Jean Batten’s Gull Goes Into Museum

Press, Volume C, Issue 29498, 27 April 1961, Page 10

Jean Batten’s Gull Goes Into Museum

I From the London correepondent ot “The Press’*)

LONDON, April 25.

The historic aircraft in which the New Zealand flyer, Jean Batten, established four aviation records, went into an aircraft museum in Bedfordshire today. Hunting

Aircraft, Ltd., ot Luton, is giving the Percival Gull 6 to the Shuttleworth Trust Miss Batten was not at the presentation at Luton Airport. She lives quietly in retirement in Tobago, West Indies, remote from but far from forgotten by aviation circles.

Hunting Aircraft, Ltd., has restored the Gull to its original appearance, with silver wings and fuselage, a Union Jack on the tail plane, a panel beside the cockpit recording its historic flights, and the name "Jean” on the engine cover. The registration number, G-ADPR, is painted in its original form. The managing director of Hunting (formerly Percival Aircraft) Mr Arthur Summers, handed over the machine and its log book—recording 1100 hours’ flying—to the aviation trustee of the Shuttleworth Trust, Air

Commodore Alan Wheeler. Then a Hunting test pilot flew the Gull the 15 miles north to the trust’s museum of historic aircraft, all maintained in flying condition, at Old Warden, near Biggleswade. The trust also preserves historic -motor-cars. The BA.F. requisitioned Miss Batten’s plane in 1939 and all through the war it wore Air Force roundels and flew as a communications aircraft in Britain. Jean Batten herself contributed to the war effort as an ambulance driver. In 1948, the Gull returned to its makers at Luton and for 10 years it was used as an executive aircraft. It had been delivered to Miss Batten on September 20, 1935. but even after 20 years’ work the Gull was no museum piece. Hunting regarded it as a useful as well as an interesting machine. So G-ADPR flew aviation experts around the country on urgent jobs.

Jean Batten had become a world-famous flyer by the time she had acquired the Percival GulL She had

already improved on Amy Johnson’s time for a woman's solo flight from England to Australia, and was the first woman •to make the return flight. . In November, 1935, she flew her new Gull to Brazil and Argentina; the first solo flight by a woman across the South Atlantic. Then in October. 1936, she made the sensational, first direct flight from England to New Zealand. There were protests about her plan to fly the Tasman single-handed, but she took off leaving instructions that if she weijt down over the sea "no-one must fly out to look for me. ... I have no wish to imperil the lives of others.” Nine and a half hours later she arrived at Auckland, 11 days and 45 minutes after leaving Britain. Next year she set a solo record Australia-to-England in the Gull—five days 18 hours 15 minutes. And so in 1937, aged 28, Miss Batten gave up the pursuit of flying records. Instead, she flew around Europe lecturing for the British Council. The Shuttleworth collection of a dozen aircraft was founded in 1936 by the ’late Richard Shuttleworth, a racing driver and veteran car collector. He was killed early in the war in a plane crash while serving in the R.A.F. The aircraft include a 1909 Bleriot, a sister aircraft to the Channel-crossing machine, and a 1916 Sopwith Pup, then regarded as “the perfect flying machine.” Two or three times a year the aircraft fly at air shows. There are other aiferaft from days of daring pylon races (a 1924 Blackburn) and World War I fighters.