Heston Aircraft Company was a British aircraft manufacturer based at
Heston Aerodrome
Heston Aerodrome was an airfield located to the west of London, England, operational between 1929 and 1947. It was situated on the border of the Heston and Cranford areas of Hounslow, Middlesex. In September 1938, the British Prime Minister, Ne ...
, Middlesex, England.
Starting in 1934 the company produced a number of aircraft designs beginning with the
Heston Phoenix and the
Hordern-Richmond Autoplane
The Hordern-Richmond Autoplane was a 1930s British twin engined two seat cabin touring monoplane designed by Edmund Hordern, and constructed by Heston Aircraft Company Ltd.
Development
The Autoplane was designed by Edmund G. Hordern in collabo ...
. During the Second World War the company transitioned to being a sub-contractor, modifying
Supermarine Spitfires amongst other types. After the war the company built aircraft components for companies such as
de Havilland Aircraft
The de Havilland Aircraft Company Limited () was a British aviation manufacturer established in late 1920 by Geoffrey de Havilland at Stag Lane Aerodrome Edgware on the outskirts of north London. Operations were later moved to Hatfield in He ...
.
History
Heston Aircraft Company Ltd was founded on 10 August 1934, being renamed from
Comper Aircraft Company
The Comper Aircraft Company Ltd was a 1930s United Kingdom, British light aircraft manufacturer. It was based at Hooton Park, Hooton Aerodrome, Cheshire (1929-1933), and Heston Aerodrome, Middlesex (1933-1934).
History
In April 1929, after leav ...
Ltd, that had moved to Heston aerodrome in March 1933, having previously built 40
Comper Swift
The Comper C.L.A.7 Swift is a British 1930s single-seat sporting aircraft produced by Comper Aircraft Company Ltd of Hooton Park, Cheshire.
Design and development
In March 1929 Flight Lieutenant Nicholas Comper left the Royal Air Force and form ...
s at
Hooton Park
Royal Air Force Hooton Park or more simply RAF Hooton Park, on the Wirral Peninsula, Cheshire, is a former Royal Air Force station originally built for the Royal Flying Corps in 1917 as a training aerodrome for pilots in the First World War. ...
aerodrome. Most of the directors of Comper Aircraft, including
Nick Comper
Nicholas Comper (29 April 1897 – 17 June 1939) was an England, English aviator and aircraft designer, whose most notable success was the 1930s Comper Swift monoplane racer.
Early life
Nicholas Comper was born in Lambeth, London, England, the ...
, resigned and gave up the assets to a new group of investors and directors. The new board was headed by Sir Norman J. Watson and included Brindley 'Bryn' R.S. Jones and
George A. Lingham. Chief designer was George Cornwall, and Chief Test Pilot was Edmund G Hordern. On 8 November 1935, a new company was formed with the same name that took over the existing business and personnel. The company continued to support Comper aircraft and owners, but discarded its own Comper aircraft and assets.
[Smith (2002)][Meaden (2005)]
![Heston Type 1 Phoenix II G-AESV Elstree 1951](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/cb/Heston_Type_1_Phoenix_II_G-AESV_Elstree_1951.jpg)
The first aircraft type to be designed and built by Heston Aircraft Company was the Heston Phoenix, a high-performance five-seat private owner and commercial aircraft, six of which were completed between 1935 and 1939.
In 1936 the company built the Hordern-Richmond Autoplane, a twin-engined two-seat low-wing monoplane that had been designed by the firm's test pilot E.G. Hordern in collaboration with the Duke of Richmond and Gordon. The sole example was registered G-AEOG.
In 1937 the company designed the
Heston T.1/37 trainer, and the first of two prototypes flew at Heston in 1938 with serial ''L7706''. It was not selected for production for the RAF.
In 1938 the company started work on the
Heston Type 5 Racer which was to be used in an attempt on the world's air speed record. The aircraft had been designed by
Napier & Son
D. Napier & Son Limited was a British engineering company best known for its luxury motor cars in the Edwardian era and for its aero engines throughout the early to mid-20th century.
Napier was founded as a precision engineering company in 1 ...
and had an estimated maximum speed of 480 mph. Registered ''G-AFOK'', it first flew at Heston in June 1940 but was damaged on landing and a second example was not completed.
In 1941 the company built the
Boulton Paul P.92
The Boulton Paul P.92 was a British design by Boulton Paul for a two-seat, turret-armed, twin-engine heavy fighter and ground attack aircraft to meet Air Ministry Specification F.11/37. Only a half scale prototype – the P.92/2 – was built an ...
/2 half-scale piloted flying model of the Boulton Paul P.92, the full-scale contract for which had been cancelled in May 1940. The first flight of the sole P.92/2, serial ''V3142'', was at Heston in early 1941.
[Meaden (2006)]
In 1947 the company designed and built the
Heston JC.6, also known as the Heston A.2/45, that was intended to meet a
Royal Air Force
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) an ...
requirement for a new air observation post aircraft. Two examples were completed, serials ''VL529'' and ''VL530'' (not flown), but the competition was won by the
Auster AOP.6.
In 1948 the company built the
Youngman-Baynes High Lift
The Youngman-Baynes High Lift was a British experimental aircraft of the 1940s. It was a single-engine, low-wing monoplane with a fixed tailwheel undercarriage.
Development
The High Lift was a "one-off" experimental, flying test-bed for the ...
, and the sole aircraft first flew at Heston on 5 February 1948 with military serial ''VT789'', later registered ''G-AMBL''.
Wartime aircraft and component design, modification and repair
From early in its operations, the firm supplemented its aircraft construction by securing contracts for sub-assembly and components for aircraft. These included assemblies for the
Vickers Wellesley
The Vickers Wellesley was a medium bomber that was designed and produced by the British aircraft manufacturer Vickers-Armstrongs at Brooklands near Weybridge, Surrey. It was one of two aircraft to be named after Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of ...
in the late 1930s.
During World War II, as a contractor within the
Civilian Repair Organisation, Heston Aircraft Company was heavily engaged in repair and other support work on military aircraft. From late 1940, Heston Aircraft played a major role in modifying
Supermarine Spitfires for the photographic reconnaissance task.
[Sturtivant (1997), pp. 91–92] The company equipped the Spitfires with vertical and oblique cameras, additional fuel tanks, and modified cockpit canopies. Many marks of Spitfire were repaired at Heston throughout the war. Other types to be repaired and modified included the
Fairchild Argus
The Fairchild Model 24, also called the Fairchild Model 24 Argus and UC-61 Forwarder, is a four-seat, single-engine monoplane light transport aircraft designed by the Fairchild Aviation Corporation in the 1930s. It was adopted by the United Sta ...
,
Fairey Battle
The Fairey Battle is a British single-engine light bomber that was designed and manufactured by the Fairey Aviation Company. It was developed during the mid-1930s for the Royal Air Force (RAF) as a monoplane successor to the Hawker Hart and ...
and the naval
Vought SB2U Vindicator
The Vought SB2U Vindicator is an American carrier-based dive bomber developed for the United States Navy in the 1930s, the first monoplane in this role. Vindicators still remained in service at the time of the Battle of Midway, but by 1943, all h ...
.
Postwar aircraft modification
Heston Aircraft was sub-contracted by
de Havilland Aircraft
The de Havilland Aircraft Company Limited () was a British aviation manufacturer established in late 1920 by Geoffrey de Havilland at Stag Lane Aerodrome Edgware on the outskirts of north London. Operations were later moved to Hatfield in He ...
to convert prototype
de Havilland Hornet
The de Havilland DH.103 Hornet, developed by de Havilland, was a fighter aircraft driven by two piston engines. It further exploited the wooden construction techniques that had been pioneered by the de Havilland Mosquito. Development of the ...
s to
Sea Hornet standards, for testing by the
Fleet Air Arm
The Fleet Air Arm (FAA) is one of the five fighting arms of the Royal Navy and is responsible for the delivery of naval air power both from land and at sea. The Fleet Air Arm operates the F-35 Lightning II for maritime strike, the AW159 Wil ...
. The first example, serial ''PX212'', was completed to partial Sea Hornet F.20 standard but without folding wings. This was followed in January 1946 by serial ''PX219'', that was fitted at Heston to full Sea Hornet F.20 standard with arrester gear, folding wings, tail-down accelerator gear and naval radio equipment. The company also converted two Hornet Is to Sea Hornet NF.21 night fighter standard. The first, serial PX230, first flew on 9 July 1946 with an A.S.H.
radar
Radar is a detection system that uses radio waves to determine the distance ('' ranging''), angle, and radial velocity of objects relative to the site. It can be used to detect aircraft, ships, spacecraft, guided missiles, motor vehicles, we ...
scanner in its lengthened nose, but the folding wings and long dorsal fin fillet did not appear until the second aircraft, serial ''PX239'', was converted. The modification involved fitting a second cockpit, to house the radar operator.
Postwar aviation operations
After the cessation of aircraft manufacture and modification, Heston Aircraft switched to a support role within the aviation industry, trading as Hestair. In early 1952 they were supplying components to de Havilland,
Vickers-Armstrong
Vickers-Armstrongs Limited was a British engineering conglomerate formed by the merger of the assets of Vickers Limited and Sir W G Armstrong Whitworth & Company in 1927. The majority of the company was nationalised in the 1960s and 1970s, w ...
and D. Napier & Son. In late 1953, the company was building passenger steps for
BOAC de Havilland Comet
The de Havilland DH.106 Comet was the world's first commercial jet airliner. Developed and manufactured by de Havilland in the United Kingdom, the Comet 1 prototype first flew in 1949. It featured an aerodynamically clean design with four ...
s and
Bristol Britannias, and mobile servicing docks for
BEA's Heathrow engineering base.
[Flight, 20 November 1953, p. 688]
Aircraft built
*
Heston Phoenix
*
Hordern-Richmond Autoplane
The Hordern-Richmond Autoplane was a 1930s British twin engined two seat cabin touring monoplane designed by Edmund Hordern, and constructed by Heston Aircraft Company Ltd.
Development
The Autoplane was designed by Edmund G. Hordern in collabo ...
*
Heston T.1/37
*
Heston Type 5 Racer
*
Boulton Paul P.92
The Boulton Paul P.92 was a British design by Boulton Paul for a two-seat, turret-armed, twin-engine heavy fighter and ground attack aircraft to meet Air Ministry Specification F.11/37. Only a half scale prototype – the P.92/2 – was built an ...
/2
*
Heston JC.6
*
Youngman-Baynes High Lift
The Youngman-Baynes High Lift was a British experimental aircraft of the 1940s. It was a single-engine, low-wing monoplane with a fixed tailwheel undercarriage.
Development
The High Lift was a "one-off" experimental, flying test-bed for the ...
Notes
References
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* Smith, Ron. 2002. British Built Aircraft Vol.1: Greater London. Tempus
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{{Heston aircraft
Defunct aircraft manufacturers of the United Kingdom
Aircraft industry in London
1934 establishments in England