Update: Cody Flyer Model – Located and Returned

Following the appeal posted in September 2024 regarding the whereabouts of the bronze scale model of Samuel Franklin Cody’s British Army Aeroplane No.1, we are very pleased to report that the model has now been found and safely returned.

Mr Maurice Shakespeare, who initiated the original search on behalf of the Farnborough Air Sciences Trust (FAST) Museum, has confirmed that the model was recently located at the Officers Mess, RAF High Wycombe, where it had been kept in the VIP Changing Room. With goodwill from the relevant authorities, the model has now been returned to the Museum.

It appears that when the RAF Farnborough Officers Mess closed in the mid-1990s, the model was presented to the then Commander-in-Chief Strike Command, Air Chief Marshal Sir Peter Alison. A plaque to this effect was subsequently found attached to the wooden mounting plinth, helping to clarify the model’s journey.

This brings a long-standing mystery to a very welcome conclusion, and it is reassuring to know that this important piece of early British aviation history is once again in safe hands.

Many thanks to all who took an interest or assisted along the way. This chapter can now be happily closed.