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The Grahame-White Type X Charabanc or Aerobus was a 1910s
British
British may refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies.
** Britishness, the British identity and common culture
* British English, ...
passenger-carrying biplane designed and built by the
Grahame-White Aviation Company based at
Hendon Aerodrome
Hendon Aerodrome was an aerodrome in London, England, that was an important centre for aviation from 1908 to 1968.
It was situated in Colindale, north west of Charing Cross. It nearly became a central hub of civil aviation ("the Charing Cros ...
, North
London
London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...
.
Development
The Charabanc was built by the Grahame-White company to meet the demand for passenger-carrying flights, which could not be satisfied by the existing two-seat designs. Designed by
J. D. North, it was an unequal-span
pusher biplane, with
ailerons
An aileron (French for "little wing" or "fin") is a hinged flight control surface usually forming part of the trailing edge of each wing of a fixed-wing aircraft. Ailerons are used in pairs to control the aircraft in roll (or movement around ...
on both upper and lower wings, and a biplane tail unit with three rudders mounted on booms. An elongated
nacelle
A nacelle ( ) is a "streamlined body, sized according to what it contains", such as an engine, fuel, or equipment on an aircraft. When attached by a pylon entirely outside the airframe, it is sometimes called a pod, in which case it is attached ...
mounted on the lower wing housed the pilot in the front, plus four passengers in two rows of two seats behind.
[ The wing spars, tail booms and outer interplane struts were of hollow section spruce, and the nacelle and inner struts were of ash.
It first flew in 1913, powered by a 120 hp (89 kW) Austro-Daimler engine, and in this form was flown by Louis Noel with seven passengers aboard to set a British world record on 22 September 1913. On 2 October 1913, he set a world record in carrying nine passengers, staying aloft for nearly twenty minutes.][Lewis, Peter M. H. ''British Aircraft 1809-1914'' London: Putnam, 1962 pp 284-285] To meet the entry requirements for the 1913 Michelin Cup, which required an all-British aircraft, this was replaced by a British-built 100 hp (75 kW) Green E.6 engine. The Charabanc went on to win the cup, covering a distance of over 300 miles on 9 November 1913, piloted by R.H. Carr.
The first parachute descent from an aircraft in Great Britain was made by W. Newell from the aircraft, at Hendon on 9 May 1914.[ ''Flight]
Flying at Hendon
15 May 1913 p.508,
Specifications
Notes
References
* Lewis, Peter M. H. ''British Aircraft 1809-1914'' London: Putnam, 1962 p. 284-285
* The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Aircraft (Part Work 1982-1985), 1985, Orbis Publishing, Page 1998
External links
light magazine 11 October 1913 p. 1113.
{{Grahame-White aircraft
1910s British airliners
Grahame-White aircraft
Aircraft first flown in 1913