Waterbird

Early in the morning on 25th November 1911, an Avro Curtiss-type floatplane took off from a hangar at Hill of Oaks, on Windermere, to make history. ‘Waterbird’, commissioned by Captain Edward Wakefield from Kendal, was the first hydro-aeroplane to make a successful flight in Britain.

In 2008 drawings and archive material of Waterbird came to light, and the Lakes Flying Company Ltd. was formed to find a way of recreating a British ‘first’ to celebrate the Edwardian achievement. They succeeded, and in 2022 the replica Waterbird flew on Windermere along the same stretch of water, this time with photographers and film crews to witness the event.

This book tells the story of two aeroplanes. The first Waterbird, which flew more than 60 flights on Windermere, set in motion the production of seaplanes used in World War 1. The story of the second  Waterbird, the replca, is equally fascinating, telling the story of many challenges resulting in a thirteen year programme from dream to reality.