The Southern Martlet was a single-engined, single-seat biplane sports aircraft. Six were built, including the rather different and unsuccessful Metal Martlet.

Design and development

The Southern Martlet was the first aircraft designed by teams led

Frederick George 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 ...

, whose company was Southern Aircraft of Shoreham. It was a modified

Avro Baby The Avro 534 Baby (originally named the "Popular") was a British single-seat light sporting biplane built shortly after the First World War. Development The Avro Baby was a single-bay biplane of conventional configuration with a wire-braced wo ...

, differing in the tail unit, undercarriage and engine, the 85 hp A.B.C. Hornet air-cooled flat four. Like the Baby, it was a single-bay staggered tractor biplane, with fixed two-wheel main and tail-skid undercarriage. The undercarriage was a combination of "oleo and coil-spring shock absorbing gear" designed by

Basil Henderson Basil (, ; ''Ocimum basilicum'' , also called great basil, is a culinary herb of the family Lamiaceae (mints). It is a tender plant, and is used in cuisines worldwide. In Western cuisine, the generic term "basil" refers to the variety also k ...

of Hendy Aircraft, Shoreham. The prototype ''G-AAII'' made its first public appearance on 30 August 1929 at London Air Park, Hanworth, and proved to be a very manoeuvrable sports machine.

Operational history

Five production aircraft were built at Shoreham, differing chiefly in the choice of engine. Three of them had 80 hp

Armstrong Siddeley Genet The Armstrong Siddeley Genet was a five-cylinder, air-cooled, radial engine for aircraft use built in the UK, first run in 1926. It developed 80 hp at 2,200 rpm in its final form and was a popular light aircraft powerplant. Followin ...

II and one a 100 hp

Armstrong Siddeley Genet Major The Armstrong Siddeley Genet Major is a British five-cylinder (later seven-cylinder), air-cooled, radial engine for aircraft, designed and built by Armstrong Siddeley and first run in 1928. It developed 140 horsepower (104 kW). In Royal A ...

. These were five-cylinder uncowled radials. One aircraft had, at different times, a

de Havilland Gipsy The de Havilland Gipsy is a British air-cooled four-cylinder in-line aircraft engine designed by Frank Halford in 1927 to replace the ADC Cirrus in the de Havilland DH.60 Moth light biplane. Initially developed as an upright 5 litre (3 ...

I or II (100 hp and 120 hp respectively), upright in-line air-cooled engines. The Martlets were not very successful as racers but served a succession of private owners as aerobatic mounts. Martlet ground

Only one Martlet, the Genet Major engined ''G-AAYX'' survived the war. This aircraft was owned for a number of years by F G Miles who used it as a personal mount while based at Woodley near Reading. The aircraft is now part of

The Shuttleworth Collection The Shuttleworth Collection is a working aeronautical and automotive collection located at the Old Warden Aerodrome, Old Warden in Bedfordshire, England. It is the oldest in the world and one of the most prestigious, due to the variety of old a ...

based at

Old Warden Aerodrome Old Warden Aerodrome is located east southeast of Bedford, in Bedfordshire, England. The privately owned aerodrome serves The Shuttleworth Collection The Shuttleworth Collection is a working aeronautical and automotive collection located ...

and underwent an extensive restoration, with return to flight in September 2000. The aircraft is now on permanent display as part of The Collection and is flown at home air displays during the summer months.The Shuttleworth Collection - Southern Martlet
Retrieved: 21 November 2017.

Variants

''Data from: British civil aircraft, 1919-1972 Volume III ;200 (G-AAII) :Prototype first flew with an

ABC Hornet The ABC Hornet was an 80 hp (90 kW) four-cylinder Aircraft engine, aero engine designed in the late 1920s by the noted British engineer Granville Bradshaw for use in light aircraft. The Hornet was effectively a double ABC Scorpion, S ...

later fitted with an 85 hp Armstrong-Siddeley Genet II engine. ;201 (G-AAVD) :First production aircraft with a Genet II engine. ;202 (G-AAYX) :Second production aircraft with an Armstrong-Siddeley Genet Major engine and untapered ailerons. Later operated by

Butlins Butlin's is a chain of large seaside resorts in the United Kingdom. Butlin's was founded by Billy Butlin to provide affordable holidays for ordinary British families. Between 1936 and 1966, ten camps were built, including one in Ireland and o ...

and now remains airworthy with the Shuttleworth Trust. ;203 (G-AAYZ) :Third Production aircraft with a

de Havilland Gipsy II The de Havilland Gipsy is a British air-cooled four-cylinder in-line aircraft engine designed by Frank Halford in 1927 to replace the ADC Cirrus in the de Havilland DH.60 Moth light biplane. Initially developed as an upright 5 litre (30 ...

engine built for F.E. Guest. ;204 (G-ABBN) :Fourth production aircraft with a Genet II engine built for the Marquess of Douglas and Clydesdale. ;205 (G-ABIF) :Fifth production aircraft with a Genet II engine for Miss Maxine Freeman-Thomas (who later became Mrs F.G. Miles). ;Metal Martlet :The Metal Martlet, despite its name had little in common with the Martlet. One completed, not a success and a second aircraft was not completed.

Specifications (Genet II)

References

;Citations ;Bibliography *

External links

The Shuttleworth Collection: Southern Martlet
in ''Flight'' magazine 1930 {{Miles aircraft 1930s British sport aircraft Single-engined tractor aircraft Biplanes Aircraft first flown in 1929