Victor Mahl
Encyclopedia
Victor Mahl was an early English aviator and Chief Mechanic of the Sopwith Aviation Company
.
Mahl was born in Twickenham
in Middlesex, England on 28 October 1889. By 1911 he was a motor engineer and he became the Chief Engineer to the Sopwith Aviation Company
. Mahl married Winifred Day in 1912 in Wolverhampton. He worked as Howard Pixton
's engineer when he won the 1914 Schneider Trophy
.
On 14 May 1914 Mahl obtained his aviators licence flying a Sopwith Biplane at Brooklands. Mahl test flew Sopwith aircraft and on 1 November 1914 he crashed into Southampton Water flying a Sopwith seaplane. The passenger and designer of the aircraft R. Austen was killed but Mahl was rescued from water clinging to one of the upturned floats.
On 2 April 1915 while he was at Southampton testing seaplanes he died after an operation for appendicitis
.
Sopwith Aviation Company
The Sopwith Aviation Company was a British aircraft company that designed and manufactured aeroplanes mainly for the British Royal Naval Air Service, Royal Flying Corps and later Royal Air Force in the First World War, most famously the Sopwith Camel...
.
Mahl was born in Twickenham
Twickenham
Twickenham is a large suburban town southwest of central London. It is the administrative headquarters of the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames and one of the locally important district centres identified in the London Plan...
in Middlesex, England on 28 October 1889. By 1911 he was a motor engineer and he became the Chief Engineer to the Sopwith Aviation Company
Sopwith Aviation Company
The Sopwith Aviation Company was a British aircraft company that designed and manufactured aeroplanes mainly for the British Royal Naval Air Service, Royal Flying Corps and later Royal Air Force in the First World War, most famously the Sopwith Camel...
. Mahl married Winifred Day in 1912 in Wolverhampton. He worked as Howard Pixton
Howard Pixton
Sopwith test pilot C Howard Pixton won the 1914 Schneider Trophy air race held in Monacoflying a Sopwith Tabloid seaplane powered by a 100 hp Gnome 9V rotary engine, completing the race at an average speed of 86.83 miles per hour. The trophy was then moved to the British Royal Aero...
's engineer when he won the 1914 Schneider Trophy
Schneider Trophy
The Coupe d'Aviation Maritime Jacques Schneider was a prize competition for seaplanes. Announced by Jacques Schneider, a financier, balloonist and aircraft enthusiast, in 1911, it offered a prize of roughly £1,000. The race was held eleven times between 1913 and 1931...
.
On 14 May 1914 Mahl obtained his aviators licence flying a Sopwith Biplane at Brooklands. Mahl test flew Sopwith aircraft and on 1 November 1914 he crashed into Southampton Water flying a Sopwith seaplane. The passenger and designer of the aircraft R. Austen was killed but Mahl was rescued from water clinging to one of the upturned floats.
On 2 April 1915 while he was at Southampton testing seaplanes he died after an operation for appendicitis
Appendicitis
Appendicitis is a condition characterized by inflammation of the appendix. It is classified as a medical emergency and many cases require removal of the inflamed appendix, either by laparotomy or laparoscopy. Untreated, mortality is high, mainly because of the risk of rupture leading to...
.