M.Goodall, A.Tagg British Aircraft before the Great War (Schiffer)
Deleted by request of (c)Schiffer Publishing
PEMBERTON BILLING aircraft (Noel Pemberton Billing)
Pemberton Billing's early activities in aviation began in 1903-1904 with a manlifting kite or glider (PB.0). He then built three variations of a small monoplane, one using a rotary motor of his own design (PB.l). On the second of these he lifted off the ground in 1909, but crashed and was injured.
In 1909 Billing was responsible for the abortive attempt to create an aerodrome, with factory and support facilities, at Fambridge in Essex. This was a failure owing to the nature of the ground and its remoteness. Later, apart from editing a magazine, he turned his activities back to boats, for which he had facilities at Woolston, Southampton from 1912. Late in 1913 he again turned to aeronautical, work with the design of a small flying boat PB.l (PB.7) using the name Supermarine for the first time.
Following the lack of success of this and other types, and little official interest, he gradually gave up his interest in the company, the responsibility for which was taken over by his works manager, Hubert Scott Paine, as the Supermarine Aviation Works Ltd. in 1916.
The identification of Pemberton Billing types is confused by the renumbering that took place retrospectively; the bracketed number is the later identity.
PEMBERTON BILLING glider (PB.0)
This was a triangular kite on which PB tried to glide from the roof of his house at East Grinstead in 1904.