Check out the
celebrations for the anniversary of Bleriot's flight.

by Graham Tutthill

Two pilots have now re-created Louis Bleriot's
pioneering flight by flying original Bleriot monoplanes across the
Channel.

Disappointment for Swedish pilot Mikael
Carlson, when he had to postponed his attempt on Saturday,
turned to joy on Sunday morning when he flew his plane from Calais
to Dover, circling Dover Castle and flying over the Bleriot
memoirial site before landing at the Duke of York's Royal Military
School which had been turned into an airfield for the
weekend.

French pilot Edmond Salis made the crossing successfully on
Saturday, after his attempt was delayed for two hours because of
strong winds.

Other planned events on Saturday went ahead as planned,
including a fly-past by the Red Arrows and their French
counterparts La Patrouille de France, a series of aeronautical
displays, and a spectacular 15-minute fireworks display, set to
music, over Dover Harbour.

Thousands of people enjoyed a variety of entertainment,
stalls and sideshows on Dover seafront.

British, Belgian and French microlights also flew across the
Channel to Dover, and a number of two-seater planes tooki part
in the Royal Aero Club air race from Abbeville in France to
Dover.

Gyles Brandreth was the guest speaker at a £250 per head gala
dinner at Dover Castle on Saturday evening.

On Sunday, more flying displays took place at the Duke of
York’s Royal Military School and there was a shorter series of
aerial displays over Dover Harbour. Mr Carlson was among those
giving displays in his restored Bleriot XI plane.