FROM THE ARCHIVES The stories behind items in the LAA’s collection IN THE BEGINNING…

These two documents mark the birth of our Association. The first is the agenda for the very first meeting of what became ‘The Ultra-Light Aircraft Association’ when, attracted by correspondence in Flight Magazine, an inaugural gathering of like-minded enthusiasts was held on October 22 1946 at a flat in London belonging to the brothers Maurice and Ian Imray.

Maurice became the ULAA’s first Secretary, while technical negotiations with the Ministry of Aviation to create the Permit to Fly system were led by former RNVR engineer officer Ron Clegg and Group Captain Edward Mole, an RAF staff officer and ex-test pilot.

By the time of the inaugural Bulletin, sent to members on 1 December 1946, Mole had recruited a network of allies at the highest level. By the end of the decade the ULAA’s Presidents and Vice-Presidents would number Sir Peter Masefield, Sir Alan Cobham, Sir Geoffrey de Havilland, Major Frank Halford, Freddie and George Miles, and Air Vice Marshall Don (Pathfinder) Bennett.

It was Mole who, to quote fellow founding member Arthur W G Ord-Hume, “Persuaded the authorities that we were the organisation to do it, when all we really had was a filing cabinet in Maurice Imray’s flat and a vast amount of enthusiasm!”

There is one further legacy of this early correspondence. Our LAA AGM is set around the date of that inaugural meeting. This year it is at Turweston on Sunday 23 October. See you there! Steve Slater