Martinsyde

Slagorde · Vliegtuigfabrikanten · Verenigd Koninkrijk

Martinsyde

Martin & Handasyde · Martinsyde Ltd

Britain’s third-largest aircraft maker of the First World War built the lumbering Elephant and the Buzzard, one of the fastest fighters of the war, then turned to motorcycles until a fire finished it.

1908Opgericht
Defunct 1922Status
4Vliegtuigen geregistreerd
2Luchtmachteenheden die met dit type vliegtuigen vliegen
Photo: Irish Defence Forces from Ireland / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 2.0)
LandVerenigd KoninkrijkOpgericht1908OprichtersH. P. Martin, George HandasydeHoofdkwartierWoking, SurreyStatusDefunct 1922
Het verhaal

Martinsyde: the company and the aircraft that made its name

Martin and Handasyde

H. P. Martin and George Handasyde went into partnership in 1908. Their first monoplane lifted off the ground before a gale wrecked it, and for years they built monoplanes. It was a biplane, the S.1 scout of 1914, that made them. One S.1 gave rise to one of the war’s strangest stories: Captain Louis Strange fell out of his inverted Martinsyde while changing a Lewis gun drum, hung on to the gun, and climbed back in as the aircraft righted itself.

The Elephant

Renamed Martinsyde Ltd in 1915, the firm became Britain’s third-largest aircraft maker, with flight sheds at Brooklands and a big factory at Woking. Its G.100 and G.102 were so large for single-seaters that pilots called them the Elephant. Too clumsy to dogfight, they found a role as long-range day bombers and reconnaissance aircraft from 1916 to 1917; 271 were built, and No. 27 Squadron flew nothing else.

The Buzzard, the bikes and the fire

Handasyde’s F.4 Buzzard of 1918 reached 142 mph in its F.3 form and was judged a great advance on all existing fighting scouts. Orders for 1,450 followed, then the Armistice cancelled them, and the RAF chose the cheaper Snipe. Martinsyde sold Buzzards abroad and built over 2,000 motorcycles from 1919, until a fire destroyed the Woking factory in 1922 and forced it into liquidation.

Britain’s third-largest aircraft maker of the First World War built the lumbering Elephant and the Buzzard, one of the fastest fighters of the war, then turned to motorcycles until a fire finished it.Martinsyde · verified 2026-10-03
In één oogopslag

Martinsyde in numbers

Het bedrijf

Kortom
Opgericht in 1908

  • Partnership of H. P. Martin and George Handasyde
  • Renamed Martinsyde Ltd, 1915
  • Britain’s third-largest aircraft maker in WWI
  • Liquidated after a factory fire, 1922

Productie

Het meest bekend om
G.100 Elephant, F.4 Buzzard

  • S.1 scout (60)
  • G.100/G.102 Elephant (271)
  • F.4 Buzzard (fewer than 400)
  • BE.2c and S.E.5a under subcontract
  • Over 2,000 motorcycles

Vandaag

Nu
Defunct since 1922

  • Buzzard development continued by the Aircraft Disposal Company
  • Motorcycle rights sold to Bat

De cijfers

G.100/G.102 Elephants built
271
Buzzards ordered then cancelled
1,4501918
Motorcycles built
over 2,0001919–1922
Het vliegtuig

Every notable Martinsyde aircraft

Martinsyde F.4 BuzzardFighter · first flight 1918 · fewer than 400 built

Photos: Irish Defence Forces from Ireland / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 2.0)

Vliegtuig Rol Eerste vlucht Gebouwd Status Opmerking
Martinsyde S.1 Single-seat scout 60 Gepensioneerd First to France 1 March 1915
Martinsyde G.100 / G.102 Elephant Fighter, day bomber, reconnaissance 1915 271 Gepensioneerd 100 G.100, 171 G.102; 5.5 h endurance
Martinsyde F.3 Vechter 1917 6 Gepensioneerd Rolls-Royce Falcon; 142 mph
Martinsyde F.4 Buzzard Vechter 1918 fewer than 400 Gepensioneerd 310 delivered to the RAF; exported to Spain, Finland, USSR
Wie vliegt ermee?

Martinsyde aircraft in the world’s air forces

2 air forces in the Order of Battle fly or flew Martinsyde types. Geen van hen heeft er nog een in gebruik.

Luchtmacht In dienst Voorheen gevlogen
Iers luchtmachtkorps Martinsyde Type A Mk II en F.4 Buzzard
Spaanse marine luchtmacht Aeronáutica Naval seaplanes and landplanes (Macchi M.18, Supermarine Scarab, Savoia S.16, Dornier Wal, Avro 504K, Martinsyde F.6 and others)
Plaatsen, mensen, archieven

Where Martinsyde built, who led it, what it achieved

Fabrieken

  • Brooklands · Weybridge, Surrey — Flight sheds
  • Woking works · Woking, Surrey — Main factory, destroyed by fire in 1922

Mensen

  • George Handasyde · co-founder, designer — Designed the F.3 and F.4 Buzzard
  • H. P. Martin • medeoprichter
  • A. A. Fletcher · designer — Designed the G.100 Elephant
  • Louis Strange · RFC pilot — Fell out of an S.1 in combat and climbed back in
Tijdlijn

Martinsyde, year by year

1908

Martin & Handasyde partnership formed

1914

S.1 scout, the firm’s breakthrough

1915

Renamed Martinsyde Ltd

1915

First S.1 goes to France

1916

G.100 Elephant deliveries to the RFC

1917

F.3 flying at Brooklands

1918

F.4 Buzzard tested

1919

Motorcycle production begins

1922

Woking factory fire; company liquidated

Vragen en antwoorden

Everything people ask about Martinsyde

Why was the Martinsyde G.100 called the Elephant?
Because it was unusually large and unmanoeuvrable for a single-seat fighter.
What was the Martinsyde Buzzard?
A fast single-seat fighter of 1918 with a Hispano-Suiza engine. Large orders were cancelled at the Armistice, and fewer than 400 were built.
Did Martinsyde make motorcycles?
Yes. From 1919 it built more than 2,000 motorcycles, including the Quick Six V-twin.
Why did Martinsyde close?
A fire destroyed its Woking factory in 1922 and the company went into liquidation.

Vervolg de rondleiding

Around Martinsyde

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Geverifieerd op 3 oktober 2026.