Brief Coda to the Visit of King Amanuallah

U3A member Mike Holmewood has previously blogged about the visits of VIPs and foreign

royalty to Croydon, particularly the visit of King Amanuallah of Afghanistan. As a coda to that blog, here is a photograph of Captain Walter Rogers with the King that is in the file on Rogers in the Croydon Airport Society Archive. (Rogers also flew Josephine Baker back to Paris after her performance on 29 January 1929.) The King was sio impressed by Rogers and the airport that he awarded him a medal. Unfortunately though, the pilot was also commanded by Buckingham Palace only to wear the medal on certain occasions as stipulated by the letter below.

The New London Airport (Croydon): A Major Attraction

King Amanuallah of Afghanistan at Croydon Airport, 1928 

A post from U3A member Mike Holmewood on an unusual visit to Croydon:

The building of the new Air terminal at Croydon in the late 1920s may well have seemed like the space race of the 60s to the then general public. This building of modern design, covered with white china clay, was visible for 10 miles from the air. It’s no wonder it attracted the air adventurers / entrepreneurs and people looking for the thrill of flying. 

The public was also greatly engaged with this new invention of the age, thronging to see famous fliers and celebrities in their thousands, as can be seen from the many photographs of the time.

The government was not slow in recognising the potential of showing off this New London Terminal to visiting dignitaries, and statesmen from around the world. Whilst looking through archive material at the airport society, and old newspaper articles in Sutton library. It became apparent that some unusual world leaders who were on official visits to Great Britain visited Croydon.