Avro 594
| Avro 594 Avian | |
|---|---|
|
|
| Type: | Light aircraft |
| Design country: | |
| Manufacturer: | |
| First flight: |
1927 |
| Number of pieces: |
> 150 |
The Avro 594 Avian was a two-seat biplane produced by the British aircraft manufacturer Avro .
history
Avian I
After the Avro 581 Avian was extremely successful as a one-off - not least because of Bert Hinkler's solo flight from England to Australia - Avro made the decision to mass-produce a machine based on the 581 , as commercial success was expected. In the design phase, the aircraft had the type designation Avro 581B , was completed as the first two pre-production in April 1927 was, however, the type designation informed them Avro 594 Avian I to.
These two aircraft were equipped with a 63.4 kW (86.2 PS) ADC Cirrus II engine. One machine was delivered to the Royal Aircraft Establishment Aero Club , the other machine first took part in the King's Cup Race in 1927 and at the International Aircraft Meeting in Zurich before it was sold to the Lancashire Aero Club . Both machines later took part in various competitions.
Avian II
The improved successor Avro 594 Avian II appeared as early as May 1927 . Six machines were built and also equipped with the Cirrus II. The machines differed from the 594 Avian I by the foldable wings and the modified landing gear; they were equipped with the Hinkler patent, which he had first installed in the Avro 581 .
One of these machines won the altitude competition at the Copenhagen Flying Meeting in Kastrup, Denmark, with 3886 meters in 90 minutes on September 4, 1927. On the return flight to Hamble, however, the pilot lost his way due to a compass failure and had to use the machine near the Isle of due to lack of fuel Ditch Wight .
Another machine in this series was delivered to the Irish aviation pioneer Sophie Eliott-Lynn (the former athlete), who started a remarkable round trip across England by plane in July 1927, covering a total of 2100 km and 79 landings in 21.5 hours completed. Then Eliott-Lynn flew with the 594 over 4800 kilometers across Europe to Breslau and back and later took part in various racing events with the plane.
The Avro 594 A Avian II was a one-off ; this machine was equipped with a specially constructed Avro Alpha in-line engine with an output of 74.6 kW (101.4 hp). Avro chief test pilot Bert Hinkler took part in the King's Cup Race on July 20, 1927 with this aircraft , but a cracked carburetor threw him out of the race. This machine was then equipped with new wings and redesignated as the Avro 594C . With this copy, Sophie Eliott-Lynn flew a new altitude record for light aircraft with passengers on October 8, 1927 with 5852 meters. The Avro-Alpha ran under full load for two hours, and the machine could probably have climbed even higher if the attempt to record had not had to be broken off due to fog.
Another variant appeared with the Avro 594B Avian II with a 55.9 kW (76 PS) in-line engine Armstrong-Siddeley Genet II; of this type, three pieces were ordered from Australia. One of these machines was later (PS 106.5 78.3 kW /) paid Genet Major I from a crashed with a 105 hp Avro 619 Five to 594 Avian IV converted.
Avian III
Two pre-series machines of the Avro 594 Avian III version followed . The first of these machines was removed from ongoing Avian II production in September 1927 and rebuilt for British aviation pioneer Captain William "Bill" N. Lancaster . In addition to small modifications, oversized tanks were installed. With this special equipment the aircraft received the type designation Avro 600 . The machine became known under the name "Red Rose"; Lancaster flew with her to Australia, among other places, where he sold her. After several other changes of ownership, this machine burned out on the ground in Singleton ( New South Wales ) in 1936 .
After the two pre-series machines, Avro produced a total of 31 series machines of the Avian III . One of them received a Lady Heath, the former Sophie Eliott-Lynn (see above) for a solo flight, which she took off in March 1928 from the Cape of Croydon in South Africa . She later sold the aircraft to the American aviation pioneer Amelia Earhart .
Six Avian IIIs were converted to seaplanes and sold to Western Canadian Airways Ltd in Winnipeg . Another machine from the current series was also converted into a seaplane on a trial basis and was given the type designation Avro Avian 605 during this time .
Three machines were equipped with the new ADC Cirrus III, which developed 67.1 kW (91.25 PS), and successfully participated in the 1928 King's Cup Race as the Avian IIIA .
58 of the Avro 594 Avian III were produced, 16 of them for the US market, which were sold by Air Associates Inc. in New York . One of these American machines was bought by MA Northrop, the founder of Northrop-Flugzeugwerke, and another Avian III was used by the Ford Motor Company .
An Avian III was delivered to the South African Air Force; the success of this machine laid the foundation for future good business with Avro. Avro delivered another copy to Tanzania .
Caused a stir an equipped with metal floats Avian III , with US American aircraft marks lay back under the name "Seattle Spirit" in September 1928, a distance of 43,452 kilometers as part of a world tour, but during this trip at a start in Bastia on Corsica on 15th September 1928 was covered and crashed.
As a precaution, Avro set the type designation 605 for the float version of the Avian III , but there was no series production of these machines.
Instead, the Avro-594B series came out at the end of 1928 , a version with the chassis moved forward to improve stability. Some machines in the Avian II and Avian III series were later converted to this new chassis.
Avian IV
The last evolution of the Avro-594 Avian series was the Avian IV , an improved 594B . Initially, a pilot series comprising three aircraft was produced. Of this, a machine equipped with a Cirrus III was received by the engine manufacturer ADC, and another with the 80 hp (59.7 kW / 81.1 PS) Avian IV motorized by JD Siddeley, who had signaled an economic participation in the Avro company. The third machine (with the Cirrus III) was bought by a British cricket player.
The Avian IV became the most successful variant of the Avian series. A total of about 90 machines of this version were manufactured, most of them equipped with the Cirrus III, some with the Cirrus Hermes Ia (105 hp / 78.3 kW / 106.5 hp), the Cirrus Hermes IIs (115 hp / 85, 8 kW / 116.6 PS) and one with the de Havilland Gipsy I.
Some of the Avian IVs flew until 1941, partly after privately initiated engine changes with exotic and non-standard engine variants.
Avian IV series aircraft have been delivered to various countries, such as Argentina , Australia, Brazil , the Republic of China (14 as trainers for the Chinese naval aviators), Mexico , Norway (one of which was used in a Norwegian polar expedition), South Africa and Spain .
In 1929 an Avian IV hull was used as the basis for a Cierva C.17 Autogiro ( Avro 612 ), later the Avro 612 Hydrogiro .
Military use
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Technical specifications
| Parameter | Avro 594 Avian I. | Avro 594 Avian II | Avro 594 Avian III | Avro 594 Avian IIIA and Avian IV | Avro 594 Avian IIIA (float version) and Avro 605 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| crew | 1 | ||||
| Passengers | 1 | ||||
| length | 7.39 m (seaplanes: 7.62 m) | ||||
| Upper wing span | 8.53 m | ||||
| height | 2.59 m (seaplanes: 2.90 m) | ||||
| Wing area | 22.77 m² | ||||
| Empty mass | 411 kg | 397 kg "Red Rose" (Avro 600): approx. 422 kg Standard seaplane: 460 kg |
478 kg | 411 kg | |
| Max. Takeoff mass | 665 kg | 726 kg "Red Rose" (Avro 600): approx. 783 kg Standard seaplane: 726 kg |
726 kg | 665 kg | |
| Cruising speed | 132 km / h | 129 km / h | 140 km / h | 132 km / h | |
| Top speed | 158 km / h | 156 km / h | 164 km / h | 156 km / h | |
| Climb performance | 198 m / min | 229 m / min | 146 m / min | ||
| Summit height | 4572 m | 4570 m | 5485 m | 3960 m | |
| Range | |||||
| Engine | ADC Cirrus II ; 63 kW (86 PS) |
Cirrus II ; 63 kW (86 PS) Avro 594A: Avro Alpha ; 75 kW (102 PS) Avro 594B: Armstrong Siddeley Genet II ; 56 kW (76 PS) |
Cirrus II ; 63 kW (86 PS) |
Cirrus III ; 67 kW (91 hp) Armstrong Siddeley Genet II ; 60 kW (82 PS) Cirrus Hermes Ia ; 78 kW (106 hp) Cirrus Hermes IIs ; 86 kW (117 hp) de Havilland Gipsy I ; 73 kW (99 PS) |
Cirrus II ; 63 kW (86 PS) |
Preserved copies
An Avian III with the aircraft registration G-EBZM is in a well restored but not airworthy condition in the Museum of Science and Industry in Manchester , England.
See also
literature
- David Donald: The Encyclopedia of World Aircraft. Aerospace Publishing, London 1997, ISBN 1-85605-375-X .
- AJ Jackson: Avro Aircraft since 1908. 2nd edition, Putnam Aeronautical Books, London 1990, ISBN 0-85177-834-8 .
- AJ Jackson: British Civil Aircraft since 1919. Volume 1. Putnam, London 1974, ISBN 0-370-10006-9 .
