Newsletter for May

Chris Hayward

263 Squadron Crest.

 

Welcome to the May newsletter, first off an apology is due because somehow or other all the photographs have disappeared from the earlier blogs and I have no idea as to how that happened, if anyone has any ideas I would love to know the reason why then hopefully I can stop it happening again.

I would like to thank the Royal Antediluvian Order of Buffaloes, St Leonards Lodge No 1601 and Bedford and District Provincial Grand Lodge for their kind donation to our project.

Congratulations must go the the Peoples Mosquito having taken the big step in cutting the first wood for the wings, I had hoped that we might just beat them to it but it was not to be, so well done guys and may your glue always set firm.

Things are still progressing slowly, as you know we now have the material in the workshop to start the build of the rear fuselage, Mike has a Spitfire in there at the moment that he wants to move out before work commences, we have to realise that he is doing this project without charge so of course his main business comes first otherwise there will be no workshop in which to construct it, so we have to fit in around what he has to do.

What are the chances?

Ten sections of ‘top hat’ stringer, to precise dimensions, were needed to complete the inventory of materials for the rear fuselage.  A month-long search showed that sections to these dimensions were not available anywhere ‘off the shelf’. Getting them made to the precise dimensions looked like an expensive business, some quotes being upwards of £1,000.

Matt B called in on the off-chance at a company – Milton Precision Engineering (http://www.miltonprecision.co.uk/)  – literally a three-minute walk from his office in Cambridge. They were able to manufacture the 10 lengths to the exact specification for £65! Now we have all the material we need for the rear fuselage.  Just goes to show, it never hurts to ask locally..

 

The AGM is still ahead on the 24th of May, the main part of the meeting will be to agree the constitution, when that is done we can approach HMR&C and apply for charity status so that we can gain from the benefit of gift aid.

The First AGM of the Project will be held at

 

The Premier Inn Hotel.  
Alvington Lane, 
Brympton d'Evercy, 
Yeovil, 
Somerset,
BA22 8UX.

In the Conference room on the 24^th of May 2014

The meeting will start at 11:00hrs followed by a break for lunch and then resume at 14:00hrs with a talk on the project by Patrice Moreau followed by The Eye of the Storm' - Westland' the fixed wing years and Quo Vadis a talk by Dave Gibbings.

All are welcome.

If you are planning to attend please can you let me know so that we can work out the numbers for food.

There will be a raffle and also there will be goodies for sale, all proceeds of which will to go towards the build.

 There are still a number of prints available from me at the address at the end of this newsletter, the print is unframed and carries the signature of the artist David Gibbings also in facsimile the signatures of Penrose, Petter and Davenport the cost is £25.00 which includes postage and packing.

Information above is correct at the time of writing but may be subject to minor changes

Whirlwind Stories

Bellows Argentina No2

Delivered to 263 Squadron on the 3rd of November 1941, on the 25th of July she was hit by a Beaufort AW274 and repaired onsite, on the 12th of December 1942 he went to the Station flight at Colerne but was later damaged and returned to Westland but was re-categorised as unrepairable possibly due to extensive corrosion. Total ops hours 80.5

Thanks to RN Pearson for the above image.

Thanks to Rob Bowater and also to Niall Corduroy's book Whirlwind for the above information.

Arthur Davenport.

Arthur Davenport F.R.Ae.S (1891 to 1976) was a British aircraft engineer working for Westland Aircraft.
When the Westland Aircraft Works was created by the Petter twins in 1915, Arthur was one of the first draughtsmen to be recruited from Petter's Ltd . He was chief designer from 1919, working under the direction of Teddy Petter from May 1934 until 1944, when Petter left and Davenport became technical director. According to Harald Penrose, he was made the scapegoat for the late delivery of the Wyvern and headed into retirement in March 1952.
In the 1920s, when most aircraft were biplanes, Arthur was a strong proponent of the monoplane Most of his monoplane designs were high-winged or parasol, culminating in the Lysander. During his career he was involved in the design of the following fixed-wing aircraft.

• Westland Limousine  Chief draughtsman
• Westland Wagtail  Chief draughtsman/Designer
• Westland Weasel  Chief draughtsman/Designer
• Westland Woodpigeon
• Westland Widgeon  Chief designer
• Westland Wizard
• Westland Wapiti/Wallace
• Westland Interceptor
• Westland Wessex
• Westland PV.3
• Westland Wallace
• Westland PV.7
• Westland F.7/30
• Westland Lysander
• Westland Whirlwind
• Westland Welkin
• Westland Wyvern  Technical director

In the early 1930s he worked with Juan de la Cierva to develop the Cierva C.29 and CL-20 auto-gyros.
 It was this interest in rotary winged aircraft that would lead Westland to manufacture Sikorsky helicopters in the early 1950s.

Information above from Wikipedia.

From our correspondent Jim Munro

Separately just to let you know that Prof Glyn Davies of Imperial College, London has written the first ever biography on W.E.W. ('Teddy') Petter who of course designed the Whirlwind, Lysander, Gnat, Canberra and had a major hand in the English Electric Lightning.   The book launch will take place at AgustaWestland at Yeovil on Thursday 19th June........starting time 'TBD'.

Wanted

Coffman Starter, not used on the Whirlwind for starting the engines but used as a flare dispenser, sited in the rear fuselage and covered by a cloth cover, the exit hole for the flare is on the top of the fuselage about half way down towards the tail, a donation would be preferable but could buy it if the price is right.

CAD Work 

At the moment we can't show the plans that Mike will use to construct her but these CAD pictures will give you an idea of the extent that Gunnar has gone to to resurrect the Whirlwind using crash pictures and studying manufacturers pictures and plans that still exist. I will put up more next month.

Copyright Whirlwind Fighter Project 2011-2014

All Correspondence should be sent to,

The Secretary, 57 Bramblefield Lane, Sittingbourne, Kent ME10 2SX

Email address....chris-hayward@outlook.com

Copyright Whirlwind Fighter Project 2011 - 2014

Newsletter for May

Newsletter for April





Chris Hayward 

It's been quite a busy month one way or the other, what with the arrangements for the AGM, the visit to Duxford for the BAPC meeting, the delivery of the first metal sheeting to the workshop at Ripley so that work can start on the rear fuselage, Gunnar has been fine tuning the plans so that Mike will have the best foundations with which to start with, and it looks as if we now have the final drawings in house for the retractable tail wheel.

Team Profile of Rene Peters

 Hello, may I please take this opportunity to introduce myself.

 My name is René Peters, I am 45 years old and live in The Netherlands with my wife and two sons. By profession I am a freelance 3D engineer specialising and working with SolidWorks. Projects varying from motorcycle exhaust systems, sewer pumps through to kitchen equipment.

My hobbies include Scouting, veteran cars and motorcycling, and since my childhood I have been fascinated by all types of military vehicles and combat aircraft from the First and Second World Wars. During our holidays we always try to visit a military museum or a battlefield, so we have seen many places from the Battle of the Bulge to Verdun and the Somme and have also visited the Normandy Beaches.

Whilst browsing the internet I came across the site http://3dengineers.co.uk. Where a Bugatti T35 had been reverse engineered. It was on this site that I first came across the Whirlwind Fighter project. The original Westland wind tunnel model had been 3D scanned to produce additional CAD information. Triggered by this I then visited the Whirlwind website and subsequently offered my help to the CAD team. My first intention was to help with the 20 mm. cannons but the Whirlwind team had a bigger challenge for me, namely to make a start on the Rolls Royce V12 Peregrine engine. (Indeed, this turned out to be a bigger challenge!)

The only information available was the original drawings from Rolls Royce with the external dimensions and many photographs of a crashed Peregrine engine in Derby.  It goes without saying that a lot of information was missing, later to be filled in by logical thinking and technical insight. The supercharger and carburetors from the engine in Derby were missing, they remain a complete grey area.  If you just happen to have a supercharger in your attic - please get in touch!

Nevertheless, I am progressing, and with luck and many hours work the Westland Whirlwind will get her engines back!

 
                                                                                                       

  Dave Tanner, Mike Eastman, Matt Bearman, Chris Hayward, Patrice Moreau.

Five members of the team attended the BAPC meeting on the first of March at Duxford to hear the committee accept us as provisional members, during the next twelve months we have to make a presentation to the committee as to what the project is all about, and this will take place during the meeting at Doncaster on the 16th of August and will be given by Matt Bearman. At the end of or our first year the BAPC will vote as to whether or not we can become full members.

  

The First AGM of the Project will be held at

 

The Premier Inn Hotel.  
Alvington Lane, 
Brympton d'Evercy, 
Yeovil, 
Somerset,
BA22 8UX.

In the Conference room on the 24^th of May 2014

The meeting will start at 11:00hrs followed by a break for lunch and then resume at 14:00hrs with a talk on the project by Patrice Moreau followed by The Eye of the Storm' - Westland' the fixed wing years and Quo Vadis a talk by Dave Gibbings.

If you are planning to attend please can you let me know so that we can work out the numbers for food.
 

Begging Bowl

As you will surely appreciate raising money for a project like this is never easy, we have sufficient funds now to nearly complete the rear fuselage and tail section but that still leaves the rest of the airframe that we need to fund.

If you wish to donate please don't use Paypal as they take a lump of your donation and deplete the amount that you give us, either pop a cheque in the post to my address or contact me and I will let you have the paying in details, you can if you wish, make monthly donations via a standing order.

I am asking people to have a look and see if you have a few pounds that you can spare, or visit our Shop  and buy some goodies, I also still have some prints of the Whirlwind prototype available so if you missed it last time take this opportunity to get your print now.

 The print of the Whirlwind prototype. This is unframed and costs £25.00 which includes postage and packing. It is signed by the Artist Dave Gibbings MBE also in facsimile by Petter, Penrose and Davenport. 

 

This can be obtained from me at the address or email at the end of this Newsletter.

Whirlwind Stories

 P7055

 Bellows Argentina No 1,

 Was delivered on the 17th of June 1941 to 39 Maintenance unit at Colerne, on the 8th of July 1941 she went to Staweall Farm Dispersal. and on the 1st of November she joined 137 Sq at Charmy Down as (SF-S, on the 12th of February she suffered battle damage while being flown by Charles Mercer, on the 26th of August she suffered further damage to her undercarriage and nacelle at Snailwell while in the hands of John Luing. On the 1st of September she went to Westland and from there to 18 Mu in Dumfries. On the 18 of February she rejoined 137 Sq at Manston as SF-U she then was hit by flack on the 6th of June 1943. 

On the 24th of June she was one of the Whirlwinds allocated to 263Sq at Warmwell when 137Sq lost is aircraft. She had further damage from flack and also damage to the tail.

On the 11th of January 1944 she went back to 18 MU and as scrapped on the 30th of September 44.

Total operational hours 107:00

Many thanks to Rob Bowater for the above information.

If you would like a copy of Robs Book on 137 and 263 Squadrons you can email him direct on.

rob.bowater@virginmedia.com



William Edward Willoughby "Teddy" Petter


William Edward Willoughby "Teddy" Petter CBE (8 August 1908, Highgate in Middlesex - 1 May 1968, Béruges) was a British aircraft designer. He is noted for Westland's wartime aeroplanes, the Canberra, the early design of the Lightning, and his last plane, the Folland Gnat.
Edward was the son of Sir Ernest Petter (26 May 1873 - 18 July 1954), who founded the Petters Limited engineering company. He was a descendant of one of the twin sons that founded Westland in 1915, the company being a separation of the aircraft business from Petter engines. It built flying boats. Both were Yeovil companies.
He attended the prestigious Marlborough College in Wiltshire. He studied the Mechanical Sciences Tripos at Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge, where he graduated in 1929. He won the John Bernard Seely Prize for aeronautics.

Westland

Petter joined Westland, the family firm, as a graduate apprentice in 1929. He became Technical Director in 1935. This appointment was not welcomed by older members of the management, who left. In 1935 Westland set up its aircraft subsidiary. Westland was taken over by John Brown Ltd of Clydebank in 1938.
He designed the Lysander. Originally created as an army cooperation aircraft, in the second world war it was used for transporting spies into France.

Petter's next plane was the twin-engined Whirlwind (which was one of the fastest aeroplanes in the world at the time). Not many were built. His last plane for Westland was the high-altitude twin-engine Welkin. It had a pressurised cockpit and was designed to intercept German reconnaissance aircraft. Around 100 were built. At this time Westland was mostly building Spitfires, under contract.

Petter left Westland in December 1944, after wanting to take over production as well as design. They chose to concentrate on helicopters through a link-up with Sikorsky.
He went to English Electric as Chief Engineer who were then moving into aircraft design, at Warton near Preston, having been involved in building aircraft under contract during the war. While at EE, under the leadership of George Nelson, he designed the Canberra. This plane was based on a Westland design for a jet bomber, created by Westland's Chief Engineer, Arthur Davenport. The aircraft would stay in operation in the RAF for 57 years until June 2006. The Americans built it as the Martin B-57 Canberra, being heavily used in Vietnam.

He started the work on what would become the Lightning. He split with EE in 1950 over the direction of aircraft design, he favoring the small over the large. He also wanted to be in charge of production as well as design. Petter was replaced as Chief Engineer by Frederick Page, previously his assistant.
The Lighting remains the only all-British Mach 2 aircraft. The plane has been described as fifteen tonnes of screaming aluminum.

Petter joined Folland Aircraft Limited in Hamble, Hampshire as Chief Engineer in 1951, and took some colleagues from English Electric. At Folland, he designed the Midge, which first flew 11 August 1954, and the Gnat training jet (first flight 18 July 1955). He was also responsible for early work on the Red Dean air-to-air missile before this work was transferred to Vickers. The Gnat was entirely his design; it was his attempt to make an affordable and easy-to-build fighter. He felt that other contemporary fighter aircraft were too big and expensive.
Petter became Managing Director of Folland in 1954 when Henry Folland died. Folland Aircraft was bought by Hawker Siddeley in 1959, which kept the Folland name until 1963. Petter left when Hawker Siddeley took over; he did not like working for large organisations, preferring to run projects himself. Colleagues found him authoritarian and eccentric - some described him as likeable but difficult. His manner was likened to that of a sixth form maths tutor. He was known as an excellent leader of teams, so long as things went as he wanted.
On leaving Folland / Hawker Siddeley, Petter left the aircraft industry completely. He moved to Switzerland.

Petter had two younger brothers and a younger sister. He married and had three daughters (including two born in 1936 and 1938). He died in Poitou-Charentes in France aged 59. Petter married Claude Marguerite Juliette Munier, from Geneva. She died in 1975, having suffered for a long time from Parkinson's disease.

Thanks to Wikipedia for the above text.

Chris Hayward, 57 Bramblefield Lane, Sittingbourne, Kent, ME10 2SX

chris-hayward@outlook.com

copyright Whirlwind Fighter Project 2011-2014

Newsletter for March

In this issue we carry on with the ‘meet the team’ feature and it is the turn of Jim Munro our TV and film producer. Also an article on Harald Penrose.

 For details of our first AGM see the bottom of this newsletter

Metal has been delivered to the workshop so that cutting can now commence.

Jim Munro saw his first computer at Kidsgrove in Staffordshire in 1962 whilst doing an Electrical Engineering degree at Aberdeen University, that having been the home town of his RAF father.  Jim's career has encompassed telecommunications, computing and IT and he is currently assisting the ex Technical Director of Ofcom in an industry standards making initiative engaged on developing M2M communications using TV White Space communications.  Jim is also Executive Producer of the film 'Ghosts of the Whirlwind' which involves heavyweight professional film making assistance.

Jim's father was a mechanical engineer out of Cambridge University (& Air Squadron) who joined the RAF in 1934, flew Fairey Gordon biplanes against insurgents in the Sudan (plus ca change!) then was embedded in the Westland Whirlwind project as the aircraft neared production status. He was the Flight Commander of the first 6 WWs at Drem in September 1940 as they awaited the German invasion whilst protecting the Navy's capital ships in nearby Rosyth.  After briefly commanding 263 Sdn Whirlwinds flying out of Exeter he was promoted to take charge of the AGME at Duxford (cannons to Spitfires etc) then again (to Group Captain) when S.E. Asia Command was formed.  This entailed 3 unbroken years in India (RAF Ranchi)/Burma working alongside Earl Mountbatten, General Orde Wingate of the Chindits and latterlyAVMSir Keith Park ofBattle of Britain fame.

 

Rene Peters who is doing all the CAD work on the Peregrine engine sent me this, the latest rendition for inclusion in this newsletter.

With a bit of luck I may be able to get him to do a team profile for a future newsletter.

David Atkins was kind enough to send me some photographs of F/O A Torrence during his time with 137Squadron         

                  McClure, Rebbetoy, Mercer, Smith, Smith, Freeman, Furber                                           Brown, Roberts, Bryan, Van Shaick, Goghlan, Adjt, Jowitt, Doc Flynn, Walley (eng Officer)  Woodhouse, Sutherland, Brinet, Torrance, Musgrave, Samat, Paddy O’Neill.

Snailwell 1942

                                        Torrance, McClure, DeHoux, Bryan, Barnett, Ashton . 

     

Manston  September 1943

    

             

 

                                                                         

                                        

               Torrance while in Burma.

                                                                    P6969

 18^th July 1940 to 263 Squadron,  Grangemouth.  8^th of February 1941 shot down of Dodman Point Cornwall.  Pilot Ken Graham Killed. Total operational hours were only 8:25hrs


 

There are still copies available of the print of the Whirlwind prototype. This is unframed and costs £25.00 which includes postage and packing. It is signed by the Artist Dave Gibbings MBE also in facsimile by Petter, Penrose and Davenport. 

 

This can be obtained from me at the address or email at the end of this article

A short history of Harold Penrose Chief test pilot on the Whirlwind.

Harald Penrose, O.B.E, CEng, F.R.Ae.S, A.M.I.N.A was chief test pilot at Westland Aircraft Ltd (from 1931 to 1953), a naval architect, and an aviation author. His flying experience spanned man carrying kites before the First World War, to early jet fighters and helicopters. He designed, built and flew his own glider in the 1930s, designed 36 boats and yachts, and wrote many books describing his flying career and the history of British aviation.

Harald James Penrose was born in Hereford on 12 April 1904. His fascination with manned flight started at an early age when his father showed him pictures of Bleriot's monoplane. He first flew aged 7 in a man-lifting kite. His first powered flight was in 1919, in a modified three seat Avro 504K, piloted by Alan Cobham.

When he left school in 1920, he was unable to find an apprenticeship in the aircraft industry, so on the advice of Frederick Handley Page, he attended the aeronautical engineering course at Northampton Engineering College London University. During a visit to de Havilland he flew in the prototype Moth as a passenger, piloted by Hubert Broad. As part of his course he undertook industrial placements working for Handley Page Ltd and Westland Aircraft Ltd.

After graduation in 1926 Penrose was employed by Westland Aircraft Ltd. He started work on the shop floor, later working as an observer for the test pilot Lawrence Openshaw, then as assistant to Capt. Geoffrey Hill supervising the construction of the Widgeon III prototype.

In 1927 he took 3 months unpaid leave and learnt to fly with Reserve of Air-Force Officers (RAFO) at Filton. There he first flew Bristol PTMs and later in a Bristol Jupiter Fighter. During this training he met Cyril Uwins after the latter's encounter with control reversal in a Bristol Bagshot. Later, Uwins would mentor Penrose in the science of flight testing and they would become good friends.

On returning to Westland he was employed working between the Works and the Design Office. Under the guidance of Westland's new test pilot, Louis Paget, Penrose became involved in test flying. He gained his A-licence which allowed him to fly as a private pilot and he flew Widgeons at weekend air displays, eventually becoming responsible for all Widgeon testing.

In 1928 he was appointed manager for civil aircraft and the managing director's (Robert Bruce) principal assistant at a salary of £400 per annum. While his main duty was the production of civil aircraft such as the Wessex he was later involved in test flying experimental Wapitis.

In 1931 he was sent to Argentina to demonstrate the Wapiti float plane but failed to secure any sales. He returned to England, took ten days leave but was recalled to Westland after Paget was injured while performing low altitude aerobatics. This accident finished Paget's career but resulted in Penrose being promoted to chief test pilot.

As Westland's Chief test pilot, Harald Penrose established a number of unusual aviation records in the 1930s. He made one of the longest emergency glides in 1933, when the Westland Wallace being prepared for the Huston Everest flight suffered a fuel pump failure at 37,500 ft. He made the first parachute escape from an aircraft with an enclosed canopy in 1934 when the Westland PV.7 suffered a structural failure during diving trials. This was his first and only decent by parachute. And in the 1930s he accumulated the most flying hours in tailless aircraft, specifically the Pterodactyl IV and V.

In amongst the test flying he found the time to design and construct (with the aid of his wife who stitched the fabric covering) the Penrose Pegasus glider. To get a performance comparison, he flew at the August 1935 BGA competition at Sutton Bank, accumulating a total of 6 hours 25 minutes. Up to the outbreak of war the Pegasus was flow at Kimmeridge when the weather was not compatible with sailing.

In the late 30s Westland developed the Lysander and the Whirlwind. Harald's first flight in the Lysander was in June 1936. This and subsequent flights identified problems that required modification to the tail, The problems with the tailplane incidence were not solved to Harald's satisfaction and may have lead to a number of fatal accidents.

Prior to flying the Whirlwind, to get experience of aircraft with high wing loadings and retractable undercarriages, Harald flew the Spitfire prototype K5054, the Fairey Battle prototype and a Bristol Blenheim. The first flight in the Whirlwind (October 1936) was unintentional when he became airborne during a straight high speed run, The early test flights were uneventful but in early 1939 a fractured exhaust burnt through the right aileron push rod at 200 ft, requiring instinctive action. This incident caused Teddy Petter to design a less aerodynamic but safer exhaust system.

As a reserve officer in the RAF, Penrose expected to be called up at the start of the war. However, at 36 and with valuable experience of test flying he was turned down by the RAF's personnel department. Instead, he returned to Lysander and Whirlwind development.

There were plans to use the Lysander for ground strafing during an invasion or as a night fighter. He tested various modified Lysanders fitted with gun turrets, including the tandem wing Lysander fitted with a tail gun turret.

In January 1942 he tested the last production Whirlwind, by then the main work at Westland was manufacturing Spitfires and Penrose was responsible for their production test flying.

During the war, Penrose had three encounters with the Messerschmitt 109. In first occasion he was testing a production Whirlwind, when emerging from cloud, he realized he was on a collision course with a Messerschmitt and slammed the Whirlwind nose back into the cloud. On the second, he was with his family sailing their dinghies 'Tittermouse' and 'Tiddlywinks, when they were buzzed by a low flying German. However, in 1943 he flew a captured aircraft being tested by Rolls Royce. In his memoir he described how he 'froze on the controls and flew very, very straight' when he was intercepted by a RAF Spitfire.

Based on the Whirlwind, Westland developed the Welkin high altitude interceptor, Penrose flying the prototype in November 1942. He described how the cabin was 'like sitting in an oven' due to the unshielded cabin pressurisation blowers. He developed pneumonia in early 1943 which he attributed to the extreme changes in temperature on leaving the Welkins cabin drenched in sweat and the bitter wind across the airfield. He survived thanks to the recently discovered M&B drug. As a result of this illness Petter devised a better method for cooling the cabin. Penrose contrasted the arctic conditions in the open cockpits of the PV.3/Wallace during the high altitude flights with the 'delightfully warm' cabin of the Welkin, describing these flights as the 'peak of experience'.

In the summer of 1945, he flew a Gloster Meteor as a guest of 616 Squadron. He described it as 'far easier and safer machine than that superb fighter the Spitfire'. But the experience was marred during landing by uncertainty that the undercarriage had locked down while simultaneously running low on fuel.

Wyvern

After the war, Penrose led the flight testing of the Westland Wyvern. No other contemporary aircraft proved so lethal as the Wyvern. He attributed its problems to underdeveloped power plants in conjunction with a high wing loading and would later describe it as "one of those very nearly very good machines"^.

On 12 December 1946, he made the first flight in the Eagle engined prototype ^. This flight was uneventful, but early in 1947 he was forced to land it at grass airstrip at RAF Warmwell after an engine failure, narrowly missing a hidden concrete block. Other Westland test pilots were not so lucky. Sqn. Ldr. Peter Garner was killed on 15 October 1947 after the failure of the contra-rotating propeller bearing and Sqn. Ldr. Mike Graves was killed on 31 October 1949 after an engine failure in the Python powered prototype. Extraordinarily, Penrose's luck held out and he survived three further emergency landings, one in the summer of 1947 due to an aileron push rod failure, one in October 1951 due to hydraulic failure, the third in February 1952 after an engine failure. It was probably attention to detail (such as wire locking the harness release lock) rather than luck that allowed Harald Penrose to pursue 25 years of test flying in reasonable safety.

Rotorcraft

Under the encouragement of Arthur Davenport and Teddy Petter, Westland's had a long history with rotorcraft starting with the Cierva C.29. In preparation for this work Penrose took an autogyro conversion course at Cierva's Hanworth Air park in 1933, during which he added 10 hours of autogyro flying to his commercial licence. However, neither the Cierva C.29 or its successor the C.30 were successful and Penrose did not fly either of them. In 1944 when Westlands were considering post war business opportunities, Penrose suggested to Davenport that they cash in on their earlier experience of rotorcraft and investigate helicopters.

Subsequently he flew the Sikorsky S-51 under the supervision of Charles 'Sox' Hosegood. While he believed that he could assimilate the piloting techniques because of his earlier experience with autogyros he thought it was wise to get tuition from more experienced pilots, hence Westlands employed Alan Bristow to train Penrose and Peter Garner. Penrose went solo in the Sikorsky S-51 in 1947. In comparison with the Wyvern his flights in helicopters were infrequent, far less arduous and far less risky.
In 1953 after 25 years of testing Harald retired from the role of chief test pilot to take over Westland's helicopter sales.

Harald demonstrated a talent for writing at an early age, winning his school's premier prize for literature. His early books drew on personal experiences, such as I Flew with the Birds (1949), No Echo in the Sky (1958), and Airymouse (1967), In his later works he wrote about the history of the British aircraft industry: Architect of Wings (1985), a biography of the Avro designer Roy Chadwick, Wings across the World (1980), a history of British Airways, and a five-volume history of British aviation.

Thanks to Wikipedia for the above article.

The first AGM of the Whirlwind Fighter Project will be held at; 

The Premier Inn Hotel.  

Alvington Lane,

Brympton d'Evercy, 

Yeovil, 

Somerset 

BA22 8UX

The meeting will be held in the Conference room on the 24^th of May 2014

The meeting will start at 11:00hrs followed by a break for lunch and then resume at 14:00hrs with a talk on the project by Patrice Moreau followed by The Eye of the Storrm' - Westland' the fixed wing years and Quo Vadis a talk by Dave Gibbings.

We are looking forward to meeting as many of you as possible.

If you have any articles you would like to include please contact me on this email

          Chris-hayward@outlook.com.

The Secretary, 57 Bramblefield Lane, Sittingbourne, Kent, ME10 2SX.

                        Copyright Whirlwind Fighter Project 2011-2014

Newsletter for February 2014.