THE sun has set on the stunning annual public flights of the replica of the UK’s first seaplane.

Waterbird is now back in its hangar in Liverpool after two evenings of spectacular flights on Windermere seen by hundreds of spectators.

“They came from all over the UK – there were even three gentlemen from Brazil –  to see the displays, so it must have been very good for the hospitality businesses,” said Anne Hughes, trustee of the Lakes Flying Company Ltd which is behind the Waterbird project.

As well as Waterbird, spectators at Brockhole saw a flyby of a Lancaster bomber and an Aviat Husky modern seaplane on Friday. Waterbird also had three short flights on Saturday.

A Lancaster bomber flies over the Waterbird replicaA Lancaster bomber flies over the Waterbird replica (Image: Milton Haworth)

“Both evenings were a success, with the sun setting at the end of the displays. It was stunning, said Mrs Hughes.

“There was a steady stream of visitors to the information gazebo and it was great to see youngsters in the water waving to the pilot and him waving back. We will be back next year,” she said.

The pilot this year was Lieutenant Commander Chris Gotje, a serving Royal Navy pilot who holds the Air Force Cross.

The Waterbird replica takes flightThe Waterbird replica takes flight (Image: Milton Haworth)

Mrs Hughes was keen to emphasise that the Lakes Flying Club is a charity and depends on donations to keep the flights going. There is no public funding involved.

Both the Lancasters and Waterbird were built by Manchester engineering company Avro, which was absorbed into Hawker Siddeley in 1963, which in turn became British Aerospace in 1977, and finally BAE Systems in 1999.

The Lancaster performed its fly-past on its way to an airshow in Ayr, Scotland.

(Image: Robin Ree)

It was the third year of flights by the replica Waterbird, which was built by Lakes Flying Company Ltd after ten years of research and development to its original specifications, except for a modern engine.

It is now looking for a permanent home by Windermere where the original plane was built and tested in 1911 under the auspices of Captain Edward Wakefield.

The Waterbird Project has also opened the first permanent exhibition recording the vital role played by Windermere in the history of the development of aeroplanes at Windermere Library.