Video showing M18-4 clip from Brian Iles's film of his return flight from RAF Jever to Bulawayo, africa in his Miles M-18 light aircraft on Tuesday 20th July 1954. This clip I suspect is taken at Heraklion Airport at sunrise on Saturday 24th July 1954. They took off at 0520 hours, having flown down from Athens the afternoon before. It shows Brian swinging the prop while Sandy is already strapped in the rear cockpit. The early part of the flight shows the vast ocean for this was the longest over water crossing from Crete to Mersah Matrah near Alexandria in Egypt. Presumably they took the shortest route across to the African mainland and then followed down the coast to Alexandria where they landed 2 hours 55 minutes later at 0815 hours. It is presumed that the airfield shots are taken at Mersah Matrah showing another Miles light aircraft being loaded alongside the M-18. My research suggests that this maybe a Miles M-16 Mentor as it has a cabin but is otherwise similar to the Miles M-18. I cannot make out the registration number but it seems rather appropriately to have a racing number of 93. Perhaps it could be identified from that number? The Miles M-16 Mentor low-wing cabin monoplane entered RAF service in 1938. Forty-five examples were used for radio training and communications duties. (Thanks to The Encyclopedia of Aircraft.) If anyone knows better, please let me know. The locals, at what is presumed to be Mersah Matrah, are lined up to see tham leave at 1050 hours for Cairo.
There is no sound with this clip. This clip runs for 1 min 23 secs.