Empire of the Clouds

Empire of the Clouds
Author: James Hamilton-Paterson
Publisher: Faber & Faber
Total Pages: 306
Release: 2010-10-07
Genre: Technology & Engineering
ISBN: 0571271731

In 1945 Britain was the world's leading designer and builder of aircraft - a world-class achievement that was not mere rhetoric. And what aircraft they were. The sleek Comet, the first jet airliner. The awesome delta-winged Vulcan, an intercontinental bomber that could be thrown about the sky like a fighter. The Hawker Hunter, the most beautiful fighter-jet ever built and the Lightning, which could zoom ten miles above the clouds in a couple of minutes and whose pilots rated flying it as better than sex. How did Britain so lose the plot that today there is not a single aircraft manufacturer of any significance in the country? What became of the great industry of de Havilland or Handley Page? And what was it like to be alive in that marvellous post-war moment when innovative new British aircraft made their debut, and pilots were the rock stars of the age? James Hamilton-Paterson captures that season of glory in a compelling book that fuses his own memories of being a schoolboy plane spotter with a ruefully realistic history of British decline - its loss of self confidence and power. It is the story of great and charismatic machines and the men who flew them: heroes such as Bill Waterton, Neville Duke, John Derry and Bill Beaumont who took inconceivable risks, so that we could fly without a second thought.

The British Aircraft Industry and American-led Globalisation

The British Aircraft Industry and American-led Globalisation
Author: Takeshi Sakade
Publisher: Routledge
Total Pages: 246
Release: 2021-12-09
Genre: History
ISBN: 1000512185

Sakade challenges the narrative that the focus of British manufacturing went "from Empire to Europe" and argues rather that, following the Second World War, the key relationship was in fact trans-Atlantic. There is a commonly accepted belief that, during the twentieth century, British manufacturing declined irreparably, that Britain lost its industrial hegemony. But this is too simplistic. In fact, in the decades after 1945, Britain staked out a new role for itself as a key participant in a US-led process of globalisation. Far from becoming merely a European player, the UK actually managed to preserve a key share in a global market, and the British defence industry was, to a large extent, successfully rehabilitated. Sakade returns to the original scholarly parameters of the decline controversy, and especially questions around post-war decline in the fields of high technology and the national defence industrial base. Using the case of the strategically critical military and civil aircraft industry, he argues that British industry remained relatively robust. A valuable read for historians of British aviation and more widely of 20th century British Industry.

Britain's Aircraft Industry

Britain's Aircraft Industry
Author: Ken Ellis
Publisher:
Total Pages: 0
Release: 2021
Genre: Aircraft industry
ISBN: 9781910809426

Britain established the world's first aircraft factory in 1909 after the Short brothers met up with the American Wright brothers and struck a deal. The industry expanded rapidly to rise to the challenge of World War One with such thoroughbreds as the Camel and the SE.5. The post-conflict slump proved to be difficult but classics such as the Moths, the Hart family and the Gladiator maintained Britain's leadership. Another war loomed and iconic types such as the Hurricane, Lancaster, Mosquito, Spitfire and the Meteor jet appeared. With the return of peace over 20 major manufacturers faced inevitable contraction. The misguided Bristol Brabazon airliner was a dead end but the superb de Havilland Comet and Vickers Viscount led the field. Canberras, Hunters, Lightnings and the V-bombers met the Cold War confrontation. For the first time here is a readable, highly-illustrated, examination of the entire industry; its heritage and the changes it faces in the 21st century, both technical and political. The life and times of the 40 'big names' from Airbus to Westland: aircraft, designers, factories, failures and successes, mergers and closures are all explained, supported by statistical tables and copious illustrations. Here is a celebration of a world class industry that remains at the cutting edge of excellence.

Industry and Air Power

Industry and Air Power
Author: Sebastian Ritchie
Publisher: Taylor & Francis
Total Pages: 322
Release: 1997
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 9780714643434

The author examines the relationship between industry and the state during the period immediately before the Second World War when increasing tension resulted in large government contracts.

England and the Aeroplane

England and the Aeroplane
Author: David Edgerton
Publisher:
Total Pages: 184
Release: 1991
Genre: Political Science
ISBN:

"This essay argues that 20th century England should be seen as a technological, industrial and militant nation. It is a refutation of many of the arguments of "declinists" like Martin Wiener, Correlli Barnett and Perry Anderson. Contrary to myth, English aviation and the aircraft industry were strong, due to the vital place that technology had in English "liberal militarism", as well as English enthusiasm for, rather than fear of, the aeroplane. This enthusiasm was predominantly right-wing and sometimes pro-Nazi. The book also shows how many firms opposed central elements of 1930s rearmament policy, and that a famous aircraft firm was nationalized during World War II, and how the 1945-51 Labour government "privatized" aircraft plants and jet engine design. In the 1950s the aeroplane remained central to the "warfare state" but also became the symbol of a new manufacturing England, a situation which Harold Wilson's "White Heat" sought to change. " -- Blackwells.

TSR 2

TSR 2
Author: Damien Burke
Publisher: Crowood
Total Pages: 637
Release: 2014-04-30
Genre: Transportation
ISBN: 184797791X

More than forty years after its cancellation, the BAC TSR2 is still a controversial aircraft. Years ahead of its time, it was abruptly cancelled by a new government when flight testing had ony just begun. Built to a demanding RAF requirement , the BAC TSR2 was a revolutionary low-level strike aircraft able to deliver a tactical nuclear weapon at supersonic speed and low altitude to evade enemy radar. This fascinating new book describes in detail the aircraft, its history and the events of its cancellation. Many hitherto unseen photographs and diagrams support the detailed text, which benefits from extensive research in the BAC archives and access to newly rediscovered material.

Britain's Glorious Aircraft Industry

Britain's Glorious Aircraft Industry
Author: J Paul Hodgson
Publisher: Air World
Total Pages: 588
Release: 2021-03-03
Genre: Transportation
ISBN: 1526774674

“The rich and diverse history of the British aircraft industry is captured in superb detail by the author in this weighty tome.” —Aviation News Great Britain’s aircraft industry started in 1908, with the first formally registered organization in the world to offer to design and build an aeroplane “for commercial gain.” This book tells the complete story of the 110 years since the start, all the companies formed and the aircraft they produced, highlighting the advances in aeronautical ambition and technology. It is the story of the creation, survival and decline of all one hundred and twenty-three of the aircraft design and construction companies formed between 1908 and 2018. The exhilaration of success and the magic of aviation technology are vividly illustrated by the technical and political birth stories of iconic projects, such as the Cirrus/Gypsy Moths, the Tiger Moth, the flying boats of Imperial Airways, Spitfire, Lancaster, Viscount, Vulcan, Harrier, Buccaneer and many more. The rotary wing industry is not forgotten. The birth of the jet turbine engine and the quest for supersonic speed is included. The stories of the disappointments of failure and disaster, such as the Brabazon, Comet, Princess, Rotodyne and TSR-2, and the growth of international collaboration in Concorde, Tornado, Airbus, Eurofighter Typhoon and other projects are included, in the context of the international scene and domestic politics. The conclusion highlights the prominent reminiscences and speculates on the future of the aircraft industry in Britain. “An outstanding reference book and a thoroughly enjoyable canter through the decades, from the days of wood and fabric to the modern composite structure of the wings of the A400 Atlas.” —RAF Historical Society

Imperial Airways

Imperial Airways
Author: Robert Bluffield
Publisher: Classic Publications
Total Pages: 0
Release: 2009
Genre: Aeronautics, Commercial
ISBN: 9781906537074

Imperial Airways is a name redolent of the excitement and glamour of the pioneering years of flight. Founded in the 1920s, Imperial Airways flew to destinations all over the world. This beautiful and evocative book on the 'golden age' of passenger flight is the result of years of research, and the text is complemented by a wealth of stunning photographs and ephemera. It will be the most definitive book published on the history of Imperial Airways and the formative years of British commercial aviation.

Industry and Air Power

Industry and Air Power
Author: Noel Sebastian Ritchie
Publisher: Routledge
Total Pages: 322
Release: 2013-09-13
Genre: History
ISBN: 1135221138

The author begins with a general survey of British aircraft manufacturing in the inter-war period. Policy, production, finance and contracts are examined, and the final chapter is concerned with the mobilization of the aircraft industry in 1939, and the emergency measures of 1940.