The Handley Page HP. 75 Manx was a British

experimental aircraft An experimental aircraft is an aircraft intended for testing new aerospace technologies and design concepts. The term ''research aircraft'' or ''testbed aircraft'', by contrast, generally denotes aircraft modified to perform scientific studies, ...

Handley Page Handley Page Limited was a British aerospace manufacturer. Founded by Frederick Handley Page (later Sir Frederick) in 1909, it was the United Kingdom's first publicly traded aircraft manufacturing company. It went into voluntary liquidation a ...

that flew test flights in the early 1940s. It was notable for its unconventional design characteristics, being a twin-engine tailless design of

pusher configuration In an aircraft with a pusher configuration (as opposed to a tractor configuration), the propeller(s) are mounted behind their respective engine(s). Since a pusher propeller is mounted behind the engine, the drive shaft is in compression in nor ...

Design and development

The Manx (named after a well-known breed of stub-tailed housecat)Brookes 2011, p. 6 was built to participate in a flight research program investigating problems associated with tailless aircraft. The partially-

swept wing A swept wing is a wing that angles either backward or occasionally forward from its root rather than in a straight sideways direction. Swept wings have been flown since the pioneer days of aviation. Wing sweep at high speeds was first investigate ...

s supported the vertical stabilizers of a

twin tail A twin tail is a specific type of vertical stabilizer arrangement found on the empennage of some aircraft. Two vertical stabilizers—often smaller on their own than a single conventional tail would be—are mounted at the outside of the aircra ...

, with

elevon Elevons or tailerons are aircraft control surfaces that combine the functions of the elevator (used for pitch control) and the aileron (used for roll control), hence the name. They are frequently used on tailless aircraft such as flying wings. ...

s for pitch and roll control. Construction of the prototype was subcontracted to

Dart Aircraft Dart Aircraft Limited was a British aircraft manufacturer during the 1930s. Its facilities were located at 29 High Street North, Dunstable, Bedfordshire. History The company was founded by Alfred R.Weyl and Erich P.Zander, as Zander and Weyl Lim ...

of Dunstable.Barnes 1980, pp.5–6. There were serious issues encountered early in the development phase that caused a delay in the testing program. After it was delivered in 1939, redesigns had to be made because the Manx was too heavy, and there were also structural integrity issues with the main

spar SPAR, originally DESPAR, styled as DE SPAR, is a Dutch multinational that provides branding, supplies and support services for independently owned and operated food retail stores. It was founded in the Netherlands in 1932, by Adriaan van Well, ...

. An unorthodox aspect of the Manx design incorporated into the aircraft was that the main undercarriage was retractable, while the nose gear remained fixed.

Taxi A taxi, also known as a taxicab or simply a cab, is a type of vehicle for hire with a driver, used by a single passenger or small group of passengers, often for a non-shared ride. A taxicab conveys passengers between locations of their choice ...

tests began in early 1940, but inspection revealed serious deterioration of the wing structures, which required extensive repair.Barnes 1980, p.7. These and further problems delayed the maiden flight until June 1943 (sources conflict as to whether it was 11 or 25 June.) The first flight was terminated early when the

canopy Canopy may refer to: Plants * Canopy (biology), aboveground portion of plant community or crop (including forests) * Canopy (grape), aboveground portion of grapes Religion and ceremonies * Baldachin or canopy of state, typically placed over an ...

was lost in mid-flight, but the pilot managed to land the plane safely. In December 1945 the Manx's regular crew were killed flying the

Handley Page Hermes The Handley Page HP.81 Hermes was a civilian airliner designed and produced by the British aircraft manufacturer Handley Page. The Hermes was developed during the 1940s in parallel with the closely related Handley Page Hastings military transp ...

prototype. The Manx had accumulated only about 17 hours of flight time over approximately 30 flights when flight tests were finally terminated in April 1946. The sole example built was scrapped in 1952.

Specifications (HP.75 Manx)

References

Notes

Bibliography

* Barnes, Chris. "Tailess Experimental". ''Aeroplane Monthly'', January 1980, Volume 8 No. 1. pp. 4–9. * Barnes, C. H. ''Handley Page Aircraft Since 1907''. London: Putnam & Company, Ltd., 1987. . * Clayton, Donald C. ''Handley Page, an Aircraft Album''. Shepperton, Surrey, UK: Ian Allan Ltd., 1969. . *Brookes, Andrew. ''Victor Units of the Cold War''. Oxford: Osprey Publishing, 2011. * Jackson, A.J. ''British Civil Aircraft since 1919 Volume 2''. Putnam & Company, Ltd., 1973 (2nd Edition).

External links