The Heston JC.6 was a British prototype
air observation post
Air Observation Post (AOP) is an aeroplane or helicopter used in the role of artillery spotter by the British Army and Commonwealth forces. In this role, either the pilot of the aircraft or another crew member acts as an observer watching for ta ...
aircraft designed and built by the
Heston Aircraft Company
Heston Aircraft Company was a British aircraft manufacturer based at Heston Aerodrome, Middlesex, England.
Starting in 1934 the company produced a number of aircraft designs beginning with the Heston Phoenix and the Hordern-Richmond Autoplane. ...
Limited, who had previously built the
Heston Phoenix
The Heston Type 1 Phoenix was a 1930s United Kingdom, British single-engined five-seat light transport monoplane built by the Heston Aircraft Company, Heston Aircraft Company Limited.
Design and development
The Type 1 Phoenix was the first desig ...
, the
Heston T.1/37 and the
Napier-Heston Racer
The Napier-Heston Racer, also referred to as the Heston Type 5 Racer or Heston High Speed Aircraft J.5, Clare 1976, p. 426. was a 1940s British single-seat racing monoplane first conceived by D. Napier and Son Ltd., and built by the Heston Airc ...
. The JC.6 was also known as the Heston A.2/45 or the Heston AOP.
Development
The Heston JC.6 was designed and built to meet
Air Ministry Specification
This is a partial list of the British Air Ministry (AM) specifications for aircraft. A specification stemmed from an Operational Requirement, abbreviated "OR", describing what the aircraft would be used for. This in turn led to the specification i ...
A.2/45 for an "Air Observation Post" (AOP) for the
British Army
The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurk ...
. Heston Aircraft built two
prototypes
A prototype is an early sample, model, or release of a product built to test a concept or process. It is a term used in a variety of contexts, including semantics, design, electronics, and software programming. A prototype is generally used to ...
, the first, serial ''VL529'', first flew in August 1947. The second, serial ''VL530'', was not flown.
The JC.6 was an all-metal
cantilever
A cantilever is a rigid structural element that extends horizontally and is supported at only one end. Typically it extends from a flat vertical surface such as a wall, to which it must be firmly attached. Like other structural elements, a canti ...
monoplane
A monoplane is a fixed-wing aircraft configuration with a single mainplane, in contrast to a biplane or other types of multiplanes, which have multiple planes.
A monoplane has inherently the highest efficiency and lowest drag of any wing confi ...
with twin booms and two vertical tail surfaces joined by a single horizontal tailplane. It was powered by a rear-mounted
de Havilland Gipsy Queen
The de Havilland Gipsy Queen is a British six-cylinder aero engine of capacity that was developed in 1936 by the de Havilland Engine Company. It was developed from the de Havilland Gipsy Six for military aircraft use. Produced between 1936 a ...
six-cylinder aero engine fitted between the twin booms and driving a pusher propeller. The two-seat tandem cockpit was covered with a large glazed canopy. The JC.6 had a tricycle landing gear and the mainplane was fitted with
slot
Slot, the slot or Slots may refer to:
People
* Arne Slot (born 1978), Dutch footballer
* Gerrie Slot (born 1954), Dutch cyclist
* Hanke Bruins Slot (born 1977), Dutch politician
* Tonny Bruins Slot (born 1947), Dutch association football coach wh ...
s and
flap
Flap may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media
* ''Flap'' (film), a 1970 American film
* Flap, a boss character in the arcade game ''Gaiapolis''
* Flap, a minor character in the film '' Little Nemo: Adventures in Slumberland''
Biology and he ...
s to give
Short takeoff and landing
A short takeoff and landing (STOL) aircraft is a conventional fixed-wing aircraft that has short runway requirements for takeoff and landing. Many STOL-designed aircraft also feature various arrangements for use on airstrips with harsh condition ...
performance. During the evaluation trials the rival
Auster AOP.6
The Auster AOP.6 was a British military air observation aircraft produced by Auster Aircraft Limited to replace the numerous wartime Taylorcraft Auster aircraft then in-service.
History
The Auster AOP.6 (Auster Model K) was designed as a succe ...
had a better performance and was ordered into production. Two further Heston JC.6s, serials ''VL531'' and ''VL532'', were not built.
A
floatplane
A floatplane is a type of seaplane with one or more slender floats mounted under the fuselage to provide buoyancy. By contrast, a flying boat uses its fuselage for buoyancy. Either type of seaplane may also have landing gear suitable for land, ...
version was designed by
Saunders-Roe
Saunders-Roe Limited, also known as Saro, was a British aero- and marine-engineering company based at Columbine Works, East Cowes, Isle of Wight.
History
The name was adopted in 1929 after Alliott Verdon Roe (see Avro) and John Lord took a co ...
as the Saro P.100, but was not built.
Specifications (JC.6)
See also
Notes
References
*
*
*
''Flight'' 2 September 1948
External links
(Russian)
{{Heston aircraft
1940s British military reconnaissance aircraft
Heston aircraft
Single-engined pusher aircraft
Twin-boom aircraft
Aircraft first flown in 1947