Ron Flockhart (racing driver)

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Ron Flockhart (racing driver) bigraphy, stories - British racing driver

Ron Flockhart (racing driver) : biography

16 June 1923 – 12 April 1962

Ron Flockhart (16 June 1923, Edinburgh – 12 April 1962, Dandenong Ranges, Victoria, Australia) was a Scottish racing driver. He participated in 14 World Championship Formula One Grands Prix, achieving one podium finish and won the 24 Hours of Le Mans sportscar race twice.

Record flight attempts and death

In the early 1960s the United Dominions Trust made plans to break the record for the time taken to fly from Sydney to London in order to gain publicity for its UDT Laystall racing team. A Commonwealth Aircraft Corporation-built Mustang World War Two fighter was purchased in Australia and Flockhart was engaged to make the attempt. Flockhart departed Sydney in the Mustang, registered G-ARKD, on 28 February 1961 and after several delays due to bad weather finally ended the attempt at Athens due to engine problems. Flockhart subsequently entered the London-Cardiff Air Race to be held in June that year but withdrew because G-ARKD was still in Athens. G-ARKD was abandoned and another CAC Mustang, registered VH-UWB, was bought in Australia for Flockhart to make a second attempt at the Sydney-London record. On 12 April 1962, while on a test flight in preparation for the record attempt, Flockhart crashed VH-UWB in poor weather near Kallista, Victoria and was killed.Anderson, Peter N. Mustangs of the RAAF and RNZAF. A. H. & A. W. Reed Pty. Ltd. Terry Hills, Sydney, NSW 1975. ISBN 0-589-07130-0

Formula One World Championship results

(key)

Year Entrant Chassis Engine 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 WDC Pts.
1954 "B. Bira" Maserati 250F Maserati Straight-6 ARG 500 BEL FRA GBRRet* GER SUI ITA ESP NC 0
1956 Owen Racing Organisation BRM P25 BRM L4 ARG MON 500 BEL FRA GBRRet GER 14th 4
Connaught Engineering Connaught B Type Alta L4 ITA3
1957 Owen Racing Organisation BRM P25 BRM L4 ARG MONRet 500 FRARet GBR GER PES ITA NC 0
1958 Owen Racing Organisation BRM P25 BRM L4 ARG MONDNQ NED 500 BEL FRA GBR GER POR ITA MORRet NC 0
1959 Owen Racing Organisation BRM P25 BRM L4 MONRet 500 NED FRA6 GBRRet GER POR7 ITA13 USA NC 0
1960 Team Lotus Lotus 18 Climax L4 ARG MON 500 NED BEL FRA6 GBR POR ITA 25th 1
Cooper Car Company Cooper T51 Climax L4 USARet
  • Shared drive with Prince Bira

Racing career

Flockhart started competing in 1951 in a Joe Potts Formula 3 car. He purchased the famous ERA R4D from Raymond Mays and in 1953 had a very successful season, beating one of the works BRMs at Goodwood. With podium finishes at Goodwood, Charterhall, Snetterton and Crystal Palace, as well as several hill climb successes, his rise to prominence had begun.

In 1956, driving for the small Scottish team Ecurie Ecosse, he won the 1956 24 Hours of Le Mans, sharing an ex-works Jaguar D-type with Ninian Sanderson. The following year he won again for the same team, this time sharing with Ivor Bueb, setting a distance record of .The Times-Picayune, New Orleans, 12 June 1961, p. 34.