Stag Lane Aerodrome was a private aerodrome between 1915 and 1933 in
Edgware
Edgware () is a suburban town in northern Greater London, mostly in the London Borough of Barnet but with small parts falling in the London Borough of Harrow and in the London Borough of Brent. Edgware is centred north-northwest of Charing Cros ...
, north
London
London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
,
UK.
History
The land for an aerodrome was purchased by the London & Provincial Aviation Company (Warren and Smiles - Michael Geoffrey Smiles of Bonnington died in 1921) in October 1915. The company used the aerodrome for flying training during the
First World War
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
. London & Provincial ceased flying in July 1919 after a dispute with Department of Civil Aviation (see
United Kingdom Civil Aviation Authority
The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) is the statutory corporation which oversees and regulates all aspects of civil aviation in the United Kingdom. Its areas of responsibility include:
* Supervising the issuing of pilots' licences, testing of e ...
), which refused them a licence.
Stag Lane became the main base of
The de Havilland Aircraft Company Limited in 1920 and they purchased the
freehold
Freehold may refer to:
In real estate
*Freehold (law), the tenure of property in fee simple
*Customary freehold, a form of feudal tenure of land in England
*Parson's freehold, where a Church of England rector or vicar of holds title to benefice p ...
in 1922. Former wartime aircraft were refurbished in the early years, and the company designed and built large numbers of aircraft at Stag Lane in the 1920s and early 1930s. In 1934 the company moved to a larger factory and airfield at
Hatfield Aerodrome
Hatfield Aerodrome was a private airfield and aircraft factory located in the English town of Hatfield in Hertfordshire from 1930 until its closure and redevelopment in the 1990s.
Early history
Geoffrey de Havilland, pioneering aircraft desig ...
,
Hatfield, Hertfordshire
Hatfield is a town and civil parish in Hertfordshire, England, in the borough of Welwyn Hatfield. It had a population of 29,616 in 2001, and 39,201 at the 2011 Census. The settlement is of Saxon origin. Hatfield House, home of the Marquess of ...
.
Stag Lane Aerodrome was sold for housing development in 1933, though a small site was retained as a factory and offices for the
de Havilland Engine Company Limited. The last flight from the airfield was by a
de Havilland DH.87 Hornet Moth, G -ACTA in July 1934, by which time the company factory had been relocated to Hatfield, Hertfordshire.
British Telecom
In 1976 the
GPO GPO may refer to:
Government and politics
* General Post Office, Dublin
* General Post Office, in Britain
* Social Security Government Pension Offset, a provision reducing benefits
* Government Pharmaceutical Organization, a Thai state enterpris ...
(later
British Telecom
BT Group plc (trade name, trading as BT and formerly British Telecom) is a British Multinational corporation, multinational telecommunications holding company headquartered in London, England. It has operations in around 180 countries and is th ...
) opened the world's largest international exchange on the site, due to the hold ups in the construction of their new
Mondial House
Mondial House was a main telecommunications hub in central London on the banks of the River Thames. It was known as an international switching centre (ISC). Built in 1978 the building was seen as controversially modern-looking. It was demolished ...
, with the "De Havilland" Plessey
TXK2
TXK (Telephone eXchange Crossbar) was a range of Crossbar exchanges used by the British Post Office telephone network, subsequently BT, between 1964 and 1994. TXC was used as the designation at first, but this was later changed as TXC sounded to ...
and "Mollison" Ericsson TXK5.
The exchange closed in 1988, as most of the analogue technology was out of date.
Aircraft built at Stag Lane
*
Cierva C.24
The de Havilland C.24 was a two-seat autogyro built by de Havilland at its Stag Lane works in England in 1931
Design and development
The C.24 was built in 1931 using a Cierva rotor head coupled to the cabin of a de Havilland DH.80A Puss Moth ...
Autogiro
*
de Havilland DH.34
The de Havilland DH.34 was a single engined British biplane airliner built by the de Havilland Aircraft Company in the 1920s. 12 were built, with the DH.34 serving with Imperial Airways and its predecessors for several years.
Design and develo ...
*
de Havilland DH.50
The de Havilland DH.50 was a 1920s British large single-engined biplane transport built by de Havilland at Stag Lane Aerodrome, Edgware, and licence-built in Australia, Belgium, and Czechoslovakia.
History
In the early 1920s, Geoffrey de Havi ...
*
de Havilland DH.51
The de Havilland DH.51 is a 1920s British three-seat touring biplane built by de Havilland at Stag Lane Aerodrome, Edgware.
Design and development
De Havilland designed the DH.51 as an economical touring biplane, based on the 90 hp (67&n ...
*
de Havilland DH.53 Humming Bird
*
de Havilland DH.60 Moth/Gipsy Moth
*
de Havilland DH.61 Giant Moth
The de Havilland DH.61 Giant Moth was a 1920s United Kingdom, British large single-engined biplane transport built by de Havilland at Stag Lane Aerodrome, Edgware. Intended primarily for use in Australia, a number were also shipped to Canada.
...
*
de Havilland DH.65 Hound
*
de Havilland DH.66 Hercules
*
de Havilland DH.71 Tiger Moth
The de Havilland DH.71 Tiger Moth was a British single-seat monoplane, designed to research high-speed flight and to test replacement engines for the Cirrus. Only two were built.
Design and development
It was a low-wing monoplane based on th ...
*
de Havilland DH.75 Hawk Moth
*
de Havilland DH.80 Puss Moth
The de Havilland DH.80A Puss Moth is a British three-seater high-wing monoplane aeroplane designed and built by the de Havilland Aircraft Company between 1929 and 1933. It flew at a speed approaching 124 mph (200 km/h), making it o ...
*
de Havilland DH.82 Tiger Moth
The de Havilland DH.82 Tiger Moth is a 1930s British biplane designed by Geoffrey de Havilland and built by the de Havilland Aircraft Company. It was operated by the Royal Air Force (RAF) and other operators as a primary trainer aircraft. ...
*
de Havilland DH.83 Fox Moth
*
de Havilland DH.84 Dragon
*
de Havilland DH.85 Leopard Moth
*
de Havilland DH.86 Express
*de Havilland DH.87a Hornet Moth
References
*
{{BT Group
Airports established in 1915
Aircraft industry in London
Airports in the London region
British Telecom buildings and structures
De Havilland
Defunct airports in England
Edgware
History of Middlesex
International telecommunications
Telephone exchange buildings
1915 establishments in England