| Hastings | |
|---|---|
 HastingsTG503 in flight in June 1977 | |
| General information | |
| Type | Transport aircraft |
| Manufacturer | Handley Page |
| Primary users | Royal Air Force (RAF) Royal New Zealand Air Force (RNZAF) |
| Number built | 151 |
| History | |
| Manufactured | 1947–1952 |
| Introduction date | September1948 |
| First flight | 7 May 1946 |
| Retired | 1977 (RAF) |
| Variant | Handley Page Hermes |
TheHandley Page HP.67 Hastings is a retired British troop-carrier and freight transport aircraft designed and manufactured by aviation companyHandley Page for theRoyal Air Force (RAF). Upon its introduction to service during September 1948, the Hastings was the largest transport plane ever designed for the service.
Development of the Hastings had been initiated during theSecond World War in response toAir Staff Specification C.3/44, which sought a new large four-engined transport aircraft for the RAF. Early on, development of a civil-oriented derivative had been prioritised by the company, but this direction was reversed following an accident. On 7 May 1946, the first prototype conducted itsmaiden flight; testing revealed some unfavourable flight characteristics, which were successfully addressed via tail modifications. The type was rushed into service so that it could participate in theBerlin Airlift; reportedly, the fleet of 32 Hastings to be deployed during the RAF operation delivered a combined total of 55,000 tons (49,900 tonnes) of supplies to the city.
As the RAF's Hastings fleet expanded during the late 1940s and early 1950s, it supplemented and eventually replaced thewartimeAvro York, a transport derivative of the famedAvro Lancaster bomber.RAF Transport Command operated the Hastings as the RAF's standard long-range transport; as a logistics platform, it contributed heavily during conflicts such as theSuez Crisis and theIndonesian Confrontation. A handful were also procured by theRoyal New Zealand Air Force (RNZAF) to meet its transport needs. Beyond its use as a transport, several Hastings were modified to performweather forecasting,training, andVIP duties. A civilian version of the Hastings, theHandley Page Hermes, was also produced, which only achieved limited sales. Hastings continued to be heavily used by RAF up until the late 1960s, the fleet being withdrawn in its entirety during 1977. The type was succeeded by variousturboprop-powered designs, including theBristol Britannia and theAmerican-builtLockheed Hercules.
Amid the latter years of theSecond World War, theAir Ministry formulated and releasedAir Staff Specification C.3/44, which defined a new long-range general purpose transport to succeed theAvro York, a transport derivative of theAvro Lancaster bomber. British aviation companyHandley Page made its own submission to meet C.3/44, the corresponding design being designatedH.P.67.[1] According to aviation periodicalFlight International, the H.P.67 was an extremelyaerodynamically clean design, as well as being relatively orthodox in terms of Handley Page methodology.[2] Its basic configuration was an all-metal low-wingcantilevermonoplane with a conventional tail unit. It had all-metal tapering wings withdihedral, which had been designed for the abandoned HP.66 bomber development of the existingHandley Page Halifax; these wings were mated to a circularfuselage, which was suitable forpressurisation up to 5.5 psi (38 kPa). It was provided with a retractableundercarriage and tailwheel.
In addition to the Hastings, a civilian version was also developed, theHermes. Initially, development of the Hermes prototypes had been assigned a higher priority over the Hastings, but that programme was placed on hold after the prototype crashed during its first flight on 2 December 1945; thus Handley Page opted to concentrate its resources on completing the military Hastings variant.[3] On 7 May 1946, the first of two Hastings prototypes (TE580) made itsmaiden flight fromRAF Wittering.[4] Flight testing soon demonstrated some issues, including lateral instability and relatively poorstall warning behaviour. To rectify these problems, both the prototypes and the first few production aircraft were urgently modified and tested with a temporary solution: a modifiedtailplane with 15° of dihedral, and the installation of an artificial stall warning system.[5] These changes enabled the first production aircraft, designatedHastings C1, to enter service during October 1948.
TheRoyal Air Force (RAF) had initially placed an order for 100 Hastings C1s; however, the last six were manufactured asweather reconnaissance versions, referred to as theHastings Met. Mk 1, while seven other aircraft were subsequently converted to this standard. These weather reconnaissance aircraft were stripped of their standard interiors, the space being instead occupied by meteorological measuring and recording equipment, along with agalley andwardroom to improve crew comfort during routine flights of up to nine hours.[6] A total of eight C.1 aircraft were later converted toHastings T5trainer configuration, which was used byRAF Bomber Command as a replacement for theAvro Lincoln at their Bombing School atRAF Lindholme. The conversion involved the installation of a large ventralradome; each aircraft could carry three trainee bomb aimers in a training section above the radome. The rear cabin retained a secondary passenger/cargo carrying area, giving it a limited transport capacity as well.[6]
While tail modifications introduced to the C1 had allowed the type to enter service, a more definitive solution was provided in the form of an extended-span tailplane, which was mounted lower on the fuselage. An aircraft which had this modified tail installed, together with the fitting of additional fuel tanks within the outer wing, was predesignated as theHastings C2;[7] a further modifiedVIP transport variant, which was fitted with more fuel capacity to provide a longer range than standard aircraft, became theHP.94 Hastings C4.[8]
By the end of production, 147 aircraft had been manufactured for the RAF; an additional four Hastings were built for theRoyal New Zealand Air Force (RNZAF), which gave a total of 151 aircraft.
The Handley Page Hastings was a large purpose-built four-engine transport aircraft.[2] It was furnished with several modern features, such as aMessier-built fully retractableundercarriage, which was operatedhydraulically, and unprecedented stowage space for an RAF transport aircraft. Roughly 3,000 cubic feet of unrestricted area was used to house various cargoes or passengers.[9] The cabin was fitted with a Plymax floor, complete with various grooves, channels, and lashing points for securing goods of varying sizes, while the walls weresound proofed and lined withplywood for increased comfort. Principal access is provided by a freight door on the port side, which incorporates aparatroop door, while a second paratroop door is present on the starboard side; on the ground, a rapidly deployable ramp suitable for road vehicles can also be used.[9] In service, the aircraft was typically operated by a crew of five; it could accommodate either up to 30 paratroopers, 32stretchers and 28 sitting casualties, or a maximum of 50 fully equipped troops.[citation needed]
In terms of its structure, the Hastings features a circular cross-section fuselage, which is constructed in three main sections from frames comprising rolledalloy.[10] The frames are typically Z-section units using intercostal plate members, but the wing box makes use of larger I-section structures; these support a metal sheet covering that isrivetted directly ontostringer flanges. The maximum external diameter of 11 ft is maintained for a lengthy portion of the fuselage's length, running both fore and aft of the wing.[9] In order that the Hastings could carry loads too large for its interior, such asJeeps and someartillery pieces, strong fixture points are present on the underside of the fuselage for the fitting of an under-fuselage carrier platform.[11]
The fuselage is paired with a low-mountedcantilever wing, the connection between the two being smoothly faired.[2] This wing comprised a twin-spar structure complete with inter-spar diaphragm-type ribs; thetrailing edge ribs terminate just short of theslotted flaps. Furthermore, theleading edge of the wing's center section was readily detachable, providing easy access to various electrical and control systems housed within the wing.[2] The aircraft's fuel tanks are located just inboard of the inner engine nacelles; retractable ejector pipes were present within the wing, which were used forjettisoning fuel when such action would be required by an emergency situation.[2]
The Hastings was powered by an arrangement of four wing-mountedBristol Hercules 101 sleeve valveradial engines.[9] These engines were installed upon the leading edge of the wing via interchangeablepower-eggs; the air intakes andthermostatically-controlled oil coolers were also present within the wing. AVokes-build automated air cleaner was present upon each engine, typically deploying during landings and take-offs.[9] Fire detection systems were also installed to alert the crew to such dangers, whilefire extinguishers were also installed around each engine.[11] The engines drovede Havilland-builthydromatic four-blade propellers, which could be individuallyfeathered if required.[9]
The Hastings had been rushed into service with the RAF during September 1948 due to the pressing need for additional transport aircraft to meet the demands of theBerlin Airlift. Between September and October 1948,No. 47 Squadron rapidly replaced its fleet of Halifax A Mk 9s with the Hastings; the squadron conducted its firstsortie using the type to Berlin on 11 November 1948. During the airlift, the Hastings fleet was intensively used, principally to carry shipments ofcoal to the city; before the end of the crisis, two further squadrons,297 and53, would be involved in the effort.[12][13] The final sortie of the airlift was performed by a Hastings, which occurred on 6 October 1949;[14] according to aviation historian Paul Jackson, the 32 Hastings deployed during the operation had delivered a total of 55,000 tons (49,900 tonnes) of supplies, during which two aircraft had been lost.[12]
A total of one hundred Hastings C1 and 41 Hastings C2 were procured for service withRAF Transport Command, who commonly deployed the type upon its long-range routes, as well as some use as a tactical transport until well after the arrival of the fasterturboprop-poweredBristol Britannia during1959. A total of four VIP-configured Hastings were assigned to24 Squadron.[13] An example of the latter use was during theSuez Crisis of 1956, during which several Hastings of70,99 and511 Squadrons droppedparatroopers onEl Gamil airfield,Egypt.[15]
Hastings continued to provide transport support to British military operations around the globe through the 1950s and 1960s, including dropping supplies to troops opposingIndonesian forces inMalaysia during theIndonesian Confrontation.[16] During early 1968, the Hastings was withdrawn from RAF Transport Command, by which point it has been replaced by theAmerican-builtLockheed Hercules and British-builtArmstrong Whitworth AW.660 Argosy, both being newer turboprop-powered transports.[17][13]
Starting in 1950, the Met Mk.1 weather reconnaissance aircraft were used by202 Squadron, based atRAF Aldergrove,Northern Ireland; they were used by the Squadron up until its disbandment on 31 July 1964, having been rendered obsolete by the introduction ofweather satellites.[18] The Hastings T.Mk 5 remained in service as radar trainers well into the 1970s; the variant was used for other purposes as well during this time, such as the occasional transport, air experience, andsearch and rescue missions.[6] The Hastings was even deployed for reconnaissance purposes during theCod War withIceland during the winter of 1975–76; it was finally withdrawn from service on 30 June 1977.[19][13]
In addition to its use by the RAF, several Hastings were also procured byNew Zealand, where they were operated byNo. 40 andNo. 41 Squadrons of theRoyal New Zealand Air Force (RNZAF). The service flew the type until it was replaced by American-builtLockheed C-130 Hercules during 1965. FourHastings C.Mk 3 transport aircraft were built and supplied to the RNZAF.[13] One crashed atRAAF Base Darwin and caused considerable damage to the city water main, its railway and the road into the city. The other three were broken up atRNZAF Base Ohakea. During the period that the engines were having problems with theirsleeve valves (lubricating oil difficulties) RNZAF personnel joked that the Hastings was the best three-engined aircraft in the world.
Four Hastings are preserved in the UK and Germany:
Data fromJane's All The World's Aircraft 1951–52,[60]Flight International[61]
General characteristics
Performance
Related development
Related lists
