On a crisp cold day at the end of November 2023 the APSS rolled their Sopwith 1 1/2 Strutter out of the hangar to fire her up and circulate the oil around her 9 cylinder radial engine.
The aircraft is a replica dedicated to the aircraft flown by Richard Bell Davies V.C. in 1918 landing on HMS Argus in the firth of Forth thus sparking the Aircraft Carrier age. She was the first proper Aircraft Carrier and the Strutter was the first aircraft to successfully land and take off continuously thus proving the concept. Present on the day were Hamish Macdonald OBE and his wife Inky who is Richard Bell Davies granddaughter.