Historic aircraft lands in Cambridge

An historic American bi-plane has landed in Cambridge as part of a four year ‘round the world’ trip to raise money for the Wings of Hope, a charitable foundation set up to provide education for children from developing nations.

The 1943 Beech Staggerwing was flown by William Charney, an American aviator and Vietnam veteran, who restored the aircraft over a period of five years with a team of experts in New Zealand.

Although originally built for the US Navy, the Staggerwing’s arrival in Cambridge was actually a homecoming since she was shipped to the UK and assigned to the Royal Navy for the end of the Second World War, before returning to America after the war.

The aircraft arrived in the UK in June 1944, served at Boscomb Down and RNAS Abbotsburgh (today’s Glasgow Airport) and returned to the USA in 1946.

To track the aircraft's journey or find out more about his charity click here