Daimler Airway was an airline subsidiary of the
Birmingham Small Arms Company (BSA)'s Daimler Company
The Daimler Company Limited ( ), prior to 1910 The Daimler Motor Company Limited, was an independent British motor vehicle manufacturer founded in London by H. J. Lawson in 1896, which set up its manufacturing base in Coventry. The compan ...
. It was created to use some of the assets of the failed ventures
Airco
The Aircraft Manufacturing Company Limited (Airco) was an early United Kingdom, British aircraft manufacturer. Established during 1912, it grew rapidly during the First World War, referring to itself as the largest aircraft company in the wor ...
and its subsidiary,
Aircraft Transport and Travel
Aircraft Transport and Travel Limited was a British airline formed during the First World War, a subsidiary of Airco. It was the first airline to operate a regular international flight (between London and Paris).
History
On 5 October 1916, Airc ...
, which was acquired by BSA in February 1920.
History
Daimler Company established Daimler Air Hire as a private air hire company on 7 June 1919.
Daimler Hire
Daimler Hire Limited provided a luxury chauffeur-driven Daimler limousine-hire-service from Knightsbridge in London. Incorporated in 1919 to take over the operations of Daimler's hire department, Daimler Hire was a subsidiary of Daimler Company. ...
's managing director was Lieutenant Colonel
Frank Searle CB,
DSO, who had also been a senior manager of Daimler prior to his war service. During the
First World War
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
Daimler had acquired considerable aviation experience manufacturing
aero engines and aircraft, including bombers. They built
Gnome Monosoupape
The ''Monosoupape'' ( French for single-valve), was a rotary engine design first introduced in 1913 by Gnome Engine Company (renamed Gnome et Rhône in 1915). It used a clever arrangement of internal transfer ports and a single pushrod-operated ...
and
Le Rhone engines under Airco's licence. The last wartime aircraft Daimler produced was the
Airco DH.10 Amiens bomber when they were building 80 aeroplanes a month. Their own test-ground beside the Daimler factory had been compulsorily purchased to become the main
RAF
The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) and ...
testing ground for aircraft built in the Coventry district.
[Lord Montagu and David Burgess-Wise ''Daimler Century'' ; Stephens 1995 ]
Airco and Aircraft Transport and Travel
In February 1920 the BSA group acquired
Holt Thomas's failing
Airco
The Aircraft Manufacturing Company Limited (Airco) was an early United Kingdom, British aircraft manufacturer. Established during 1912, it grew rapidly during the First World War, referring to itself as the largest aircraft company in the wor ...
group and placed Airco subsidiary
Aircraft Transport and Travel
Aircraft Transport and Travel Limited was a British airline formed during the First World War, a subsidiary of Airco. It was the first airline to operate a regular international flight (between London and Paris).
History
On 5 October 1916, Airc ...
(Air Express) under the responsibility of Searle and Daimler Hire. In November 1920 BSA withdrew its financial support and AT&T, Air Express was placed in the hands of a liquidator.
Daimler Airway
![DH34 Biplane 1](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/1d/DH34_Biplane_1.jpg)
In February 1921 those assets needed to form a new business to continue Air Express were purchased from the liquidator (Searle) to form what became Daimler Airway. When tenders were called by the Air Ministry for civil air services Searle and Woods Humphery persuaded the BSA-Daimler group to make a tender. It was accepted by the Air Ministry on 9 September 1921.
[Robin Higham, ''Britain's Imperial Air Routes 1918 to 1939,'' 1960, G T Foulis & Co, London]
Searle remained managing director. Major George E Woods Humphery, an engineer and a former RFC pilot and general manager of Handley-Page Transport from June 1919, was appointed manager of Daimler Airway.
[
Beginning in April 1922 Daimler Airway, became the first company to operate ]de Havilland DH.34
The de Havilland DH.34 was a single engined British biplane airliner built by the de Havilland Aircraft Company in the 1920s. 12 were built, with the DH.34 serving with Imperial Airways and its predecessors for several years.
Design and develo ...
single-engined cabin biplanes. A total of six were operated, the first (registration G-EBBQ), flying from Croydon Airport
Croydon Airport (former ICAO code: EGCR) was the UK's only international airport during the interwar period. Located in Croydon, South London, England, it opened in 1920, built in a Neoclassical style, and was developed as Britain's main air ...
London to Paris.
Managing their aircraft as Daimler Hire managed their cars – each to be used a minimum of 20,000 miles a year – Daimler Airway set its standard at 1,000 hours per year per aircraft (later raised at Imperial Airways to 2000 hours a year). This and other control of overheads let Daimler run much more efficiently than its competitors. Their DH34s were good reliable aircraft but in winter heavily muffled passengers missed heating in the cabins.[
From October 1922 until early 1924, Daimler Airway operated daily scheduled flights from ]Alexandra Park Aerodrome
Alexandra Park Aerodrome was the second purpose-built aerodrome in the Manchester area in England. The site was chosen by the War Department in 1917 because of its open agricultural nature, and lay between the neighbouring districts of Fallowfie ...
Manchester to Croydon Airport London. The northbound flight left Croydon in the late afternoon and the southbound flight departed Alexandra Park during the next morning. This timing enabled passengers from the north of England to connect at Croydon with Daimler's continental schedules.
In 1923 Daimler added further routes from Croydon to Amsterdam, Hanover and Berlin using their DH.34 fleet. This route dealt with floods of passengers. Woods Humphery was to succeed Searle (who was forced out) as general manager of Imperial Airways in 1925.[
]
Imperial Airways
Daimler Airway merged with Handley Page Transport
Handley Page Transport Ltd was an airline company founded in 1919, soon after the end of the First World War, by Frederick Handley Page.
The company's first planes were Handley Page Type O/400 bombers modified for passenger use. They flew a Lo ...
, Instone Air Line
Instone Air Line was an early British airline from 1919 to 1924. Along with other private airlines of the time, it was absorbed into Imperial Airways.
This airline is not to be confused with Instone Air Line (1981) of Stansted, which operated ...
and British Marine Air Navigation into Imperial Airways
Imperial Airways was the early British commercial long-range airline, operating from 1924 to 1939 and principally serving the British Empire routes to South Africa, India, Australia and the Far East, including Malaya and Hong Kong. Passenger ...
(IAL) effective 1 April 1924, bringing along its three remaining de Havilland DH.34
The de Havilland DH.34 was a single engined British biplane airliner built by the de Havilland Aircraft Company in the 1920s. 12 were built, with the DH.34 serving with Imperial Airways and its predecessors for several years.
Design and develo ...
aircraft. IAL immediately discontinued Daimler's route to the north of England, the monopoly airline not being interested in serving any UK points outside London. Daimler's Searle and Woods Humphery were respectively appointed Imperial Airways' Managing Director and General Manager. Woods Humphery was to become managing director of Imperial Airways in 1930.
Accidents and incidents
One de Havilland DH.18A
The de Havilland DH.18 was a single-engined British biplane transport aircraft of the 1920s built by de Havilland.
Design and development
The DH.18 was designed and built in 1919 by Airco as their first aircraft specifically for commercial w ...
aircraft, (registration G-EAWO) was transferred from Instone Air Line
Instone Air Line was an early British airline from 1919 to 1924. Along with other private airlines of the time, it was absorbed into Imperial Airways.
This airline is not to be confused with Instone Air Line (1981) of Stansted, which operated ...
to Daimler Hire Ltd for operation on the Croydon-Paris route until the De Havilland DH.34
The de Havilland DH.34 was a single engined British biplane airliner built by the de Havilland Aircraft Company in the 1920s. 12 were built, with the DH.34 serving with Imperial Airways and its predecessors for several years.
Design and develo ...
s that Daimler had on order could be delivered. On 7 April 1922, two days after Daimler commenced operations with the aircraft, it collided with a Compagnie des Grands Express Aériens Farman Goliath (registration F-GEAD) over Picardie
Picardy (; Picard and french: Picardie, , ) is a historical territory and a former administrative region of France. Since 1 January 2016, it has been part of the new region of Hauts-de-France. It is located in the northern part of France.
Hist ...
, France,[Jackson, A.J. ''British Civil Aircraft since 1919 Volume 2''. London: Putnam, 1973. .] north of Paris. Seven people died in the first mid-air collision between airliners.[
]
As best as could be established each pilot was looking down to follow the Abbeville-Beauvais road, their height matching the downward visibility.[
On 14 September 1923, de Havilland DH.34 G-EBBS operating the evening service from Croydon to Manchester ]crashed
"Crashed" is the third U.S. rock Single (music), single, (the fifth overall), from the band Daughtry (band), Daughtry's debut album. It was released only to U.S. rock stations on September 5, 2007. Upon its release the song got adds at those stat ...
near Ivinghoe Beacon
Ivinghoe Beacon is a prominent hill and landmark in Buckinghamshire, England, 233 m (757 ft) above sea level in the Chiltern Hills, close to Ivinghoe and Aldbury. Dunstable, Berkhamsted and Tring are nearby.
The Beacon lies within the ...
, Buckinghamshire
Buckinghamshire (), abbreviated Bucks, is a ceremonial county in South East England that borders Greater London to the south-east, Berkshire to the south, Oxfordshire to the west, Northamptonshire to the north, Bedfordshire to the north-ea ...
, during an attempted forced landing due to bad weather. Pilots Pratt and Robinson and their three passengers were killed. This was the first fatal accident on a UK internal scheduled air service.
See also
* List of defunct airlines of the United Kingdom
This is a list of defunct airlines of the United Kingdom.
See also
* List of airlines of the United Kingdom
* List of airports in the United Kingdom and the British Crown Dependencies
References
*
*
{{List of defunct airlines ...
References
Further reading
Imperial Airways History
External links
British Airways history 1920–1929
{{Airlines of the United Kingdom
Airlines established in 1919
Defunct airlines of the United Kingdom