REGARDING Perry Gourley's mention (LET, December 20) of aircraft companies which had 'shadow' factories in wartime Lancashire, one of them, Bristol, was the first to have Samlesbury aerodrome.

Also, Eric Leaver in 'Looking Back' (LET, December 6) mentioned your 'airlift' of newspapers from there in 1947 and Clarets fans flying from Samlesbury for the FA Cup final that year.

I was too young at the time to follow these events, but thinking of the flights had me wondering why members of St Peter's Church in Mill Hill, Blackburn, on their day trip to Lourdes last December, could not fly from Samlesbury.

As you can imagine, we would have found it reasonable as the charter company, Travel 2000, does not just fly from Manchester and local folk can almost walk to Samlesbury.

We often thought about organising a petition, or a group to push for flights from Samlesbury. But having an MP who is a government minister and Andre Rebello, a well-known coroner, with us on the first pilgrimage, they are in a better position to take Samlesbury back from the folk who are doing nowt with it bar considering building on it.

GORDON PADGETT, Bridgewater Court, Bath Street, Blackburn.

Converted for the new archive on 14 July 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.