Our latest challenge comes from another surreal discovery by Keith Cruttenden who has to admit to opening "We Danced All Night" (1970) by Barbara Cartland! Therein he finds the astonishing claim that Miss Cartland in 1931, with two young RAF pilots, Flt Lt E L Mole and Flt Lt Wanliss, thought up the idea of gliders being towed by aeroplanes. She further claims to have built a glider called (naturally enough) "The Barbara Cartland" and used it to carry the 'first aeroplane-towed glider airmail' from Manston to Reading. Later, she admits, the Germans and then the Allies profited from her idea with their use of transport gliders during the War. The photo is not very clear, partly due to the liberal spray of champagne as Miss Cartland names her aircraft - both on the nose and in even larger letters under the wings. However, the type is very clearly a British Aircraft Co B.A.C.VII tandem 2-seat glider of which model later conversions were made to powered Planette and Drone from 1932. Did she think of that too? Was her glider painted pink? Does anyone know any more about the actual glider or the event? Does anyone care?

Самолёты на фотографии: Aircrafts on the photo: Lowe-Wylde Columbus / BAC.II - BAC.IX - ВеликобританияUnited Kingdom - 1930