Clutton FRED

All FREDs need such a pretty engine! It’s been quiet...

Thu, 24 May 2012 20:07:00 +0000

All FREDs need such a pretty engine!

It’s been quiet around here at Clutton FRED so I thought I’d share this great pic by Ian Mathias of Ron Webster and his FRED G-BMOO at Wycombe Air Park in 2009. G-BMOO sports Ron’s lovely Webster Whirlwind homebuilt radial engine.

Wouldn’t your FRED look fine with a round engine?

Clutton FRED is going to Oshkosh!

Fri, 27 Apr 2012 09:04:43 +0000

Clutton FRED is going to Oshkosh for Airventure 2012! No, I don’t expect to see an actual...

Building FRED...in miniature!

Fri, 13 Apr 2012 08:27:00 +0000

Eric Clutton is perhaps better known in the USA not as the designer/builder of the Clutton FRED, but...

G-ORAS was featured in these pages one month ago, but I just...

Tue, 10 Apr 2012 00:37:00 +0000

G-ORAS was featured in these pages one month ago, but I just spotted this photo and photographer David Marshall was kind enough to share a copy for the FRED Worldwide Photo Gallery. According to Dave, “This unlikely named type arrived for a ‘pit-stop’ on its journey from the Inverness area to the LAA Rally at Sywell” back in September 2010. A great shot of a great-looking FRED!

Happy birthday, Eric!

Wed, 28 Mar 2012 09:01:52 +0000

Happy birthday, Eric!: Happy birthday, Eric, 84 years young today! In honor of Eric and his...

Hi Matthew,
Keep up the good work!
Last time i saw Eric I was a lithe teenager in the early 60's. I have wanted to build a FRED or a Luton Minor, but the lithe teenager is now a slightly overweight OAP. ( 6ft 1" & 16st ). Would I fit in a FRED? Would it get off the ground with me on board? Are there lighter more modern engines that could be fitted to increase the load capacity? Are there any in Scotland I could go and see?
Thanks
Clive Brown
Ayrshire

Tue, 20 Mar 2012 23:33:29 +0000

Thanks, Clive, and while you’d want to keep your build as light as possible I don’t see...

Thanks to photographer Wallace Shackleton, here are some lovely...

Thu, 08 Mar 2012 21:41:00 +0000

Thanks to photographer Wallace Shackleton, here are some lovely photos of FRED G-ORAS in Perth, Scotland. Very few FREDs have enclosed engine cowlings—most builders seem to go for the Rube Goldberg look of exposed cylinders—but this one pulls it off nicely. G-INFO tells us that G-ORAS was started in 2001, completed in 2004 and is still owned by builder Alister Sutherland of Edderton, near Inverness.

As a bonus, Wallace also provided this intriguing photo of a FRED previously unknown to me, G-BNZR in Northern Ireland. In this case, G-INFO tells us that builder Robert Waugh of Belfast started G-BNZR in 1987, completed building in 1991 and owned the plane until it was de-registered in 2010. Since Wallace’s photo is from just last year, clearly this FRED is still being cared for, albeit without engine or prop. Who can tell us the rest of the story?

Evan Belworthy’s modified Clutton FRED ZK-FRD is no...

Mon, 09 Jan 2012 22:22:46 +0000

Evan Belworthy’s modified Clutton FRED ZK-FRD is no stranger to this site, previously featured in A New Zealand FRED turns 30! and The Beating Heart of ZK-FRD, not to mention several photos in the FRED Worldwide Photo Gallery. Despite some shaking from Mother Nature, here is a brand new video of ZK-FRD shot just yesterday. I’ll let Evan tell the story.

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year, pulled FRED out last night and took some video on the camera and then have posted it on YouTube. Hopefully you can use, just had a look at the FRED website, do like the NZ FREDs.

Christchurch where we are based has had another round of “after shocks,“ we seem to be settling down again.

Enjoyed the FRED flying last night, had the son on the camera and I just did some circuits to get the clip. FRED was keen to go and with the summer temps very pleasant. The flying is off the home strip.

Thanks very much, Evan, and Happy New Year to you and all the FRED fans everywhere!

Clutton FRED featured in EAA Light Plane World e-newsletter

Wed, 21 Dec 2011 23:49:00 +0000

Clutton FRED featured in EAA Light Plane World e-newsletter

Power to the people and FRED!

Wed, 14 Dec 2011 22:39:00 +0000

A recent Barnstormers ad caught my eye. Eric Herzog of Texas is selling a Continental A40 that had...

I stumbled across a treasure trove of Kiwi FRED facts and photos...

Fri, 09 Dec 2011 00:40:25 +0000

I stumbled across a treasure trove of Kiwi FRED facts and photos on the New Zealand Civil Aircraft blog by Keith Morris. Keith and his friend Dave Paull have graciously contributed six new photos of three Kiwi FREDS to the FRED Worldwide Photo Gallery: ZK-FRD, ZK-RSJ (ex-G-BSSJ) and—a new addition!—ZK-ELJ, later repainted and reregistered as ZK-LXA. Read Clutton-Tabenor FREDs of New Zealand on Keith’s blog for a little history on all three planes. Thanks very much, gents!

Photos: A Kiwi FRED bonanza! Courtesy of Keith Morris and Dave Paull.

Wonderful article by a FRED fan

Tue, 06 Dec 2011 08:17:00 +0000

Steve Slater is the caretaker of a real treasure—a 1947 Tipsy Trainer. Not only is the Tipsy...

Clutton FRED is now on Facebook!

Mon, 05 Dec 2011 13:33:16 +0000

Clutton FRED is now on Facebook!: Moving www.cluttonfred.info to Tumblr has allowed me to add the...

A new beginning

Sat, 03 Dec 2011 18:37:00 +0000

Eric Clutton’s original FRED has gone through many iterations over the years—changing engine...

FRED in need of wings

Fri, 18 Nov 2011 00:00:00 +0000

Jon Bright dropped me a line to let me know of another FRED taking shape in England. Jon writes,...

We've got video!

Sun, 23 Oct 2011 00:00:00 +0000

Thanks to Mike Perkins for sharing nearly an hour of footage of his FRED G-PFAF and to Pete Moore...

Air-to-air FRED footage

Sat, 22 Oct 2011 00:00:00 +0000

This YouTube clip is the only air-to-air footage I have seen of a FRED in flight. I can’t be...

Neil Dykes taxis G-USTY

Fri, 21 Oct 2011 00:00:00 +0000

Neil Dykes has been restoring the cheekily registered G-USTY. I love the early WWII RAF trainer...

Another virtual FRED!

Thu, 20 Oct 2011 00:00:00 +0000

Well, it’s been quite some time since my last post here but after a sleepy period interest in FRED...

Chatting about landing gear

Sat, 26 Feb 2011 00:00:00 +0000

Rob Thomas is in the process of restoring Clutton FRED G-BMMF to its former glory near Cardiff in...