Airspeed Envoy
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| AS.6 Envoy | |
|---|---|
| Type | Transport |
| Manufacturer | Airspeed Ltd. |
| Designed by | N.S. Norway/A.H. Tiltman |
| Maiden flight | June 26 1934 |
| Produced | 1937- |
| Number built | 60 |
| Variants | Airspeed Viceroy Airspeed Oxford. |
Airspeed AS.6 Envoy was a British light, twin-engined transport aircraft designed and built by Airspeed Ltd. at Portsmouth Aerodrome, Hampshire.
Contents |
[edit] Development
The Envoy was designed by N.S. Norway and A.H. Tiltman as a twin-engined development of the Courier. It used the same wooden construction, outer wing panels and aft-retracting main undercarriage legs. The prototype G-ACMT first flew on June 26, 1934 and in July 1934, the aircraft was presented to the public for the first time at an exhibition by the Society of British Aircraft Constructors (SBAC) at Hendon.
[edit] Operational use
The first production Envoy I G-ACVH was used as a demonstrator, the second was delivered to Lord Nuffield. Lord Nuffield's aircraft was due to fly in the MacRobertson Air Race from England to Australia in 1934, but the aircraft was damaged and withdrawn from the race. Another aircraft, a specially modified version with long-range tanks (the AS 8 Viceroy) got as far as Athens before leaving the race due to damage.[1]
Orders soon came from the whole Commonwealth. Two aircraft went to the Ansett Airlines in Australia. North Eastern Airways also used the AS.6. In Czechoslovakia, the CSA ordered four AS.6 Envoy JC in 1937.
The Airspeed AS.6 Envoy also entered the Air Forces of different countries. The British Royal Air Force used a few AS.6 in a military configuration. The aircraft was used in the Air Forces of Spain, Japan, South Africa, Finland and China and some others. Seven machines were ordered for joint use by the South African Air Force and South African Airways, with three being delivered in military form and four delivered to South African Airways, where they were used on the air route between Johannesburg - Bloemfontein - Port Elizabeth on 12 October 1936.[1] Each of these seven aircraft could be transformed by a work crew of four within four hours from the transportation version into a light bomber or reconnaissance aircraft. In this configuration the crew consisted of four; pilot, navigator, radio operator and gunner.[1]
In October 1936, the British Air Ministry ordered 136 Envoys for the role of crew-training. These further developed aircraft were given a new designation; Airspeed AS 10 Oxford.
[edit] Japan
Six Envoy-Is were delivered to Japan in 1935 for services linking Japan with Manchukuo. These were followed by 10 aircraft license built by Mitsubishi at Nagoya. The aircraft were named Hina-Zura (en: Flying Crane). The aircraft were used by the Japan Air Transport and Manchukuo National Airways; it is believed the rest were operated by the Imperial Japanese Navy under the designation LXM.
[edit] Wartime
During the Spanish Civil War, two AS.6 Envoy were used on the Nationalist side [1]as reconnaissance aircraft or light bombers.[citation needed]
In May 1937, the British King George VI traded his de Havilland Dragon Rapide for an Airspeed AS.6J Envoy III. The AS.6's good stability and flaps, as well as its low landing speed (less than 100 km/h) was decisive. The aircraft received the registration G-AEXX and was painted in distinctive red and blue colours .[1]
During the Second World War, the German Luftwaffe captured some machines and used them as trainer aircraft. The Luftwaffe gave one aircraft to Finland on 22 January 1942, as reparation for the accidental shooting down of a Finnish de Havilland Dragon Rapide. This aircraft was used between 1942 and 1943. Likewise, one aircraft was used between 1941 to 1943 by the Slovaks.[citation needed]
[edit] Variants
[edit] Airspeed Ltd, Portsmouth
- AS.6 Envoy
- Powered by two 200-hp (149-kW) Wolseley AR.9 piston engines. 5 built
- AS.6A Envoy
- Powered by two 240-hp (179-kW) Armstrong Siddeley Lynx IVC radial piston engines. 5 built
- AS.6D Envoy
- Powered by two 350-hp (261-kW) Wright R-760-E2 Whirlwind 7 radial piston engines.
- AS.6E Envoy
- Powered by two 340-hp (254-kW) Walter Castor engines. 5 built
- AS.6G
- Powered by two 250-hp (186-kW) Wolseley Scorpio I engines.
- AS.6H Envoy
- Powered by two 225-hp (168-kW) Wolseley Aries III engines. 1 built
- AS.6J Envoy
- Seven-seat light transport aircraft. Powered by two 350-hp (261-kW) Armstrong Siddeley Cheetah IX radial piston engines. 27 built
- AS.6JC Envoy
- Powered by two 350-hp (261-kW) Armstrong Siddeley Cheetah IX radial piston engines. 4 built
- AS.6JM Envoy
- Powered by two 350-hp (261-kW) Armstrong Siddeley Cheetah IX radial piston engines. 3 built
A special, one-off racing aircraft was developed from the Envoy: the Airspeed AS.8 Viceroy.
[edit] Mitsubishi, Japan
- Hina-Zuru: 10 licence built
[edit] Operators
The Envoy also saw service in China, the Independent State of Croatia, Finland, Slovakia, and Spain.
[edit] Accidents and incidents
Envoy VH-UXY, piloted by Charles Ulm, disappeared in 1934 during an attempt to fly the Pacific route between Oakland and Honolulu.[1]
[edit] Specifications Airspeed AS.6J Envoy (3rd series)
Data from British Aircraft Directory[2]
General characteristics
- Crew: 1-2
- Capacity: 6-8 passengers
- Payload: 4,235 lb (1,920 kg)
- Length: 34 ft 6 in (10.50 m)
- Wingspan: 54 ft 4 in (15.9 m)
- Height: 9 ft 6 in (2.8 m)
- Wing area: 339 ft² (31.50 m²)
- Empty weight: 6,460 lb (2,930 kg)
- Loaded weight: 5,300 lb (2,410 kg)
- Powerplant: 2× Armstrong-Siddeley Cheetah IX 7-cylinder radial engine, 345 hp (255 kW)[3] each
Performance
- Maximum speed: 183 knots (210 mph, 338 km/h)
- Cruise speed: 157 knots (180 mph, 290 km/h)
- Range: 560 nm (645 mi, 1,040 km)
- Service ceiling 22,310 ft (6,800 m)
- Rate of climb: 914 ft/min (initial) (4.64 m/s)
- Wing loading: 15.6 lb/ft² (76.5 kg/m²)
- Power/mass: 0.065 hp/lb (0.11 kW/kg)
[edit] See also
Related lists
[edit] References
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