Spartan Aircraft Limited was a British aircraft manufacturer from 1930 to 1935. It was formed by reinvestment in Simmonds Aircraft which had suffered financially.

History

In 1928

Oliver Simmonds Sir Oliver Edwin Simmonds, FRAeS (22 November 1897 – 26 July 1985) was a British aviation pioneer, aircraft engineer and Conservative Party politician. He was the Member of Parliament (MP) for Birmingham Duddeston from 1931 to 1945. Early li ...

designed and built a prototype aircraft, the

Simmonds Spartan The Simmonds Spartan is a 1920s British two-seat biplane trainer/tourer aircraft built by Simmonds Aircraft Limited. History Not happy with the high cost of manufacturing light aircraft, O.E. Simmonds designed and built a wooden two-seat bipl ...

, in a factory at

Woolston, Hampshire Woolston is a suburb of Southampton, Hampshire, located on the eastern bank of the River Itchen. It is bounded by the River Itchen, Sholing, Peartree Green, Itchen and Weston. The area has a strong maritime and aviation history. The former ...

. The design was a success with over 50 aircraft built. Following financial difficulties and investment from

Whitehall Securities Whitehall Securities Corporation Ltd was formed in 1907 by Weetman Pearson MP and his son Harold Pearson MP. Sir Weetman was nominated as President as well as being a founding director. The company was capitalised at £1,000,000. On 12 December 1 ...

Corporation Ltd Simmonds Aircraft Limited changed name in 1930 to Spartan Aircraft Limited. The first aircraft from the renamed company was the

Spartan Arrow The Spartan Arrow is a British two-seat biplane aircraft of the early 1930s, built by Spartan Aircraft Limited. History Built as a successor to the company's first design the Simmonds Spartan, the Arrow was a two-seat biplane with a spruce a ...

a two-seat biplane of which 15 were built.Jackson, 1974, p. 180 The next design was a three-seat open-cockpit biplane the

Spartan Three Seater The Spartan Three Seater was a British three-seat biplane touring and pleasure-flying aircraft built by Spartan Aircraft Limited. History Built as a three-seat version of the Simmonds Spartan The Simmonds Spartan is a 1920s British tw ...

. The company ceased to build aircraft in 1935. In January 1931 ''Flight'' magazine revealed that Whitehall Securities had acquired a substantial holding in

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 ...

Ltd. and arising out of this investment Spartan was effectively merged into Saunders Roe. Spartan Aircraft's final product was the

Spartan Cruiser The Spartan Cruiser was a 1930s British three- engined transport monoplane for 6 to 10 passengers built by Spartan Aircraft Limited at East Cowes, Isle of Wight. It was a development of the Saro-Percival Mailplane for passenger use. Design an ...

a three-engined light airliner developed from the Saro-Percival Mailplane.

Aircraft

– first flight 1930, 15 built *

– first flight 1931, 25 built *

– passenger, first flight 1932 17 built *

Spartan Clipper The Spartan Clipper was a British light touring aeroplane of the 1930s. It was a single-engine, two-seat, low-wing monoplane with a fixed tailwheel undercarriage. Development H.E. Broadsmith designed the Clipper as a two-seater; he employed th ...

– 1 built 1932

Notes

References

* *

External links

Simmonds/Spartan production
{{Aerospace industry in the United Kingdom Defunct aircraft manufacturers of the United Kingdom Companies based in Southampton British companies established in 1930 Manufacturing companies established in 1930 1930 establishments in England

History

Aircraft

See also

Notes

References

External links