It has been a labour of love for nearly two decades and the group was on the verge of seeing their dream become reality when it finally took to the skies.
But an aviation preservation club’s hopes of seeing their First World War biplane airborne again has been grounded after they were told to find another home, ironically by the National Museum of Flight.
Members of the Aviation Preservation Society of Scotland (APSS) have built an exact replica of a rare Sopwith Strutter bi-plane which they hope to fly this spring.
However, they claim to have been “evicted” from the National Museum of Flight in East Fortune, East Lothian, which has been their home since 1984 and the biplane is now at the centre of a verbal dogfight between the two parties.
The group has found a new temporary home but they are no longer near an airstrip from which their replica can make its maiden flight.
The Sopwith Strutter is regarded as important because it is the first British fighter with a synchronised machine gun and for its influence on the subsequent Sopwith Camel.
Dr John Guy, a retired surgeon, who has been an APSS member since the 1990s, said: “It’s completely unacceptable. We have been treated like rubbish. We have been there since 1984 and are undergoing a very important restoration of one of the rarest planes in the world with intentions of recreating history with a maiden flight.”
The Strutter, a two-seater biplane powered by an 80 horsepower engine, was developed in December 1914 by the Sopwith Aviation Company.
They were effective because the Strutter’s long range allowed for attacks deep into German-held territory. Around 1,500 aircraft were built for the Royal Naval Air Service and Royal Flying Corps with several built at the East Fortune airfield.
The society was founded in 1974 and helped the National Museums of Scotland, based in Edinburgh, to set up a Museum of Flight on the site.
The group claims it signed a contract with the museum in 2000 and were given a hut on the airfield to undertake the renovation project.
But Dr Guy, 80, from North Berwick, claims that after former curator Adam Smith left in 2001, the new director Dr Gordon Rintoul changed the management structure of the museum.
Dr Guy added: “The museum no longer wanted it but Dr Rintoul said that we could continue to build it for our own purposes at our own expense.
“We needed extra space so we could continue the restoration of the project because it was becoming a tight squeeze in the city centre.”
But he claims that shortly after their request for extra space was turned down, rules on museum projects started to get stricter in 2014.
Dr Guy added: “The only way that APSS members could continue to work for the museum was for them to become official museum volunteers under the direct control of museum staff. Only a few were prepared to do this however. “
The group moved out in March 2018 and managed to secure a temporary base at Congalton Gardens in North Berwick.
Dr Guy said: “I could not believe it. We had this fantastic aircraft which should have been completed four years ago but now nowhere to fly it at all.”
In response, a National Museums Scotland spokeswoman said: “National Museums Scotland has been hugely supportive of the APSS throughout their 15-year, rent-free tenure at the National Museum of Flight.
“As their project neared its conclusion a new site had to be found for their organisation as we did not have the space and facilities to house an operational aircraft.
“In addition, the museum does not have a runway and the APSS wish to fly their aircraft. We have welcomed APSS members to work with us in a volunteer capacity and a number of them have and do continue to work with us.
“As one would expect all of our volunteers are required to follow appropriate guidelines and health and safety regulations for their own wellbeing and that of our visitors.
“Unfortunately not all members were prepared to adhere to this. As part of our long-term redevelopment plans for the museum, we intend to build a new hangar on the edge of the historic airfield, site which will allow the remaining aircraft which are outdoors to be brought undercover.”
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