Archibald Knight
Archibald Knight (1888-1960). Early Aviator.
1888 October 21st. Born at Harefield, Glos.
Archibald Knight Obituary [1]
WE record with regret the death, at Weybridge on January 17, of Archibald Knight, a pioneer of British flying. He was 72.
"Archie" Knight took his Aviator's Licence, No. 60, on February 14, 1911, at the Bristol Flying School, Brooklands. Soon afterwards he became an instructor at the Vickers School, and in 1914 joined the Royal Flying Corps, attaining the rank of Sergeant Major before being recalled to join Maxwell Muller in managing the Vickers works at Weybridge.
He was works manager there until he retired in 1936, but returned in 1939 to take charge of Wellington and Warwick repair.
The late Rex Pierson, Vickers' chief designer, said of him in a broadcast: "Archie Knight was a first-class instructor who believed in kicking any nervousness out of all pupils. I well remember an uncomfortable moment he gave me when suddenly he would deliberately knock the joystick out of my hand. 'That,' he would say, 'is to impress you with the effectiveness of the controls.'"