The Early Years 1936

A small homebuilt of the Flying Flea type, named The Flying' Wog, was test-flown at Box Hill Golf Course, Melbourne; constructed for �75 by Horace Roberts and Harold and Henry Rudd, powered by a 48 hp Blackburn Thrush engine; flown by Roberts, took off in 50 yds and landed at 18 mph; estimated maximum speed 75 mph; officials had no knowledge of the machine and had not issued a Certificate of Airworthiness; 13 Feb 1936 damaged at Frankston Victoria when Roberts made a heavy landing.

April 1936 a Flying Flea, constructed by H.A. Pelton (Posinger), Sydney and powered by an 1800 cc Clancy engine, was completed at a cost of� 150 and flown on several occasions at Schofields NSW; to discourage aircraft builders from experimenting in manufacture of Mignet Flying Fleas, a statement was issued by the Civil Aviation Branch that unless such machines complied with the requirements of ordinary CofAs, they would not be registered.

25 May 1936 a Parkes NSW garage proprietor D. Mott, made another successful flight in his Flying Flea; 21 Jun 1936 Capt E,C. Johnston said that as there was a blanket ban on Flying Fleas, it was illegal for any machine to fly without a CofA or Cof R.

26 Jul 1936 a Flying Flea was successfully flown at Parafield SA by W .S.Maddocks; built by Keith Litchfield and assistants, the first rwo flights were hops across the airfield; the third was a wide circuit but it had engine trouble and force-Ianded about a mile away; the Aviation Corresponent in the Daily Telegraph of 24 Aug 1936 noted that 'the Famborough Test, revealing that the Flying Flea when correctly built to specification, is airworthy, will not alter materially the artitude of the Civil Aviation Board in Australia. The Civil Aviation Board has refused to waive the necessity for a certificate of airworthiness';

The first Flying Flea in Western Australia was built by R. Raper at West Subiaco aerodrome and powered by a 30 hp Tomtit engine from a DH 53; on 12 May 1937, Raper taxied across the aerodrome several times without gaining flying speed then succeeded in raising the nose but almost immediately was caught by a gust of wind and swung around darnaging the wing and undercarriage; further attempts were abandoned for the day.

Another Flying Flea was built by K. Affleck of Kellyville NSW, powered by a 40 hp single ignition Anzani engine, but the first flight, about June 1936, was not successful; during 1935 a Flying Flea with a single cylinder 600 cc Panther engine was built in Canberra by Jack Cotterill with assistance from Arthur Powell and Roy Raymond, one flight, although successful, resulted in a heavy landlng; rebuilt as a 'Super Flea' (a four cylinder Clancy engine used and the undercarriage lengthened); written off in a crash about Feb 1939.