I first came across the Vega Gull whilst visiting the Vintage Aircraft Flying Weekend in Mat 2003, at Kemble, the ex-RAF base that once was home to the Red Arrows display team when they flew Folland Gnats, and I was immediately captivated by its clean attractive lines. I took numerous photographs and I returned home to read up on the type's history. I discovered that it was built by the Percival Aircraft Company based at Maidstone in Kent and it first appeared in the air in 1935. It was one of the final versions of Percival's 'Gull' series of civil aircraft for private owners, developed from their first aircraft in 1932. I also discovered that the Vega Gull was named after a bird that inhabits the north-eastern area of Asia and is the equivalent to our herring gull. Percival's aircraft were sturdy and robust, but nevertheless economical and reliable, powered the de Havilland Gypsy series of engines. In 1934, one of their Gull series of aircraft was piloted by Jean Batten and reached Australia in less than five days.
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