Issue No 22 THE AVIATION HISTORIAN 121
the popular and specialist press, the author
pointing out any errors of fact where necessary.
Many sections in the chapters comprise biog-
raphies of the various airmen and recount their
deeds. One small point is missed, probably
because the author was unaware of it. Vivian
Hewitt’s Antoinette monoplane survives,
having been acquired by Robert Blackburn in
1916 from a garage at Colwyn Bay. For many
years it was misidentified as the Antoinette
flown in the UK by Hubert Latham in 1909; but,
during his time at the Science Museum, where
the machine is now displayed, the late John
Bagley established its true origins.
Also well covered are the various flights from
England to Ireland, including the extended visit
to Ireland in 1913 by No 2 Sqn, Royal Flying
Corps, which attracted wide attention.
For its modest price this is a worthwhile
addition to any library.
PHILIP JARRETT
A Passion for Speed — The Daring Life of
Mildred, The Honourable Mrs Victor Bruce
By Paul Smiddy; The History Press, The Mill, Brimscombe
Port, Stroud, Glos GL5 2QG; 6¼in x 9in (159mm x
229mm); softback; 208 pages, illustrated; £14.99. ISBN
978-0-750983-66-2
REGARDLESS OF WHICH rung she occupies
on the British social ladder she shares with her
1920s/30s contemporaries Amy Johnson, Lady
Mary Heath and the Duchess of Bedford, The
Hon Mrs Victor Bruce stands out as the epitome
of the twinset-and-pearls aviatrix. Today the
image of her probably evokes amusement
and awe in fairly equal measure — the former
because of the obvious incongruity between
her grandmotherly titled name and her leather-
helmeted high-speed exploits, and the latter
because of her indomitable determination...
and her leather-helmeted high-speed exploits.
Born in 1895, Mildred (also known variously
as Mary and Jane, as the author points out)
came into the world at just the right time to be
captivated by motor vehicles and aviation —
and, indeed, she clocked up her first motoring
ban before she turned 16. Doubtless spurred on
by this and a string of further speeding fines,
she became a noted record-setting racing driver,
winning the first ever ladies’ prize at the 1927
Monte Carlo Rally and collecting a somewhat
aristocratic husband along the way.
Branching out into powerboats in 1929, Mildred
again became a record-setter; and by the summer
of 1930 she was on her way to achieving the
hat-trick, having also learned to fly. Almost
immediately zooming off in a Blackburn Bluebird
IV on a round-the-world flight — as apparently
one did, in those days — she became the first
woman to fly solo from the UK to Japan. Having
survived many adventures and scrapes, she
returned home as a stellar celebrity.
A modern woman in more ways than one,
Mildred led an unconventional love life. She
also found the time to become an aviation
entrepreneur, founding Commercial Air Hire
and Air Dispatch. During World War Two
both companies were subsumed into National
Air Communications and the Civilian Repair
Organisation. She died in 1990.
This racy story of a life in the fast lane is told
with aplomb by pilot and Blackburn enthusiast
Paul Smiddy, and is illustrated with an eight-
page section of well-reproduced black-and-white
photographs selected mostly from an archive
once owned by the honourable lady herself. A
few editing niggles aside (such as provincial
Indian inhabitants being described as Baluchi
and Belushi within the space of two pages),
this is an enjoyable book and a fine tribute to
its eponymous heroine. Appendices and notes
complete the volume, although there is no index.MICK OAKEYFOUNDED IN 1969, Le Fana de l’Aviation (“fana” is short for “fanatique”) is the world’s premier French-language
aviation-history and aircraft preservation monthly magazine, respected for its content and for its distinctive artwork front
covers. France’s counterpart of the UK’s Aeroplane and FlyPast, for many years it was edited by veteran aviation
journalist Michel Bénichou, who continues to contribute regular articles to it.
Issue No 576 (November 2017) comprises six main features offering a typically eclectic mix. A description of the
Consolidated B-32 Dominator and its raids on Japan towards the end of World War Two is followed by an exploration of
the Red Army’s use of saucy pin-ups as inspiration for personalised fuselage-art on its Nieuport fighters in 1919 (some
things never change). A more conventional article looks at Rich Sugden’s restoration of a Douglas TA-4J Skyhawk in the
USA, with air-to-air photography by assistant editor Xavier Méal, after which the focus shifts to the pioneer years in the
form of an instalment of Michel Bénichou’s fresh history of early aviation, concentrating on stability and control. An
11-page article on the Focke-Wulf Fw 200 Condor by Chris Goss (who wrote on the same type in TAH20) and a history
of 1930s French airline Aéromaritime’s African operations bring up the rear. News, letters, book- and kit-reviews
complete a satisfying publication which has much to offer — even if French is not your first language. MO
Edited by Alexis Rocher; 11¾in x 8¼in (297mm x 210mm); 84 pages, illustrated; €7.10 per monthly issue. Published by
Éditions Larivière, 12 rue Mozart, 92587 Clichy CEDEX, France; website http://www.editions-lariviere.fr/le-fana-de-l-aviation
LE FANA DE L’AVIATION