In August 1909 George became an active member of the Royal Aero Club of the United Kingdom and learned to fly on a Voisin biplane called "Bird of Passage" which he had bought from J.T.C. Moore-Brabazon, holder of Aviator's Certificate no. 1; he later sold the "Bird of Passage" to Cecil Grace. He designed and built his own aeroplane, which featured hollow spars, a steerable tail-wheel and unique 'triplicate control column which controlled not only roll and pitch but also yaw. The control column has been preserved and is on display at the Discovery Museum in Newcastle upon Tyne. On 6 September 1910 he gained Aviator's Certificate no. 19 flying this prototype aircraft. Front and side elevation views of his aircraft, which was displayed at the Olympia Exhibition in 1910, can be found in the Flight Magazine archive. Later the same year he crashed it at an Air display in Newcastle; his application to the banks for more funds to continue designing and building aircraft was refused on the grounds that it was too dangerous; after this setback, he concentrated his efforts on customising and selling cars.