Dear Rolls-Royce Heritage Trust Member.
Bristol Aero Talks (BAT) invite Rolls-Royce Heritage Trust (RRHT) members to an open talk entitled:
'The History of Aviation around Weston-Super-Mare'
By Simon Begent
this will be held at 7:15 pm on Tuesday 26th May 2026 at the Aerospace Bristol Museum, Hayes Way, Patchway, BS34 5BZ in the John James Lecture Theatre.
Simon Begent's talk will cover a number of aspects of aviation around Weston-Super-Mare including:
- The pioneer flyers who flew their biplanes and gave displays from the 'Sands' aerodrome on the Weston seafront;
- The establishment of Weston Airport which was one of the busiest in the country in the 1930's;
- The introduction of scheduled air services including one to Cardiff that allowed travellers to avoid the Aust Ferry (no Severn Bridge in those days);
- The creation of the Bristol Aeroplane Company wartime shadow factory to manufacture the Bristol Beaufighter;
- The Royal Air Force opening of RAF Locking in 1939;
- The setting up of the Bristol Aeroplane Company Helicopter Division, headed by helicopter pioneer Raoul Hafner, in 1955;
- The Helicopter Museum that today stands on a corner of the airfield site.
For further information, please see:
The Aerospace Bristol Museum:
- will not require a current Aerospace Bristol Museum ticket to attend the talk.
- has ample easy free car parking.
- is fully accessible.
- Attendees with mobility issues, as covered on the back of the poster:
- If possible, please use the main car park and walk or use a wheelchair through the pedestrian gate.
- If this is not possible, and car access is essential, prior to attending, please contact the museum staff preferably by e-mail: [email protected] or using the contact information given below and advise them:
- the name/s of the car occupants.
- the vehicle registration.
- on the night, follow the staff instructions and take great care to avoid attendees accessing the Concorde building on foot.
General pre booking is not required for this talk, places will allocated on a first come first served basis.
The intention is to start the talk at 7:15 pm. However, I recommend that you aim to be at the Aerospace Bristol Museum by 7:00 pm.
There is no charge for entry to these talks. However, there will be the usual voluntary ‘bucket’ leaving collection to cover costs, hopefully supplemented with a card reader to enable card or mobile phone contributions. At the end of the Talks season, the accrued surplus (if any) will be donated to the excellent Aerospace Bristol Museum.
For further information about the venue including directions and bus information and other events and talks there, please go to Website: https://aerospacebristol.org or enquire:
Please pass on the information and prints of the poster to RRHT Members you know who are not registered to receive emails from RRHT HQ.