doing,” I said. “I’d like to have a look at one in the shop.”
“We’ll go out in a moment,” he replied. “There are just one or two things I’d like to clear up first. What’s the name of your company?”
“I haven’t got a company,” I said. “There’s nobody in this but me.”
He was a little taken aback, I think. “You mean, you’re trading as an individual?”
“That’s right.”
“You’re doing charter work?”
“That’s right,” I said. “I’ve got a Fox-Moth, but I want something a bit bigger now.”
“Just one Fox-Moth?” He was smiling, but in quite a nice sort of way.
“Just one Fox-Moth,” I said firmly. “Maybe you’d think more of me if I’d got fifty thousand pounds of other people’s money, and a dozen disposals Haltons, and a staff of three hundred, and a company, and a thumping loss. As it is, I’ve got just one Fox-Moth and a thumping profit. Show you my accounts if you like.”
“Have you got them here?”
I pulled the envelope from my pocket, and unfolded the various papers; the accounts certified by the Iraqui accountant in Bahrein up to three days before I left, together with the complete schedule of the jobs I’d done, the hours flown on each, and the payments received to balance with the income side of the accounts. “I’m showing you these,” I said, “because I want to buy an Airtruck if it’s the aeroplane I think it is, and I’ve not got enough money to pay for it.”
“Fine,” he said. “I wish some of my other clients came to the point so quickly.”
He ran his eye over my papers, and I saw his eyebrows rise once or twice. He did not take more than a couple of minutes over it; it was clear that he was very well accustomed to this sort of thing. “On the face of it, that’s a very good showing, Mr. Cutter,” he said. “I don’t suppose many Fox-Moth operators can show profits like that.”
“I don’t suppose many Fox-Moth operators work as hard as I’ve worked,” I said.
“You do all the maintenance yourself, as well as the piloting and the business?”
“That’s right.”
“I see.” He thought for a minute. “I take it that if you bought an Airtruck you would want credit.”
I nodded. “I’d want a hire purchase agreement, over a year.”
“Could you find anyone to guarantee your payments?”
“No,” I said firmly. “I’ve got no rich friends. I’ve got the record there of what I do, and that shows I can keep up the payments. If we can’t do business for an Airtruck upon those terms I’ll have to go elsewhere, and buy a cheaper aeroplane.”
“I see.” He took up the papers. “We’ll go outside and you can have a look at an Airtruck, and talk to our test pilots, Mr. Cutter. They’ll be interested to hear about your operations in the Persian Gulf. While we’re doing that, would you mind if our secretary has a look at these figures of yours?”
“Not a bit,” I said, “so long as they’re kept confidential. I wouldn’t want any other operator to see them.”
He left me for a time and took my papers out of the room with him; when he came back we went out to see the Airtruck. He took me through the works; there were a lot of Airtrucks there on an assembly line, and there were two or three new ones in the flight hangar, unsold. They could give delivery at once. If I’d been able to pay cash I’d have got one at a discount off list price, I’m sure.
I spent a couple of hours going over the machine from nose to tail, and had a short flight in one with a test pilot. When I had finished, I knew that that was the machine I wanted for the Gulf. It had a big, wide cabin with low loading, high wing which would keep the cabin cool upon the ground in the tropical sun, and full blind-flying instruments. With the addition of a small V.H.F. radio set it made an aeroplane that would take a ton of load anywhere, and very cheaply. I knew that I could make money with that out in the Gulf, and I knew that I
“We’ll go out in a moment,” he replied. “There are just one or two things I’d like to clear up first. What’s the name of your company?”
“I haven’t got a company,” I said. “There’s nobody in this but me.”
He was a little taken aback, I think. “You mean, you’re trading as an individual?”
“That’s right.”
“You’re doing charter work?”
“That’s right,” I said. “I’ve got a Fox-Moth, but I want something a bit bigger now.”
“Just one Fox-Moth?” He was smiling, but in quite a nice sort of way.
“Just one Fox-Moth,” I said firmly. “Maybe you’d think more of me if I’d got fifty thousand pounds of other people’s money, and a dozen disposals Haltons, and a staff of three hundred, and a company, and a thumping loss. As it is, I’ve got just one Fox-Moth and a thumping profit. Show you my accounts if you like.”
“Have you got them here?”
I pulled the envelope from my pocket, and unfolded the various papers; the accounts certified by the Iraqui accountant in Bahrein up to three days before I left, together with the complete schedule of the jobs I’d done, the hours flown on each, and the payments received to balance with the income side of the accounts. “I’m showing you these,” I said, “because I want to buy an Airtruck if it’s the aeroplane I think it is, and I’ve not got enough money to pay for it.”
“Fine,” he said. “I wish some of my other clients came to the point so quickly.”
He ran his eye over my papers, and I saw his eyebrows rise once or twice. He did not take more than a couple of minutes over it; it was clear that he was very well accustomed to this sort of thing. “On the face of it, that’s a very good showing, Mr. Cutter,” he said. “I don’t suppose many Fox-Moth operators can show profits like that.”
“I don’t suppose many Fox-Moth operators work as hard as I’ve worked,” I said.
“You do all the maintenance yourself, as well as the piloting and the business?”
“That’s right.”
“I see.” He thought for a minute. “I take it that if you bought an Airtruck you would want credit.”
I nodded. “I’d want a hire purchase agreement, over a year.”
“Could you find anyone to guarantee your payments?”
“No,” I said firmly. “I’ve got no rich friends. I’ve got the record there of what I do, and that shows I can keep up the payments. If we can’t do business for an Airtruck upon those terms I’ll have to go elsewhere, and buy a cheaper aeroplane.”
“I see.” He took up the papers. “We’ll go outside and you can have a look at an Airtruck, and talk to our test pilots, Mr. Cutter. They’ll be interested to hear about your operations in the Persian Gulf. While we’re doing that, would you mind if our secretary has a look at these figures of yours?”
“Not a bit,” I said, “so long as they’re kept confidential. I wouldn’t want any other operator to see them.”
He left me for a time and took my papers out of the room with him; when he came back we went out to see the Airtruck. He took me through the works; there were a lot of Airtrucks there on an assembly line, and there were two or three new ones in the flight hangar, unsold. They could give delivery at once. If I’d been able to pay cash I’d have got one at a discount off list price, I’m sure.
I spent a couple of hours going over the machine from nose to tail, and had a short flight in one with a test pilot. When I had finished, I knew that that was the machine I wanted for the Gulf. It had a big, wide cabin with low loading, high wing which would keep the cabin cool upon the ground in the tropical sun, and full blind-flying instruments. With the addition of a small V.H.F. radio set it made an aeroplane that would take a ton of load anywhere, and very cheaply. I knew that I could make money with that out in the Gulf, and I knew that I
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