Flight magazine

Flight, was first published on 2 January 1909 as the official organ of the Aero Club (which beacme the Royal Aero Club the following year), measuring 8½ by 12 inches (approx 30 x 22 cm), illustrated in black and white, and included extensive advertizing. It was priced at 1d. (one penny), or 1½ d. post free.

The cover of the 31 December 1910 issue shows the publisher's banner and an aerial view of London, with Saint Paul's cathedral and London Bridge, taken from about 2,100 feet.

Our collection is fairly complete from its beginnings to the late 1990s, mostly as loose issues, boxed but not bound, and is catalogued as follows:

1909 – 1917 : First published as Flight, with a number of concurrent subtitles: "First Aero Weekly in the World", "A Journal devoted to the Interests, Practice, nd Progress of Aerial Locomotion and Transport" and "Official Organ of the [Royal] Aero Club of the United Kingdom"; under the leadership of Stanley Spooner (1856–1940), founder and general editor. Their address, and that of the publisher F. King & Co., Ltd., was at 44, St. Martin's Lane, London W.C. England.

1917 – 1919 : Titled Flight and the Aircraft Engineer with Stanley Spooner continuing as editor.

1919 – 1939 : Under the title of Flight : the aircraft engineer and airships, Stanley Spooner, editor. In April 1934, Stanley Spooner retired, C.M. Poulson took over as editor, and Flight was acquired by Iliffe and Sons Ltd. who published under the imprint of St. Martin's Publishing, Co., Ltd. Their address became Great Queen Street, Kingsway, London, England. From 1935 to 1956, the imprint of Flight Publishing Co., Ltd., Dorset House, Stamford Street, London, England was used.

1940 – 1959 : Under the title Flight and the aircraft engineer. C.M Poulson retired as editor in May 1949, and his role was assumed by Maurice Smith.

1960 – 1961 : Under the title Flight : aircraft, spacecraft, missiles. Maurice Smith was replaced as editor by Rex King.

1962 – present : On 4 January 1962, the magazine was renamed Flight International. Editorship passed from Rex King to Mike Ramsden in 1964, then to David Mason in 1981, Allan Winn in 1988, Carol Reed in February 1998, Murdo Morrison in 2001 and Craig Hoyle in 2015. In the early 1970s, ISSN 0015-3710 was allocated to Flight Internatinal. Iliffe, owners of Flight since 1934 was taken over by IPC Business Press in 1968 (but until 1 March 1970, continued to publish under the Iliffe name, at which point IPC Business Press displaced Iliffe on the masthead.) IPC was renamed Business Press International, then Reed Business Publishing (1987), then Reed Business Information in September 1996. [Note that in August 2019, Flight International and its associated divisions were sold to DVV Media Group.]

Collection: Ross Richardson
Availability: as above. Second floor, main reading room.
Cataloguing by NMA. Indexing started, incomplete

Current publishers:
DVV Media Group International
Chancery House
St Nicholas Way
Sutton
Surrey SM1

[Notes and cataloguing by S.J. and P.A.]