A REVOLUTION in aviation history took place 100 years ago on Windermere. Hundreds of people gathered in the Lakes this week to celebrate two anniversaries – the first flight of the ground-breaking seaplane Waterbird, and the opening of what became Windermere Airfield. We look at this historic occasion and what the future holds for air flight in Windermere.

AVIATION enthusiasts gathered in South Lakeland to celebrate the centenary of a monumental event in global history.

They met at Storrs Hall Hotel, Bowness, to mark 100 years to the day since the maiden flight of the world’s first seaplane, The Waterbird, which took off from the waters of Windermere.

The event was also a chance for people to find out more about a project by the Lakes Flying Company (LFC) to build a £160,000 replica of the plane.

It is currently being built by Gerry Cooper and it is hoped that, if extra funding can be found, it will once again take to the skies above England’s largest natural lake.

“It is 80 per cent complete,” said Mr Cooper. “But we need a further input of funds to get the metalwork done. I have funded it myself until now, but I have gone as far as I can go.

“I think it is an important project bec-ause now children can jump on a plane and go on holiday and never even think about where the plane came from. This will help them understand the history of aviation.”

Mr Cooper also paid tribute to the skills of aircraft engineer Sir Alliott Verdon-Roe, founder of Manchester aviation firm Avro, whose original plans he is using to create the replica.

“They were very advanced for the time and he put a great deal of thought into it,” he said.

Funds are also being raised towards the creation of an Edward Wakefield Memorial Seaplane Centre at Windermere which would house the replica Waterbird and would be the only operational seaplane centre in the world flying pre-1914 aircraft.

A potential spanner in the works regarding the project comes in the form of the 10mph speed limit on the lake, as Adrian Legge, secretary of Windermere and Bowness Civic Society, explained.

The LFC is in discussion with the Lake District National Park Authority in an attempt to reach a compromise.

Richard Raynsford, a great, great nephew of Edward Wakefield – the man behind the original Waterbird – said: “Take off would be at 30mph but we would only be breaking the speed limit for a fraction of a second. We hope we can go ahead on this basis, but if not, perhaps it could take off and land at Windemere three to four times a year as a special occasion.

“We think it would create huge interest in these hard times and would be a wonderful new attraction for people to enjoy in the Lakes.”

l Two eagerly-anticipated flying displays had to be cancelled due to stormy weather on Friday.

Guests at Storrs Hall Hotel, Windermere, were making their way to the shores of the lake to witness the fly past of a 1949 Hawker Sea Fury, when it was announced that it had been forced to turn back.

The second flight, organised by Windermere Town Council, would have been made by a seaplane from Loch Lom-ond Seaplanes, the star of the Visit Scotland TV adverts. It too fell foul of the strong winds and rain.