005 - Southampton to Cape Town

Debatable Question:

Which global interconnected network could be viewed as the most 'sustainable' to take holiday makers in the 1930s from the heart of a specific Empire to a distant colony?

Approaches to Learning

Communication Skills - Reading, writing and using language to gather and communicate information - Write for different purposes.

Activity One - To fly from Southampton to Cape Town

In 1923 the British government set up a committee to develop a viable form of air transport to develop British external air services. In practice this meant the merger of existing fleets of planes to develop the Imperial Airways Limited in 1924. With the merger Imperial Airways Limited inherited 1760 miles of air space but more was need to link Britain with her Empire.


  1. Your first task is to develop a historical account of the development of Imperial Airways. You will need to consider the following things:

Content

    • What is Imperial Airways?

    • Why was it developed?

    • What services did the airline provide?

    • How did the airline change over time?



Presentation

      • 500 word limit

      • Extended piece of writing

      • Bibliography is needed

How will I be assessed?

You will be assessed using Criterion A - Knowing and Understanding.

Activity Two - Devising a Route from Southampton to Cape Town

The year is 1937 and you are a route planner for the Imperial Airlines aviation company. You have been asked to devise a route between Southampton, England, and Cape Town, South Africa. Your route card will need to include the start and endpoint of each leg of the journey, along with the distance traveled, the duration (the time it takes for each leg), and the take-off and landing times.


Points to Consider

      • The flying boats can travel no more than 1200km before it needs to refuel.

      • They have a speed of about 300kmph.

      • The flying boats do not have a radar and therefore they can not fly at night.

      • 5 crew and 17 passengers can fit in the aeroplane.

      • The airline will begin to fly the route in March.

      • You are linking countries that were part of the British Empire - so which countries were 'friendly' in 1937?

Empire Flying Boats

The last African flying boat

Stage One - Investigating

Before you start this activity there are a few things that you should think about e.g. what question are you trying to answer? Where are you going to get your information from? What maps should you use? Complete a paper copy of the 'Investigation' sheet below.

Southampton to Cape Town - Investigating

Investigation - Southampton to Cape Town - Developed in collaboration with www.geographyalltheway.com

Stage Two - Create - Option A - Using Google Earth

You will be using Google Earth to create your route from Southampton, England to Cape Town, South Africa. Mr. Allaway has put together a number of YouTube presentations to help us in our endeavour. Initially search for Google Earth in your search engine and then sign in using your school email account. Once you are in you will be recording your route in Projects - which can be found on the left hand-side of Google Earth. Watch the two minute tutorial to get you started and then we will go through everything from Mr. Allaway using the YouTube clips below.

Points to Consider

      • The flying boats can travel no more than 1200km before it needs to refuel.

      • They have a speed of about 300kmph.

      • The flying boats do not have a radar and therefore they can not fly at night.

      • 5 crew and 17 passengers can fit in the aeroplane.

      • The airline will begin to fly the route in March.

      • You are linking countries that were part of the British Empire - so which countries were 'friendly' in 1937?

Documentation

  • Route will be completed on Google Earth - Projects.

  • Give each stopping point a title.

  • In the description box include:

      • Distance traveled.

      • How long it would take to travel that distance.

      • Take-off and Landing times.

      • Image of the landing site.

      • Whether the landing site is situated in a 'friendly' nation and why it is 'friendly'.

      • Something interesting about the landing site.

How will I be assessed?

You will be assessed on Criterion B - Investigating for the research document and Criterion A Knowledge and understanding and C - Communicating for the Google Earth Project.

Stage Two - Option B - Using ArcGIS

What to use

      • We will be using ArcGIS as it has a measurement tool.

      • Details of how to sign in and use ArcGIS can be found in the googledoc below. (firstname.surname and then the password is Nations2016) If you change the password, change it to your school one so that you will remember it.

      • The worksheet also runs you through the basics of how to use ArcGIS as this may be the first time you have used it. Make sure you complete all the tasks before you start planning your route.

An Introduction to ArcGIS Online

What to submit

      • Your 'Investigating' double sided A3 sheet.

      • You will submit the arcGIS storymap link with the route in order of where you stop.

      • A route card on arcGIS storymap journal that includes:

          • the start and end point of each leg of the journey,

          • the distance travelled,

          • the time it takes to travel

          • the times you land

          • what is being done at each stop

          • justification for stopping at each point

      • As you will have to stop at different places on route to refuel or to stay overnight, you will also need to prepare an itinerary of what you would do at each stopping point. Remember in 1937 the journey was part of the holiday! Think about the presentation of this - images are good to encourage people to travel and to illustrate your thoughts.