<p>Members of Halton and District Model Flying Club learned with much sadness of the death of their Club Honorary President Norman Martindale who passed away in hospital on May 5th 2016 after a short illness. Norman had faced challenging health problems in recent years with characteristic stoicism and courage. The loss of a leg and subsequent use of a prosthetic did nothing to deter him from living his life and pursuing his hobby to the full.</p>
<p>Norman became interested in model flying as a small boy during WW2. He was a keen participant in all aspects of his hobby from competitive free flight to the emerging radio control models. He was called up to do his National Service in the RAF but this two year hiatus did not dampen his enthusiasm for model flying. As a trained carpenter, his building skill was impressive and and example to his fellow fliers. Around this time he became a founder member of Widness MFC and a lifelong member of the SMAE/BMFA. He was always ready to serve on club committee in any capacity.</p>
<p>following the demise of Widnes MFC, Norman and his friends moved to Halton and District MFC where he has been a source of inspiration to the club. A stickler for protocol and 'doing it the right way' he guided the club when the need arose. Most of our club members benefitted from Norman's encylopaedic knowledge of facts and figures, the right type of motor, battery. CG position or a myriad of other issues. In later years Norman embraced Electric Flight with great gusto and seemed to grasp the mysteries of matching brushless motors, batteries, et cetera to any model. This had been a great resource to his friends who struggle with this 'black art'. At club meetings he was always ready to demonstrate his skills on covering models, wood selection, soldering techniques and lots more.</p>
<p>More recently Norman has become enthused with single channel again harking back to his early years of RC. To this end, he built his own Tx operating on 2.4ghz. He flew A 'Just Junior' model guided by this radio last year at the single channel meeting in Pontefract and was looking forward greatly to this years events. Some of the models he built became club models as others on seeing how well this flew, and produced their own 'Liddlesticks, 'Sharkfaces' and 'Junior 60s'. he even persuaded me to build and fly a rubber powered 'Cloud Tramp' for the mass launch of 2004.</p>
<p>Norman will be greatly missed by his widow Dorothy and sons Chris and Simon. Our club is diminished by his going but enriched by his former presence. We will all miss him.</p>
<p>Ken Morris</p>
