The Flying Inventor - Allen Millyard's amazing machine
I had the absolute pleasure of chatting to Allen Millyard at the National Motorcycle Museum about his amazing Flying Millyard Motorcycle. It could be described as beautifully bonkers or a modern-day homage to yesteryear, but this machine was a hand-built concept bike from a man with a massive imagination.
“I found this five litre V-Twin aeroplane engine on Ebay and decided to build a bike around it,” said Allen. The massive air-cooled Pratt & Witney Wasp R1340 aircraft cylinders started out forming part of a nine-cylinder radial aero power plant, before former MoD engineer Millyard bought them for just £100. Crafted in his Berkshire garage, this quirky concept bike has been one of many projects since his retirement.
You could almost imagine Dick Van Dyke astride this machine, flying through the air in a remake of Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, yet this machine is road legal and Allen has travelled over 7500 miles turning heads as he goes.
Millyard built the 4,894cc engine by bolting the Wasp cylinders to crankcases that he designed himself. He wanted to sculpt a bike with the essence vintage styling but with the heart of modern power. “I built it not with performance in mind but to ride it sedately, watch the world go by and toot the horn occasionally,” he says.
This bike has got to be the biggest taste of marmite you’ll ever find; you’ll love it or you’ll hate it, but you’ll have the utmost respect for a huge hearted man with a huge vision, who has the biggest balls to break all boundaries. I salute you sir.
Watch it fired up at The National Motorcycle Museum https://youtu.be/NruR23KVnwQ