History of Fairey Surveys Ltd
Jean’s funeral was on Wednesday 27th November 2024, and the chapel at Reading Crematorium was packed.
Ken’s tribute was read by the celebrant, Alison Scott, and Jean’s son Ray read his cricket-inspired eulogy. Both are attached below, along with the order of service.
Family, friends and old colleagues from the Berkshire Museum of Aviation and Fairey Surveys gathered afterwards at the Crown in Playhatch to share our memories of an unforgettable person.
Update: Jean’s funeral has been arranged for 11:30 on Wednesday 27th November 2024 at Reading Cemetery & Crematorium, All Hallows Road, Caversham, Reading RG4 5LP.
Word has come from Ken Fostekew that Jean died last night, 28th October 2024. Jean was a great character and will leave a big hole in the old Fairey Surveys community.
The photograph below is from the annual reunion at White Waltham Cricket Club in 2003, taken by Peter Green.
Jean was the Archivist for the Museum of Berkshire Aviation, which she and Ken helped to create on the old Woodley Aerodrome, and used to give lectures to local organisations about aviation and air survey.
She had four sons with her first husband, Bill “Bix” Clark, who was also a former FSL employee, and a fifth son with Ken.
Sad news that Geoff Milsom has passed away. His son Chris called to say that Geoff died 9th September 2024, at Wexham Park Hospital after a stroke.
During WWII Geoff flew Spitfires and Hurricanes, starting out at age 18 in Burma. After the war he carried on flying, working for the Air Survey Company, which became Fairey Surveys and later Clyde Surveys. He was Chief Pilot for many years, and a brilliant survey pilot. The photograph above was taken during a survey in the Falklands for Mount Pleasant airport that was built in 1985 after the Falklands war.
In May there was a wonderful celebration at White Waltham Aero Club for Geoff’s 100th birthday, with family, friends and former colleagues all coming together to share the milestone, and enjoy a great party and great weather in a place that played a big part in his life.
The funeral was held on Friday September 27th 2024 at All Saints Church in Maidenhead, with the burial at Braywick Cemetery, where other family members are buried. The Maidenhead Advertiser published an obituary on September 19th. Read it here.
A few photographs from the day:
And the last post for Geoff Milsom, from the RAF. View the video here.
We only have a few photographs from this year’s reunion. If anyone has any others they could share, please add a comment below, or email admin@faireysurveys.co.uk and I’ll add them to this post.
Click here for a full size image
For full size images, right- click the photograph and select ‘Open image in new tab’
And finally, the people who were there: (Click here for a full size image)
| 1 | Derek Minter | 14 | Les Ritson-Smith |
| 2 | Dave Padgett | 15 | Victor Brown |
| 3 | Brenda Miller | 16 | Gillian Wallace (Edwards) |
| 4 | Dusty Miller | 17 | Susan Deller |
| 5 | Brian Slark | 18 | John Tompkins |
| 6 | Jane Denham | 19 | Richard Groom |
| 7 | Sue Dunstan | 20 | Mike Deller |
| 8 | Jerry Willson | 21 | Carol Tompkins |
| 9 | Roger Laffoley | 22 | Raelene Brown |
| 10 | Anne Ullersperger | 23 | Sally Pilkinton |
| 11 | Ken Fostekew | 24 | Ken Ullersperger |
| 12 | Dave Wright | 25 | Patricia Cheffins (Bill’s daughter) |
| 13 | Joan Wright | 26 | Lawrence Scott |
What a milestone, and what a great party. (Good enough to get in the paper: online version here, and to be published in the Maidenhead Advertiser on Friday 31st May.)
Geoff celebrated his birthday where he was based for so much of his working life, White Waltham airfield, surrounded by family, friends and old Faireys. In tribute to the most senior old Fairey, the weather was wonderful, the planes were all flying, and the familiar scent of aviation fuel drifted across the grass. The West London Aero Club provided the food and drink, and the family provided the balloons.
There were quite a lot of family. Children, grandchildren, great grandchildren, cousins, second cousins, second cousins once removed …. Some were getting together for the first time in twenty years. But since Geoff spent most of his working life overseas, they probably haven’t seen very much of him over the years. And so much did he love flying, that when he came up to retirement age, he was owed about three years of accumulated leave!
One of the Hurricanes based at White Waltham was heading out to Duxford, and gave a pass by the airfield in homage to the occasion, to the delight of the crowd, especially the children.
A few pictures from the occasion – right click on the photographs for a full size image (select open in new tab):-
Dusty Miller got some good photographs, including some group photographs of the guests at the airfield fence while Geoff was looking at the Hurricane, and an excellent one of the cake.
Date: Friday 26th July 2024 from 12:00
Update 12/07/2024: Please note that the bar at White Waltham Cricket Club will be CASH ONLY.
The reunion will be at lunchtime at the White Waltham Cricket Club again, and we look forward to seeing you.
There will be a cold finger buffet from about 13:00, which also caters for vegetarians.
There is a charge of £22 per person for the buffet, and it helps to know numbers, so if you receive a form in the post, please send it back with a cheque, or download a form here. If you have any special dietary requirements, please write them on the form when you return it, or email admin@faireysurveys.co.uk.
If you have not been before, and would like to come, please let us know (admin@faireysurveys.co.uk), or download the form and send it in with a cheque before 16th July. You are welcome to just turn up, but if you don’t want to eat, there is a small charge of £5.00 per person to cover hire of the clubhouse and bar staff. Please introduce yourself when you arrive, and we would love to see any old photographs or memorabilia you may have.
Check the White Waltham Cricket Club Facebook page for directions. If you need assistance with transport, email us at admin@faireysurveys.co.uk. We may be able to help.
FSL Reunion invitation 2024, download here
Richard Cripwell has emailed to let us know the details of his father’s funeral:
The Memorial Service for John Cripwell will be held on Tuesday 12 March 2024 at St Edmund’s Church in Calne, Wiltshire at Noon. The address of the Church is:
Saint Edmund’s Catholic Church
Oxford Road
Calne
Wiltshire
SN11 8AQ
Please note that there is very limited parking near the Church but some is located reasonably close by.
The Cripwell family warmly invite everyone to join them, after the service, for tea and refreshments at The Pewsham SN15 3RU, between Calne and Chippenham. It is about a seven minute drive with plenty of parking.
News has been passed on by Lawrence Scott that John Cripwell died on 17th January 2024. John’s son Richard called Lawrence to let him know, and will pass on details of funeral arrangements when they are available.
John was born in Rhodesia on 8th January 1934, so he had just turned 90. He was a surveyor with Fairey Surveys from late 1965, and spent a lot of time overseas, as well as managing the FSL Dublin office for a time.
Ross Dallas sent in an article for the website about his time as a surveyor with FSL in the late 60s, with references to John during a job in Saudi Arabia. You can read it here.
The picture at the top is from a photograph taken at the 2004 reunion barbecue at White Waltham. For the full photograph, click here. He is also on the 2013 reunion photograph.
Click here for a full size image
| 1 | Dave Padgett | 22 | Geoff Light |
| 2 | Derek Minter | 23 | Jerry Willson |
| 3 | Colin McCarthy | 24 | Beryl Light |
| 4 | Donald Paton | 25 | Victor Brown |
| 5 | Mike Deller | 26 | Raelene Brown |
| 6 | John Holton | 27 | Les Ritson-Smith |
| 7 | Alison Waddell (Holton) | 28 | Dave Wright |
| 8 | John Tompkins | 29 | Geoff Milsom |
| 9 | Dusty Miller | 30 | Janet Grimble |
| 10 | Sally Pilkinton | 31 | Bina Wood |
| 11 | Brenda Miller | 32 | Ray Wood |
| 12 | Rob Marshall (son of John) | 33 | Susan Deller |
| 13 | Anne Ullersperger | 34 | Mike Wilkey |
| 14 | Roger Laffoley | 35 | Mike Wilkey’s partner Kath |
| 15 | Jane Denham | 36 | Chris Forsey (son of Peter) |
| 16 | Rob Wallace | 37 | Patricia Cheffins (daughter of Bill) |
| 17 | Ken Fostekew | 38 | Jean Fostekew |
| 18 | Carol Tompkins | 39 | Gillian Wallace (Edwards) |
| 19 | Diana Timbrell | 40 | Ken Ullersperger |
| 20 | Geoff Manning | 41 | Lawrence Scott |
| 21 | Peter Timbrell | 42 | Joan Wright |
Click here for full size image
The indexed version is now available, click here to see it.
The list of people who couldn’t make it this year is here.
If anyone has photographs they took at the reunion that they would like to share, please email them to admin@faireysurveys.co.uk and we’ll put them up on the post.
Victor Brown has sent these photographs from the reunion (to see full size images, right click on an image and select “Open image in new tab”) :
News has come in from Tony Woodcroft’s daughter Lucy Banham that her father passed away on the morning of 7th August at Wexham Park Hospital. Funeral details are below.
Tony was the Company Secretary/Accountant at Clyde Surveys, on secondment from Sir William Halcrow and Partners Ltd, from 1986 until he retired in 1992. (With apologies for originally describing him as a surveyor.)
Tony’s funeral will be on Friday 1st September at 2pm at Bracknell Crematorium:
and afterwards (from approx 3:30pm onwards) for a wake at the Kings Arms in Cookham
If you would like to attend the funeral or the wake, please could you email admin@faireysurveys.co.uk, as the family would appreciate knowing the numbers at the crematorium and at the King’s Arms.