Matthew Lamb felt it needed to be ‘preserved and shared’
13:34, 10 Sep 2026
The rare photograph showing Amy Johnson training with flying instructor Captain Valentine Baker(Image: UndercoverDrone)
A photographer from Hull who unearthed a previously unreleased photograph of Amy Johnson has spoken about his excitement at the find. Matthew Lamb, co-founder of local photography page, UndercoverDrone, said he bought the picture when it came from a local collection that had been sold on.
“I immediately thought it was worth further research, which eventually led to the discovery of its significance,” said Matthew. “Dr David Marchant, museums and archives manager from East Riding Council, helped verify that it’s a rare, pre-1930 look at Amy Johnson before she even had her licence.”
Matthew said he believed the rare, standalone vintage photograph had never been seen by the public before. The photo captures a young Amy smiling from the cockpit of a de Havilland Moth biplane at Stag Lane Aerodrome, alongside her flying instructor, Captain Valentine Baker.
The training took place between September 1928 and July 1929, right before Amy’s history-making solo flight to Australia. “Unlike the standard archival press images from that day, this is a completely unique photograph taken from an independent, unpublished angle,” said Matthew.
“I have already digitally scanned and physically authenticated the print—the reverse side features the period-correct, 1929-era oval ‘Velox’ backing stamp and original darkroom negative numbers. As a local photographer, it’s incredibly exciting to bring a new piece of Amy Johnson’s history back to her home town.”
Matthew posted the photo on UndercoverDrone but hoped to cast an even wider net to get it in front of more eyes. “Finding an artefact with this level of local historical significance felt incredibly surreal.
“When you hold a piece of history like that, you immediately realise it is something that needs to be preserved and shared, rather than hidden away. It is a rare privilege to come across something so unique, and it definitely brings a strong sense of responsibility to ensure its story is told correctly.”
A post about the find on UndercoverDrone said: “Here is our rare, completely unseen photograph of Hull’s legendary aviation pioneer, often called the ‘Queen of the Air’, Amy Johnson! This incredible shot captures Amy during her very first months of flying lessons at the famous Stag Lane Aerodrome in late 1928 / early 1929.
“She is pictured sitting in a Cirrus II Moth alongside her tutor, the iconic flying instructor Captain Valentine Baker. At this exact moment in time, Amy was a young secretary who had moved to London.
“She wrote in the spring of 1928, ‘I’m going to learn flying! I’m joining the London Aeroplane Club, and then I can get tuition and always use their aeroplanes.’ By 13th October 1928, she had completed six lessons.
Of Amy’s first ten lessons, five were with Baker and five with Captain Matthews, the junior instructor. Spending an hour a week at Stag Lane and the rest of her time in the office (her salary was £5 a week), she worked towards her ‘A’ licence, completely unaware that she would soon become the first woman to fly solo from England to Australia in 1930.
“Her instructor, Valentine Baker, was one of the most respected pilots of the era. A decorated First World War hero who flew with the RFC, RNAS, and RAF, he later went on to co-found the world-famous Martin-Baker Aircraft Company, revolutionising pilot safety (he sadly died during a prototype test flight for the company in 1942.) They went on to invent the ejection seat and still manufacture them to this day.”
The post continued: “To do justice to this piece of history, a high-resolution, archival digital scan was produced and sourced directly from the original vintage Kodak Velox photo paper preserved within our private collection. A copy of this high-res digital scan has been officially shared with the Amy Johnson Collection at Sewerby Hall so they can preserve it and credit it in their future museum displays.
“Because Amy herself famously opened Sewerby Hall to the public back in 1936, it felt only right to gift a copy of this training photo to their permanent archive.”
Matthew has been running UndercoverDrone with his co-founder, Ryan, since 2023. He said: “Moving forward, our main hope for the page is to expand our aerial drone photography and videography to showcase our region, while continuing to capture local interest.
“We really want to use modern drone technology and ground cameras to show off the beauty and history of our region across Hull and East Yorkshire, documenting both current projects and historical sites from angles people rarely get to see. Our roots here run incredibly deep – I grew up in East Yorkshire and Ryan is Hull born and bred.
“Being so deeply tied to the community is exactly what drives our work at UndercoverDrone. Finding a historical photograph like this feels deeply personal because it directly connects to the heritage of the places we have known and loved our entire lives.”
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