"The Jodhpur Flying Club" by Peter Vacher

Andy and I purchased this book in Jodhpur. It is an amazing documentary of the history of aviation in Jodhpur. It expains why my father was employed as private pilot to the Maharaja of Jodhpur.

In 1931, the then Maharaja, Umaid Singh, the one who built the pink palace, decided to start a flying club in Jodhpur. He hired Geoff Godwin, an Englishman as his flight instructor. Geoff moved out to India, stayed for 20 years and trained 40 members of the royal family and countless others as pilots.

Jodhpur actually played an important role in international aviation. It was a stop-off point in some of the early air-races between Europe and Australia…and during WWII Maharaja Umaid Singh turned his airport over to the RAF and US Air Force. It was from Jodhpur that pilots flew a very risky route “Over the Hump” to supply Allied troops in China and Burma. There were 1,200 men servicing aircraft in Jodhpur during the war. Geoff Godwin played an important role during this period.

After WWII the Jodhpur Flying Club was reactivated, under Geoff Godwin’s management, but it now had dozens of surplus planes to choose from. In 1947 Maharaja Umaid Singh died of appendicitis while out hunting. His son Hanwant Singh became the Maharajah. These were days when some of the royals delighted in “having fun” in aircraft, rather than playing it by the book. Peter Vacher reports that on the day that Hanwant Singh learned that he had won a landslide victory in the national elections, he jumped into his Beechcraft with a friend and took off. Geoff Godwin unsuccessfully tried to dissuade him. The intimation is that Geoff must have thought the Maharaja unfit to fly. Unfortunately the young Maharaja died along with his friend. They were apparently buzzing some animals and hit power cables.

Geoff Godwin was so distraught...and felt so responsible for the death of his young student Maharajah Hanwant Singh, that he left India and returned to England. Hanwant’s next brother, Himmat Singh became the Regent…the acting Maharaja until Hanwant’s three year old son Gaj (the current Maharaja) came of age. Himmat was an accomplished pilot, as were many family members, but their mother, the widow of Umaid Singh, apparently wielded great power, and refused to allow any of her children to fly alone.

Geoff Godwin and my father never met, but they were inextricably connected to the royal family and aviation in Jodhpur. The royal family of Jodhpur needed a private pilot. My father was chosen. He was expected to follow Geoff Godwin’s incredible legacy. That also explains why there were so many aircraft in hangers at the Jodhpur Airport when dad took over. Peter Vacher’s book actually lists 26 aircraft that were left behind when Geoff Godwin left Jodhpur.

The co-author of the book with Peter Vacher was Robert Godwin, grandson of Geoff Godwin. Andy and I will try to make contact with them.

Jodhpur, India

Andy and I returned from Jodhpur, India, last Thursday...and we are still suffering from jet lag after circumnavigating the earth in eight days. We accomplished my primary objective.

Meeting Rani..."the Rani Sahib of Jodhpur", aged 81, the widow of His Highness Himmat Singhji, Regent of Jodhpur, was such a sweet experience...an honor and a privilege. She was so gracious. She remembered my father Allan Robert Wegener (known to as Pops) with fondness and shared stories with us for two hours.

Rani then connected us with Kishor Singh, aged 80. My father mentioned Kishor many times in his memoirs. This meeting was completely unexpected and particularly poignant...because Kishor obviously loved my father...and said so many times. We talked
for two hours...and plan to keep the
communications open.

And we had dinner with the current Maharaja Gaj Singhji which was a memorable experience.

But our success was facilitated by Ann Newton Holmes, whom I have mentioned previously in this blog. None of this would have happened without Ann. There was no way to adequately thank her. But what was not expected...and really not totally revealed until we got home, was that Ann's husband Fred R. Holmes was possibly the world expert on Hindu architecture. it was not until I got into the book on the Umaid Bhawan Palace, authored by Fred and Ann that I discovered the depth of their knowledge and understanding of Hindu architecture.

Unfortunately Fred passed away last September, leaving Ann to complete arrangements for the publishing of their next book, which is about Chattris...Hindu Funerary Memorials. And it was Ann who led us on tours of the Umaid Bhawan Palace and the Mehrangarh Fort Palace. I really had no idea at the time, that there was no-one in this world better prepared to lead such tours. The same may be said about the Suttee, which my father witnessed, along with Rani and Kishor. No westerner knows more about Suttee, or is more respectful of the act, than Ann Holmes. Again...it was a privilege to have Ann invite us to India at this time and to have her take four days of her valuable time showing us around Johpur and introducing us to special people who knew my father.

Yes there were elements of our travel experience that I would not want to share with Kathie, but in general the trip was fabulous...and mission accomplished. The full report of our Indian Odyssey is available upon request.