Ian Smith RIP

Ian Smith’s daughter Kat Eves has contacted us with the sad news that her father Ian (John) Smith passed away on 22nd January 2020.

His funeral will be on Friday 14th February, 11:45 am, at Chiltern/Amersham Crematorium.

Kat sent this photograph.

Ian Smith was in the Photographic Department, and spent a lot of his time overseas.  He was a regular at the Maidenhead reunion, and a few years ago he gave us a set of photographs, unfortunately not annotated, which we put on the website (link below).  Most of them are overseas photographs, which definitely look like the good life in the South of France or Morocco, except perhaps for the battered aircraft!

https://www.faireysurveys.co.uk/from-ian-smith/

Aerial photography in Jamaica 1979/80

We have a request for information from the National Land Agency in Jamaica, asking for information on the aerial photography taken by Fairey Surveys in Jamaica in 1979/80:

Good day,
I was directed to your office having tried both the UK Ordinance Survey  and the Bodleian Library of Commonwealth & African Studies at Rhodes House without the required success.  I write therefore, requesting your assistance in providing a copy of the camera report for camera/cameras that were used by Fairey Surveys when they flew aerial photographs at a scale of 1/50,000 for the then Survey Department of Jamaica between December 1979 to February 1980. The reports are needed to help inform the standards on aerial photography for a new project presently underway dealing with land cover change detection in which the aerials which were taken during the aforementioned period are being used.

The UK Ordinance Survey, through whom the job may have been contracted to BKS Surveys (who inturn subcontracted to your company), indicated that they no longer keep those records. Seeing that your company did flights on the project it is our hope that you would still have some of the information among your records.

Please indicate whether you are able to assist with the provision of same. The cameras used were RC8, Len 15 UAG356, P.D. 152.46. Any help provided would be greatly appreciated.

Regards,
Milton Saunders
Manager, Mapping Services
National Land Agency
23 1/2 Charles Street
Kingston, Jamaica.

milton.saunders@nla.gov.jm

If you have any information that might be useful, please contact Mr Saunders direct.  If you think someone else might have useful information, please use the Contact form to let us know.