The Martin Handasyde No.3 was an early British single-seat monoplane design, built in partnership by H.P. Martin and George Handasyde. Only one was built.

Design and development

The Martin-Handasyde No.3 bore a strong resemblance to the

Antoinette Antoinette is a given name, that is a diminutive feminine form of Antoine and Antonia (from Latin ''Antonius''). People with the name include: Nobles * Antoinette de Maignelais, Baroness of Villequier by marriage (1434–1474), mistress of C ...

monoplanes, with a slender wood-covered triangular section fuselage, and tapered wings which were braced by mid-span

kingposts A king post (or king-post or kingpost) is a central vertical post used in architectural or bridge designs, working in tension to support a beam below from a truss Apex (geometry), apex above (whereas a crown post, though visually similar, support ...

. Lateral control was by

wing-warping Wing warping was an early system for lateral (roll) control of a fixed-wing aircraft. The technique, used and patented by the Wright brothers, consisted of a system of pulleys and cables to twist the trailing edges of the wings in opposite direc ...

and the angle of incidence of the wings varied from 5° at the wing root to zero at the tip. The undercarriage consisted of a pair of wheels on a cross-axle supplemented by a forward-projecting curved skid. It was initially powered by a Antoinette V-8 engine. This was later changed for a

J.A.P. JA Prestwich Industries, was a British engineering equipment manufacturing company named after founder John Alfred Prestwich, which was formed in 1951 by the amalgamation of J.A.Prestwich and Company Limited and Pencils Ltd. History John Pres ...

It was first flown at

Brooklands Brooklands was a motor racing circuit and aerodrome built near Weybridge in Surrey, England, United Kingdom. It opened in 1907 and was the world's first purpose-built 'banked' motor racing circuit as well as one of Britain's first airfields, ...

by H.P. Martin during November 1910, and was flown throughout 1912 by

Graham Gilmour Graham Gilmour (5 March 1885 – 17 February 1912) was a British pioneer aviator, known for his impromptu public displays of flying. He was killed on 17 February 1912 when his Martin-Handasyde monoplane suffered a structural failure and crashe ...

, who was eventually killed in the aircraft when it suffered a mid-air structural failure over

Richmond Park Richmond Park, in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, is the largest of Royal Parks of London, London's Royal Parks, and is of national and international importance for wildlife conservation. It was created by Charles I of England, C ...

on 17 February 1912. A two-seater version of the aircraft, the Martin Handasyde 4B, also called the ''Dragonfly'', with a wingspan of was built for

Thomas Sopwith Sir Thomas Octave Murdoch Sopwith, CBE, Hon FRAeS (18 January 1888 – 27 January 1989) was an English aviation pioneer, businessman and yachtsman. Early life Sopwith was born in Kensington, London, on 18 January 1888. He was the eig ...

and was displayed at the 1911 Aero Show at

Olympia The name Olympia may refer to: Arts and entertainment Film * ''Olympia'' (1938 film), by Leni Riefenstahl, documenting the Berlin-hosted Olympic Games * ''Olympia'' (1998 film), about a Mexican soap opera star who pursues a career as an athlet ...

Specifications

Notes

References

*Lewis, P. ''British Aircraft 1809-1914'' London: Putnam, 1962
The Martin-Handasyde Monoplane
''Flight'', 25 March 1911 {{Aviation accidents and incidents in the United Kingdom 3 1910s British civil aircraft Single-engined tractor aircraft Aviation accidents and incidents in England Aviation accidents and incidents in 1912 Mid-wing aircraft Aircraft first flown in 1910