Harry Hawker

Harry George Hawker, MBE, AFC (22 January 1889 – 12 July 1921) He attended Moorabbin Primary School. As an 11-year-old, he worked at the Melbourne garage of Hall & Warden, and shortly afterwards, on 24 October, he won the Michelin Cup for flight endurance with a flight lasting 8 hours 23 minutes.

He also appears to have been the first person to perform an intentional spin and recovery, demonstrating in 1914 one method (though generally not the one used today) to return to level flight from this unusual attitude. Because spins had killed several pilots, this was a major advance in aviation safety.

Having established his name as an aviator, he became chief test pilot for Tom Sopwith. At Sopwiths in 1916, Hawker had the personal use of a small aircraft, the Sopwith Bee. He was also a regular competitor in motor car and motorcycle races at Brooklands before and after the First World War. Among his competitive achievements were a number of altitude records set in June 1913 He also won a £1,000 consolation prize in the Daily Mail Circuit of Britain Waterplane Race on 25 August 1913.

Brief return to Australia In 1914, Harry Hawker returned to Australia to demonstrate the advanced Sopwith Tabloid, which he had helped design. A wild crowd nearly wrecked the plane on one occasion, and he further damaged it during stunt flying. On his return to England, he continued designing and testing aircraft with Sopwith throughout the First World War.

Attempt at first transatlantic flight

After the war, together with navigator Kenneth Mackenzie Grieve, he attempted to win the Daily Mail £10,000 prize for the first flight across the Atlantic in "72 consecutive hours". On 18 May 1919, they set off from Mount Pearl, Newfoundland, in the Sopwith Atlantic biplane. After fourteen and a half hours of flight, the engine overheated and they were forced to change course to intercept the shipping lanes, where they were able to locate a passing freighter, the Danish Mary. The Mary did not have a functioning radio, so that it was not until six days later, when the steamer reached Butt of Lewis, Scotland, that word was received that they were safe. Hawker and Grieve were awarded a consolation prize of £5,000 by the Daily Mail. Hawker later named his second daughter Mary after the ship that had rescued him and Grieve.

The Atlantic was found afloat and recovered by the US steamer Lake Charleville. "Medical examination led physicians to believe that Hawker had suffered a haemorrhage and that he had tried to get back down on the ground." Fire in the air and spinal tuberculosis were considered contributing factors to his death.

"The king sent a message of condolence, asserting 'The nation had lost one of its most distinguished airmen.'"

Hawker is buried in St Pauls' Church, Hook, Chessington, Surrey. He was survived by his wife, Muriel, and two daughters.

Honours In 1978, he was honoured with a postage stamp depicting his portrait issued by Australia Post. In addition five hundred commemorative First Day Covers were printed, many of which were purchased by the families of children attending the Moorabbin School.

In 1989, Moorabbin Airport at Mentone in Australia was renamed "Moorabbin (Harry Hawker) Airport"

In 2007, Kingston University London named the extension to their Roehampton Vale Campus the "Hawker Wing".

Moorabbin Primary School has named one of the school houses Hawker House in his honour.