
force in so
short a time.
Among the many
feats performed
was the
preparation of
the airfield for
night landings
for which it is
not normally
suited, in the
record time of
one and a-half
hours on Sunday
night.”
gallery
Courtesy of Jack
Sweet
A colourised photograph of members of the Westland Aerodrome's Organisation which, the day after the General Strike was declared, dispatched over 150,000 newspapers to every part of southern England and Wales.
Courtesy of Jack
Sweet
A group of the aeroplanes at the Westland Aircraft Co's Aerodrome at Yeovil in a colourised photograph of the 1920s
Courtesy of Jack
Sweet
Mrs Elliott-Lynn, one of the few British lady pilots, who fractured her arm when flying to the Westland Aircraft Co's aerodrome at Yeovil in order to assist in the distribution of newspapers by air during the strike. Mrs Elliott-Lynne finished her flight safely and assisted in the Westland organisation, which delivered over 150,000 newspapers on the day following the TUC's action, in spite of her injury.
