Sir James Arnot Hamilton (2 May 192324 May 2012) was a British aircraft designer who helped design

Concorde The Aérospatiale/BAC Concorde () is a retired Franco-British supersonic airliner jointly developed and manufactured by Sud Aviation (later Aérospatiale) and the British Aircraft Corporation (BAC). Studies started in 1954, and France an ...

and the SEPECAT Jaguar. He also served as the permanent secretary of the

Department for Education The Department for Education (DfE) is a department of His Majesty's Government responsible for child protection, child services, education (compulsory, further and higher education), apprenticeships and wider skills in England. A Department ...

. Specialising in wing design, he was largely responsible for Concorde's distinctive

wing A wing is a type of fin that produces lift while moving through air or some other fluid. Accordingly, wings have streamlined cross-sections that are subject to aerodynamic forces and act as airfoils. A wing's aerodynamic efficiency is e ...

Biography

James Hamilton was born on 2 May 1923 in Midlothian. He attended Lasswade Secondary School and Penicuik High School, before going on to receive a degree in

civil engineering Civil engineering is a professional engineering discipline that deals with the design, construction, and maintenance of the physical and naturally built environment, including public works such as roads, bridges, canals, dams, airports, sewa ...

from the

University of Edinburgh The University of Edinburgh ( sco, University o Edinburgh, gd, Oilthigh Dhùn Èideann; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in post-nominals) is a public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Granted a royal charter by King James VI in 15 ...

.Barfield, Norman
"Hamilton, Sir James Arnot (1923–2012)"
''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'', Oxford University Press, online edition, 7 January 2016. Retrieved 22 January 2020. He served in the

Marine Aircraft Experimental Establishment The Marine Aircraft Experimental Establishment (MAEE) was a British military research and test organisation. It was originally formed as the Marine Aircraft Experimental Station in October 1918 at RAF Isle of Grain, a former Royal Naval Air Serv ...

from 1943 to 1952, where he worked on anti-submarine weaponry and seaplanes, rising to head of flight research. He then worked at the Royal Aircraft Establishment, becoming head of the projects division in 1964 before budget reductions led to his projects being stopped. In 1965, Hamilton took control of the project to build the SEPECAT Jaguar. Launched in 1972, with various air forces, the Jaguar was used in numerous conflicts and military operations in Mauritania, Chad,

Iraq Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to the north, Iran to the east, the Persian Gulf and K ...

, Bosnia, and

Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 243 million people, and has the world's second-lar ...

, as well as providing a ready nuclear delivery platform for Britain, France, and India throughout the latter half of the Cold War and beyond. In 1966, he was named head of the British portion of the Concorde project. Specialising in wing design, he was largely responsible for the plane's distinctive

. Though the project would not be completed until 1976, Hamilton left in 1971 to become deputy secretary for aerospace in the Department of Trade and Industry. As deputy secretary, he oversaw cancellation of the

Black Arrow Black Arrow, officially capitalised BLACK ARROW, was a British satellite carrier rocket. Developed during the 1960s, it was used for four launches between 1969 and 1971, all launched from the Woomera Prohibited Area in Australia. Its final fl ...

project and the nationalisation of

Rolls-Royce Rolls-Royce (always hyphenated) may refer to: * Rolls-Royce Limited, a British manufacturer of cars and later aero engines, founded in 1906, now defunct Automobiles * Rolls-Royce Motor Cars, the current car manufacturing company incorporated in ...

's aviation engine division. In 1973, he served as Deputy Cabinet Secretary until being moved to the education department and taking control of the

Department of Education and Science An education ministry is a national or subnational government agency politically responsible for education. Various other names are commonly used to identify such agencies, such as Ministry of Education, Department of Education, and Ministry of Pub ...

. He retired from government in 1983. Hamilton served on the boards of various corporations, including Hawker Siddeley, and chaired Brown and Root UK. He was president of The Association for Science Education. Hamilton was appointed a

Member of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

in 1952, a Companion of the Order of the Bath in 1972 and a Knight Commander of that order in 1978. Hamilton married Christine McKean in Glasgow in 1947, they had three children together before the marriage was dissolved in 1977. From 1995 until his death he was in a relationship with Marcia Cunningham. Hamilton died in Winchester, Hampshire on 24 May 2012.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hamilton, James Arnot 1923 births 2012 deaths Alumni of the University of Edinburgh British aerospace engineers British civil servants Concorde Knights Commander of the Order of the Bath Members of the Order of the British Empire People from Midlothian