Sir Alliott Verdon-Roe OBE, Hon. FRAeS, FIAS was born
in Patricroft in Manchester and was the first Englishman to fly an
all-British machine at Lea Marshes on 12th July 1909. He claimed to be the
first Englishman to make a powered flight in June 1908 at Brooklands.
He founded AV Roe and Co in Manchester with his brother Humphrey on 1st
January 1910. From its early beginnings at Brownfield Mills, A.V. Roe and
Co, became one of the most successful British aviation companies building
iconic Avro marques such as the Avro 504, Tutor, Anson, Lancaster,
Lancastrian, York, Shackleton and the Vulcan.
Alliott left AV Roe and Co in 1926. He was knighted in 1928 and established
Saunders-Roe, builders of the jet powered SARO SRA 1 and SARO Princess
flying boats at Cowes on the Isle of Wight, where he remained Chairman till
his death in 1958.
Aircraft pioneer and designer of AVRO planes. Born in
Eccles, aged 14 he travelled to Canada to train as a surveyor, but on
arriving in British Columbia found there was little demand for surveyors and
he spent a year working odd jobs.
He returned to Britain and served as an apprentice
with the Lancashire & Yorkshire Railway. Dockyard work followed with him
joining the ship SS Jebba of the British & South African Royal Mail Company
as fifth engineer on the West African run.
He served on other vessels, finishing his Merchant
Navy career as third engineer aboard SS Ichanga. It was during this time
that he first turned his mind to the possibility of building a flying
machine.
To spend more time studying the problems of flight he
left the sea in 1902 and became a draughtsman in the motor car industry (at
Brotherton and Crockers Limited).
In 1906 the Daily Mail offered prizes for model
aeroplanes capable of sustained mechanical flight. Roe carried off the first
prize. This encouraged him to build an aeroplane which would be able to
carry him aloft.
A half-used stable behind the surgery of his brother
(Dr Spencer Verdon Roe) in Wandsworth, was ideal for the construction of a
flying machine. Construction of the began in May 1907 and then moved to a
shed at Brooklands motor racing track.
Walthamstow Marsh was the location of Roe's later
attempts to build and fly his early aeroplanes.
Despite many failures, Roe continued his experiments
and there is now a blue plaque commemorating his first successful flight (in
July 1909) on one of the railway arches he worked from.
With his brother Humphrey, he founded the A.V. Roe
Aircraft Co. in 1910 at Brownsfield Mill in Manchester.
His most popular model, the 504, sold more than 8,300,
mainly to the Royal Flying Corps and later to the Royal Air Force for use by
training units. In 1928, he sold his shares and bought S. E. Saunders Co.,
and formed Saunders-Roe Aviation.
He was knighted in 1929.
Location: 47 West Hill, SW18
Unveiled: 28 October 2011