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Blue Heritate Defender 110

About wallis
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A brief introduction

Wallis Defenders are part of the Wallis & Son Ltd group. We have been in the motor trade since 1937, but more importantly we have been specialising in Land Rovers for over 3 decades (we even used to be a Land Rover dealers in the 60's). Our main priority is offering you a one stop hub for anything Land Rover including servicing, modifications and a vast selection for sale.

A family run business in the
motor trade since 1937.

From the beginning

We celebrated 80 years in the motor business in 2017, but our illustrious history goes back quite a bit further than that and spans more than the motor car trade. The beginning of the Wallis family’s interest in motoring can be traced back more than 100 years, with Cambridge brothers Horace & Percy Wallis and their interest in cycles and monoplanes.

On the move

During the 1960s, Wallis & Son was transitioned to Cambridge from our previous Newmarket location. In 1986 we once again moved to our current location on Cambridge Road, Barton. Over the years we have been involved in many projects including car sales, wedding cars, car rentals, petrol/ charging station, American foods, convenience store and much more.

Wallis Defenders, a new, exciting
challenge

Wallis & Land Rover

In the 60s we were a Land Rover dealer which means that we've got a long history with the brand. We've also had over 3 decades of specialising specifically in Land Rover. There are few places that can boast such a long-standing relationship with the Land Rover brand; we believe this makes us rather unique.

Wallis Defenders

Our aim now is to bring you the best possible Land Rover services imaginable, from services to re-builds. We already have a large portfolio of Land Rover re-builds that you can see on our project & build page, or you can have a look at our current Land Rovers for sale on our stock page.

The History of Ken Wallis &
the Story Behind GYRO

Ken Wallis

Born on the 26th of April 1916 Kenneth Horatio Wallis was born in Ely, Cambridgeshire, in the east of England close to where you will find Wallis Defenders now based.

He was a keen inventor, a fantastic British aviator and an engineer. At only the age of 11 Ken had a curious interest in Mechanics, extraordinarily building a motorcycle at this very young age.

When war broke out Ken was determined to help his country therefore joining the Royal Air Force, completing 28 bomber missions over Germany and serving an extraordinary 25 years spanning from 1939-1964. Later being ranked as a Wing Commander for his senior expertise and strong leadership qualities.

New Adventures

After he cut ties with the RAF he moved on to producing Gyrocopters, contributing to the design including the “offset gimbal rotor head” changing the design forever, these were all being produced by “Wallis Autogyros LTD” which was run by his cousin Geoff Wallis the grandfather to the current generation behind Wallis Defenders and the new brand GYRO.

In 1967 Wallis was selected to be Sean Connery’s stunt pilot in the James Bond film “you only live twice” flying his signature Autogyro ” Little Nellie ” which required more than 80 action shots.

An impressive life

Over the years Wallis earned an incredible 34 world records for his work for gyrocopters, and in 1996 he received one of his proudest achievements receiving the MBE. Furthermore in July of 2013 he received a campaign medal for his heroic efforts in World War 2.

At the age of 97 he sadly passed away on the 1st of September 2013. A memorial service was held in Old Buckenhan Airport which an expected 500 people would attend, but an extraordinary estimated 4000 people attended showing how many people’s lives he had positively affected from his brave efforts in the war to his keen intelligence as an inventor.

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