Heston Aircraft: the company and the aircraft that made its name
Out of Comper’s ashes
Heston Aircraft was born on 10 August 1934 when the struggling Comper Aircraft Company at Heston Aerodrome was renamed and handed to a new board under Sir Norman Watson. George Cornwall became chief designer and Edmund Hordern chief test pilot. Its first design, the 赫斯顿·菲尼克斯, was a sleek five-seat retractable-undercarriage monoplane for private owners; six were completed between 1935 and 1939. Hordern also designed the twin-engined Autoplane with the Duke of Richmond and Gordon.
Chasing the world speed record
The most spectacular project was the Type 5 Racer, conceived by Napier around its secret 24-cylinder Sabre engine and funded privately by Lord Nuffield to beat the world air speed record, with an estimated 480 mph in prospect. Built of wood with compregnated spars, it first flew on 12 June 1940. After five minutes the engine overheated, test pilot G.L.G. Richmond stalled it at about 30 feet, and it was wrecked. The second machine, 80 per cent complete, was abandoned.
Spitfires, Sea Hornets and steps
The war made Heston a repair and modification firm. From late 1940 it converted Spitfires for photographic reconnaissance, fitting cameras, extra fuel and modified canopies. After the war it turned Hornets into Sea Hornets for de Havilland, then traded as Hestair, building components, Comet passenger steps and servicing docks.
Heston Aircraft in numbers
公司
- 简而言之
- 成立于1934年
- Renamed from Comper Aircraft on 10 August 1934
- Board led by Sir Norman Watson
- Wartime repair and modification contractor
生产
- 最出名的是
- 赫斯顿·菲尼克斯
- Six Phoenix cabin monoplanes
- Napier-Heston Type 5 Racer
- T.1/37 trainer, JC.6, Boulton Paul P.92/2
今天
- 现在
- 已停业
- Later traded as Hestair in ground equipment and components
这些数字
- Heston Phoenix built
- 61935–1939
- Type 5 Racer estimated top speed
- 480 mph
Every notable Heston Aircraft aircraft
| 飞机 | 角色 | 首航 | 建造 | 地位 | 笔记 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 赫斯顿·菲尼克斯 | Five-seat cabin monoplane | 1935 | 6 | 已退休 | |
| Hordern-Richmond Autoplane | Twin-engine two-seater | 1936 | 1 | 已退休 | |
| Heston T.1/37 | 训练器原型 | 1938 | 2 | 已退休 | Not selected for the RAF |
| Napier-Heston Type 5 Racer | Speed-record aircraft | 12 June 1940 | 1 | 已退休 | Crashed on first flight; second 80% complete |
| Boulton Paul P.92/2 | Half-scale research aircraft | 1941 | 1 | 已退休 | |
| Heston JC.6 (A.2/45) | 空中观察哨 | 1947 | 2 | 已退休 | Lost to the Auster AOP.6 |
| Youngman-Baynes High Lift | Flap research aircraft | 5 February 1948 | 1 | 已退休 |
Where Heston Aircraft built, who led it, what it achieved
工厂
- 赫斯顿的作品 · Heston Aerodrome, Middlesex
人们
- George Cornwall · chief designer
- Edmund G. Hordern · chief test pilot — Designed the Autoplane
- G.L.G. Richmond · chief test pilot — Flew and crashed the Type 5 Racer in 1940
Heston Aircraft, year by year
Comper Aircraft renamed Heston Aircraft
Phoenix production begins
New company of the same name takes over the business
T.1/37 trainer flies; Napier orders two racers
Type 5 Racer first flight and crash
Begins photo-reconnaissance Spitfire conversions
Sea Hornet NF.21 conversion first flies
Youngman-Baynes High Lift first flight
Before and after Heston Aircraft
Everything people ask about Heston Aircraft
What was the Heston Type 5 Racer?
How is Heston Aircraft related to Comper?
What did Heston do in the Second World War?
How many Heston Phoenix were built?
所有事实均已核实
已验证 2026-10-03。.