After the display I went round the hangars. Here's some rare types that didn't fly on the day. I've taken the liberty of copying some information from the Shuttleworth site.
Quote:The DH53 monoplane was built for the Daily Mail light aeroplane trials at Lympne in October 1923. Two aircraft were built for the competition 'Humming Bird' entered by de Havillands and 'Slyvia II' entered by A.S. Butler. Originally the aircraft were powered by the troublesome 750cc Douglas motorcycle engine and neither aircraft fared well in the competitions. However a memorable aerobatic display was put on by H.S. Broad in 'Humming Bird'.
This is the prototype DH.53 "Humming Bird".
Quote:Fitted with a 26hp Blackburne Tomtit engine, given increased fuel tankage and registered as G-EBHX. A.J. Cobham flew 'HX to Brussels non-stop for the Aero Show, for which it was re-christened 'L'Oiseau Mouche'. It made the journey in 4 hours at a fuel cost of 10 shillings. In 1924 Cobham flew 'HX to fourth place in the 1924 Grosevenor Trophy Race at Lympne.
Sidney Camm's little Hawker Tomtit.
Quote:The Tomtit was designed as a replacement (for the Avro 504) and became the first Hawker biplane to enter service with the RAF. The Tomtit was one of the pace-setters in the change-over from wooden to metal construction, with a steel tube fuselage of a pattern that became the Hawker norm as far ahead as the Hurricane.
In 1929 Tomtits were issued to No.3 Flying Training School at Grantham and to the Central Flying School at Wittering. A Tomtit on the strength of No.24 (Communications) Squadron at Northolt was flown regularly by the then Prince of Wales. The type was withdrawn from service in 1935 and several were sold to civilian owners, to join a small number that had been built especially for the civil market. Six Tomtits were flying at the outbreak of the Second World War and all became camouflaged but they were all kept on the civil register for use on communications duties.
K1786 was the last Tomtit built and is the Worlds ONLY surviving Hawker Tomtit.
The Comper Swift 'The Scarlet Angel' with Pobjoy radial engine.
Quote:The Comper CLA.7 Swift was designed by Flt Lt Nicholas Comper in 1929. It was a small monoplane of wooden construction with plywood and fabric covering. The folding wing was mounted on top of the fuselage to give the pilot a good downward view. The prototype Swift was powered by a 35hp ABC Scorpion engine, but the first seven production aircraft were modified to be fitted with the 50hp British Salmson AD9 radial engine.
To improve the aircraft's performance for air racing, Comper then fitted Pobjoy radial engines as standard, although three Swifts were fitted with de Havilland Gipsy engines. Richard Shuttleworth was a director of Comper Aircraft and owned two Comper Swifts. 41 Comper Swifts were produced and today there are six complete Comper Swifts in existence, some replica Swifts have been built.
To my shame I'm not 100% certain what this is. I think it's the 1910 Deperdussin.
Quote:Richard Shuttleworth acquired the aircraft in 1935 and restored the aircraft to pristine condition at Old Warden. It flew again in 1937 and with only a period of storage during the Second World War has flown regularly since that time. The Deperdussin was featured in the film 'Those Magnificent Men and their Flying Machines'. As with most Edwardian aircraft the Deperdussin is very susceptible to weather conditions and so is only flown when conditions are just right. Today it is normally only 'hopped' along the runway although it is capable of longer flights.
I know what this is. 8) The Hawker Sea Hurricane.
The airfield was too waterlogged to risk flying the heavier aircraft so unfortunately this one had to stay in the hangar. We were treated to some of the older types instead so I wasn't too disappointed this time. I shall return in the near future.
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