Avro 504 Prototype near Dewsbury.

On 2nd October 1913 what was named the "War of the Roses Air Race" was competed for. It was a challenge race between the A.V.Roe Company (of Lancashire) and the Blackburn Aeroplane and Motor Co.Ltd. (of Yorkshire) and was organised by the Yorkhire Evening News newspaper. The hundred mile course was well advertised and publicised, it would start and end at the aerodome at Moortown, Leeds the home of the Yorkshire Aero Club. The route would involved flying to specified locations where the aeroplanes would have to land and wait for twenty minutes at each location where crowds would be waiting. Leaving Moortown at 14.14hrs the first location was Bootham Stray, York, then locations at Doncaster (possibly the racecourse?), Sheffield and Barnsley before landing at Moortown. Blackburn entered the new Blackburn Type I monoplane while A.V.Roe entered the prototype Avro 504.

On 1st October 1913 the Avro 504 was nearing Leeds following a flight from Brooklands that must have taken some time. As the pilot, Mr Raynham, approached Leeds he was unsure of where to find Holroyd's Field at Moortown, where the race was to begin, so made a landing at White Lee, Gomersal to enquire where he was to go. He telephoned Harold Blackburn at the Blackburn Aeroplane Works in Hunslet who then drove to him to show him the way.

On 2nd October 1913 the race took place. The first flew stages went without incident other than visibility became reduced owing to mist. Unfortunately the crew of the Avro 504 selected wrong field to land in at Sheffield and wasted time getting the aeroplane into the correct field. This gave the Blackburn aeroplane a slight lead. With visibility being further reduced on the flights north the crew of the Blackburn aeroplane located and landed correctly at Barnsley but unfortunately the Avro 504 crew could not find the Barnsley field and eventually landed near Dewsbury. No damage can have resulted because they took off again shortly after though in believing they had no hope of flying back to Barnsley and then to Leeds before the Blackburn aeroplane reached Leeds, the Avro crew conceeded the race. They took took off from the field at Dewsbury and flew back to Moortown actually landing significantly earlier that the Blackburn aeroplane. The Blackburn Type I, flown by Harold Blackburn and with the aircraft's owner Dr M.G.Christie as passenger, landed at 17.48hrs and won the race. I have included the events of this incident because of the landing at Dewsbury could technically be called a forced landing. The race is also part of the history of aviation in our county.

Avro 504 Pilot - Mr Frederick Philip Raynham.

Avro 504 Passenger - Mr Humphrey Verdon Roe.