Southern Martlet

Southern Martlet

Picture - The Shuttleworth Trust's Martlet

Role: single seat sports biplane
National origin: United Kingdom
Manufacturer: Southern
Designed by: F.G Miles
First flight: 1929
Number built: 6
Developed from: Avro Baby

The Southern Martlett was a single engined, single seat biplane sports aircraft. Six were built, including the rather different and unsuccessful Metal Martlet.

Design and development

The Southern Martlet was the first aircraft designed by teams led F.G. Miles, whose first company was Southern Aircraft of Shoreham. It was a modified Avro Baby, differing in the tail unit, undercarriage and engine, the 85 h.p. A.B.C. Hornet air-cooled flat four. Like the Baby, it was a single bay staggered tractor biplane, with fixed two wheel main and tail-skid undercarriage. The prototype G-AAII made its first public appearance on 30 August 1929 at London Air Park, Hanworth, and proved to be a very manoeuvrable sports machine.

Operational history

Five production aircraft were built at Shoreham, differing chiefly in the choice of engine. Three of them had 80 h.p. Armstrong Siddeley Genet II and one a 100 h.p. Armstrong Siddeley Genet Major. These were five cylinder uncowled radials. One aircraft had, at different times, a de Havilland Gipsy I or II (100 h.p. and 120 h.p. respectively), upright in-line air-cooled engines.

The Martlets were not very successful as racers but served a succession of private owners as aerobatic mounts.

Variants

From

200 (G-AAII}
Prototype first flew with an ABC Hornet later fitted with a 85hp Armstrong-Siddeley Genet II engine.
201 (G-AAVD)
First production aircraft with a Genet II engine.
202 (G-AAYX)
Second production aircraft with an Armstrong-Siddeley Genet Major engine and untapered ailerons. Later operated by Butlins and now still airworthy with the Shuttleworth Trust.
203 (G-AAYZ)
Third Production aircraft with a de Havilland Gipsy II engine built for F.E. Guest.
204 (G-ABBN)
Fourth production aircraft with a Genet II engine built for the Marquess of Douglas and Clydesdale.
205 (G-ABIF)
Fifth production aircraft with a Genet II engine for Miss Maxine Freeman-Thomas (who later became Mrs F.G. Miles).
Metal Martlet
The Metal Martlet, despite its name had little in common with the Martlet. One completed, not a success and a second aircraft was not completed.

Specifications (Genet II)

Data from Jackson 1960, pp. 269-72

General characteristics

Crew: 1
Length: 20 ft 3 in (6.17 m)
Wingspan: 25 ft 0 in (7.62 m)
Height: 7 ft 7 in (2.3 m)
Wing area: 180 sq ft (16.7 sq m)
Empty weight: 705 lb (320 kg)
Loaded weight: 1030 lb (467 kg)
Powerplant: 1x— Armstrong Siddeley Genet II five cylinder aircoled radial, 80 h.p. (60 kW)

Performance

Maximum speed: 113 m.p.h. (191 km/h, 103 kt)
Cruise speed: 96 m.p.h (162 km/h, 87 kt)
Range: 280 miles (450 km)
Rate of climb: 1100 ft/mi (5.59 m/s)

Survivors

Picture - Shuttleworth's Martlet at Old Warden

Only one Martlet, the Genet Major engined G-AAYX survived the war. It was overhauled by Miles in 1947 and is now flying with the Shuttleworth Trust at Old Warden, UK

Citations

Cited sources

Jackson, A.J. (1960). British Civil Aircraft 1919-59. 2. London: Putnam Publishing.

Southern Martlet Pictures and Southern Martlet for Sale.

Living Warbirds: The best warbirds DVD series.

Source: WikiPedia