The Miles M.5 Sparrowhawk was a 1930s

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, ...

single-seat racing and touring monoplane designed by Miles Aircraft Limited.

Design and development

The prototype M.5 Sparrowhawk was developed from standard

Miles Hawk The Miles M.2 Hawk was a twin-seat light monoplane designed and produced by the British aircraft manufacturer Miles Aircraft Limited during the 1930s. It is the first of the company's aircraft to attain quantity production. The Hawk's developm ...

components as an entry into the

King's Cup Race The King's Cup air race is a British handicapped cross-country event, which has taken place annually since 1922. It is run by the Royal Aero Club Records Racing and Rally Association. The King's Cup is one of the most prestigious prizes of the ...

of 1935 piloted by

F.G. Miles Frederick George Miles (22 March 1903 – 15 August 1976) was a British aircraft designer and manufacturer who designed numerous light civil and military aircraft and a range of prototypes. The name "Miles" is associated with two distinct compan ...

. The standard Hawk fuselage was shortened and accommodation was for only one pilot, sitting as low as possible. The top decking was reduced in height, a special high-compression version of the

de Havilland Gipsy Six The de Havilland Gipsy Six is a British six-cylinder, air-cooled, inverted inline piston engine developed by the de Havilland Engine Company for aircraft use in the 1930s. It was based on the cylinders of the four-cylinder Gipsy Major and w ...

engine was fitted, and the undercarriage track was widened. Although the Sparrowhawk won the 1935 speed prize at an average of over , because of heavy handicapping, it only came ninth overall in the race. Miles M

A further five Sparrowhawks (designated M.5A) were also built as King's Cup Racers and three were delivered to customers but they did not perform spectacularly. In 1936

Victor Smith Admiral Sir Victor Alfred Trumper Smith, (9 May 1913 – 10 July 1998) was a senior officer in the Royal Australian Navy. Smith's career culminated with his appointment as chairman, Chiefs of Staff Committee—forerunner of the role of Au ...

entered Sparrowhawk G-AELT into the

Schlesinger Race The Schlesinger Race, also known as the ''"Rand Race"'', the ''"Portsmouth – Johannesburg Race"'' or more commonly the 'African Air Race', took place in September 1936. The Royal Aero Club announced the race on behalf of Isidore William Sch ...

from

Portsmouth Portsmouth ( ) is a port and city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. The city of Portsmouth has been a unitary authority since 1 April 1997 and is administered by Portsmouth City Council. Portsmouth is the most dens ...

Johannesburg Johannesburg ( , , ; Zulu and xh, eGoli ), colloquially known as Jozi, Joburg, or "The City of Gold", is the largest city in South Africa, classified as a megacity, and is one of the 100 largest urban areas in the world. According to Demo ...

but had problems with oil after Salonika and eventually retired in Khartoum. The final two M.5A Sparrowhawks were built in 1936 but were not flown until 1940. One was modified and flown to meet a requirement for an experimental aircraft for high-lift flap research with the

Royal Aircraft Establishment The Royal Aircraft Establishment (RAE) was a British research establishment, known by several different names during its history, that eventually came under the aegis of the Ministry of Defence (United Kingdom), UK Ministry of Defence (MoD), bef ...

, it was later de-modified and used as a communications aircraft. The sixth Sparrowhawk was modified with short span wings and wide chord flaps for experimental work. The prototype, registered ''G-ADNL'', was modified in late 1953 as a jet-powered racer for Fred Dunkerley. The front fuselage and tail unit were modified and it was re-designated the M.77 Sparrowjet. The Sparrowjet was powered by two

Turbomeca Palas The Turbomeca Palas is a diminutive centrifugal flow turbojet engine used to power light aircraft. An enlargement of the Turbomeca Piméné, the Palas was designed in 1950 by the French manufacturer Société Turbomeca,Gunston 1989, p. 169. a ...

gas turbine engines fitted in the wing roots and eventually achieved its original purpose and Dunkerley won the King's Cup Race in 1957 at an average speed of .

Operational history

The prototype Sparrowhawk survived the Second World War and was flown by

Fairey Aviation The Fairey Aviation Company Limited was a British aircraft manufacturer of the first half of the 20th century based in Hayes in Middlesex and Heaton Chapel and RAF Ringway in Cheshire. Notable for the design of a number of important military a ...

test pilot C.G.M. Alington in several UK air races until 1950. It was then sold back to Miles and was modified into the M.77 Sparrowjet.Jackson, Volume 3, p. 485 The third Sparrowhawk was sold to South Africa in October 1937 as ''ZS-ANO''. It was fitted with a cabin top and was impressed into service with the

South African Air Force "Through hardships to the stars" , colours = , colours_label = , march = , mascot = , anniversaries = , equipment ...

in 1940.

Variants

;M.5 :Prototype single-seat racer with a 147 hp

de Havilland Gipsy Major The de Havilland Gipsy Major or Gipsy IIIA is a four-cylinder, air-cooled, inverted inline engine used in a variety of light aircraft produced in the 1930s, including the famous Tiger Moth biplane. Many Gipsy Major engines still power vintag ...

engine, two built ;M.5A :Production version with a 130 hp de Havilland Gipsy Major I engine, three built ; M.77 Sparrowjet :M.5 prototype modified as a jet racer, powered by two

jet engines

Operators

Civil aircraft were flown in South Africa, United Kingdom and the United States and the following military operators: ; *

South African Air Force "Through hardships to the stars" , colours = , colours_label = , march = , mascot = , anniversaries = , equipment ...

; *

Specifications (M.5)

References

Notes

Bibliography

** Brown, Don Lambert. ''Miles Aircraft Since 1925''. London: Putnam & Company Ltd., 1970. . * ''The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Aircraft (Part Work 1982-1985)''. Orbis Publishing. * Jackson, A.J. ''British Civil Aircraft since 1919''. London: Putnam, 1974. . * Jackson, A.J. ''British Civil Aircraft since 1919, Volume 3''. London: Putnam, 1988. . {{Miles aircraft 1930s British sport aircraft

Sparrowhawk Sparrowhawk (sometimes sparrow hawk) may refer to several species of small hawk in the genus ''Accipiter''. "Sparrow-hawk" or sparhawk originally referred to ''Eurasian sparrowhawk, Accipiter nisus'', now called "Eurasian" or "northern" sparrowha ...

Single-engined tractor aircraft Aircraft first flown in 1935