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The most recent Club meeting was on Thursday 13th February 2020 when David Simmons, an external speaker, gave an excellent talk on the Rise and Fall of the British Aircraft Industry between 1945 and 1975. David shared some of his encyclopaedic knowledge of the industry speaking about military aircraft and then commercial aircraft. At one time the UK aircraft industry employed one million people across famous businesses such as Avro, De Havilland, Fairey and English Electric. Concern was expressed that management decisions and poor decisions by Government had harmed the industry particularly the cancellation of Government contracts in 1957 and in 1965. One of the big successes of military aircraft was the vertical take-off Harrier Jump Jet. Another difficulty for the British aircraft industry was that BOAC initially preferred Boeing’s 707 to Vickers’ VC10. Under pressure from Government, BOAC purchased a number of VC10’s which travellers preferred. There are many UK companies still working in the aircraft industry as component suppliers. One of the most successful is the British owned engine supplier, Rolls-Royce.
There have been two recent walks, at Whitegate with lunch at The Plough and at Delamere with lunch at the Carriers Inn. There was a lively meeting of the Discussion Group on 4th February focussing on the future beyond Brexit. The IT Group met prior to the Club meeting on 13th February to discuss a variety of topics including unsolicited emails, digitising transparencies and Windows 10. The Bridge and Supper Group met on 14th February at Knutsford Golf Club. In the winter season the Bowling Group continues to meet socially and enjoys indoor bowls at Owley Wood Club at Weaverham.
The next walk on 20th February is a circular route around Sutton, near Macclesfield with lunch at Sutton Hall. The Discussion Group meets on 3rd March to discuss “the Future of the BBC”. On 4th March there is a guided tour of Amazon’s warehouse and distribution facility near Manchester Airport followed by lunch at a nearby hotel and a tour of Concorde at the viewing park. The annual three day walking trip has been arranged for 15th to 17th April, based at Windermere with five walks in the Lake District National Park. A “behind the scenes” visit to the Royal Exchange Theatre in Manchester followed by lunch and a matinee performance of West Side Story was announced for 5th May.
The Annual General Meeting of the Club is on 27th February 2020 when reports of the Club’s activities in 2019 and the accounts for that year will be presented to members and changes to the Club’s officers will be ratified and the new chairman will be inaugurated. The speaker is club member, Scott Martin, who will talk about the life of Sir Edward Heath. The quarterly club lunch is being held immediately after the meeting.