K.34, the airplane flown by Markham, carried two auxiliary fuel tanks in the passenger compartment, for a total capacity of 255 gallons (965.3 liters). The standard airplane had an empty weight of 1,740 pounds (789.25 kilograms) and loaded weight of 3,250 pounds (1,474.2 kilograms). The airplane was 25 feet, 6 inches (7.772 meters) long with a wingspan of 39 feet, 6 inches (12.040 meters) and height of 7 feet, 4 inches (2.235 meters). Known as the K-series, it was a development of the previous D-series Gull Six. (HistoryNet)ĭesigned by Edgar Percival and built by Percival Aircraft Limited at Gravesend, the P.10 Vega Gull was a four-place, single engine monoplane with fixed landing gear. Beryl Markham with the Percival P.10 Gull, VP-KCC. He loaned the airplane to her for the transatlantic flight on condition that she would return it to England by mid-September, in time for the start of the race. Markham, serial number K.34, was brand-new, built for John Evans Carberry (formerly, 10th Baron Carbery) for his entry in The Schlesinger air race from London, England, to Johannesburg, South Africa. Her intended destination was New York City, across the Atlantic Ocean in America. (Library of Congress)Ĥ–5 September 1936: At 6:50 p.m., British Summer Time, Beryl Markham departed RAF Abingdon, Oxfordshire, England, aboard a turquoise blue and silver Percival P.10 Vega Gull, registration VP-KCC. Beryl Markham steps out of the cockpit of the Percival Vega Gull, probably late August 1936.
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