Parnall was a British aircraft manufacturer that evolved from a wood-working company before the First World War to a significant designer of military and civil aircraft into the 1940s.[citation needed][1][2] It was based in the west of England and was originally known as George Parnall & Co. Ltd.[3]
Memorial to the 52 killed in German air raids on 27 February 1941 at Parnall Aircraft in Yate
In 1916, the Bristol based Parnall & Sonsshopfitters started to manufacture aircraft at the Colliseum Works at Park Row in Bristol.[4][5] During the First World War, the skilled staff were moved to sites around the city and in neighbouring South Gloucestershire producing planes to their own designs and, under contract, those of other companies.[1]
In 1919, the aircraft business was split from the parent company Parnall & Sons as George Parnall and Company.[5] In the 1920s, aircraft manufacture was centralised at a factory in Yate close to an airfield used by the Royal Flying Corps.[6] In the 1930s, gun turrets for bomber aircraft were produced. The site was a strategic target for Luftwaffe bombing and during 1941, over fifty people were killed during the raids.[7]
In 1935, Parnall Aircraft Limited was formed when George Parnall and Company amalgamated with the Hendy Aircraft Company and Nash and Thompson Limited.[8] After the Second World War as aircraft component manufacture reduced, domestic appliances were built at the site.[9] To reflect this move away from aviation the company changed its name to Parnall (Yate) Limited in 1946. This was acquired by Radiation Ltd. in 1958 and TI Group in 1967.[10][11][12]
The Parnall Scout was a prototype single-seat anti-airship wooden biplane fighter aircraft developed in the 1910s. It was too heavy and slow and never went into production.[13][14]
The Parnall Panther was a carrier-based wooden, single-bay biplane spotter and reconnaissance aircraft designed by Harold Bolas,[15] who had joined Parnall and Sons after leaving the Admiralty's Air Department. It had a 230hp Bentley BR2 rotary engine.[14] Following contractual disputes production was transferred to the Bristol Aeroplane Company.
The Parnall Plover single-seat naval fighter aircraft of the 1920s for use off the Royal Navy's aircraft carriers, was ordered into small-scale production, but after extensive evaluation, the Fairey Flycatcher was preferred for large-scale service.
The Parnall Possum was an experimentaltriplane, with a single, central engine driving wing-mounted propellers via shafts and gears. Two of these aircraft were built in the mid-1920s.
The Parnall Pixie was a low-powered single-seat monoplane light aircraft originally designed to compete in the Lympne trials for motor-gliders in 1923, where it was flown successfully by Norman Macmillan. It had two sets of wings, one for cross-country flights and the other for speed; it later appeared as a biplane which could be converted into a monoplane.[16] Parnall Pixie IIIa G-EBJG is still in existence with the Midland Air Museum, Coventry, England. The remains are in deep store and are not generally on view to the public without prior arrangement.
The Parnall Perch was a single-engined, side-by-side-seat aircraft designed as a general-purpose trainer. No contract on this specification was awarded and only one Perch was built.
The Parnall Pike was a two/three-seat biplane reconnaissance aircraft, capable of operating off carrier decks or from water, built in 1927.[18] Only one was constructed.
The Parnall Pipit was a single-engine, single-seat naval fighter designed to an Air Ministry specification in 1927. Two prototypes were built but both were destroyed by tail flutter.
The Parnall Imp was an unusual single-engine, two-seat biplane built in 1927. It had a straight cantilever lower wing which supported the markedly swept upper wing. Only one was built.[19]
The Parnall Elf was a two-seat light touring biplane, three being built at Yate between 1928 and 1932.[19] The Elf was the last aircraft designed by Harold Bolas before he left the company to go to the United States.
The Parnall Prawn was an experimentalflying boat built in 1930. Its single engine was fitted on a tilting mounting in the nose, so that the propeller could be kept clear of the water on takeoff and landing. Only one was built and it is not known whether it was ever flown.
The Parnall Parasol was an experimentalparasol winged aircraft design to measure the aerodynamic forces on wings in flight. Two were built and flown in the early 1930s.
The Parnall G.4/31 was a 1930s general purpose aircraft which could operate as a day and night bomber as well as the reconnaissance, torpedo and dive-bombing roles. It was a large angular biplane powered by a 690hp (515kW) Bristol Pegasus IM3 with a Townend ring.
The Parnall Heck was designed by Basil B. Henderson as a single-engined, conventional low-wing cabin monoplane, built of spruce with a plywood covering, initially a two-seater in tandem layout. The prototype was originally flown as the Hendy Heck but by the time of its first public demonstration in July 1935, the companies had merged and the aircraft was renamed as the Parnall Heck.[8]
The Parnall 382 (also known as the Heck III), was a single-engined wooden monoplanetrainer aircraft with two open cockpits. It first flew in 1939.
Related Research Articles
Blackburn Aircraft Limited was a British aircraft manufacturer from 1914 to 1963 that concentrated mainly on naval and maritime aircraft.
Avro was a British aircraft manufacturer. Its designs include the Avro 504, used as a trainer in the First World War, the Avro Lancaster, one of the pre-eminent bombers of the Second World War, and the delta wing Avro Vulcan, a stalwart of the Cold War.
Handley Page Limited was a British aerospace manufacturer. Founded by Frederick Handley Page in 1909, it was the United Kingdom's first publicly traded aircraft manufacturing company. It went into voluntary liquidation and ceased to exist in 1970. The company, based at Radlett Aerodrome in Hertfordshire, was noted for its pioneering role in aviation history and for producing heavy bombers and large airliners.
Junkers Flugzeug- und Motorenwerke AG more commonly Junkers, was a major German aircraft and aircraft engine manufacturer. It was founded in Dessau, Germany, in 1895 by Hugo Junkers, initially manufacturing boilers and radiators. During World War I and following the war, the company became famous for its pioneering all-metal aircraft. During World War II the company produced the German air force's planes, as well as piston and jet aircraft engines, albeit in the absence of its founder who had been removed by the Nazis in 1934.
Nieuport, later Nieuport-Delage, was a French aeroplane company that primarily built racing aircraft before World War I and fighter aircraft during World War I and between the wars.
Caproni, also known as Società de Agostini e Caproni and Società Caproni e Comitti, was an Italian aircraft manufacturer. Its main base of operations was at Taliedo, near Linate Airport, on the outskirts of Milan.
Luft-Fahrzeug-Gesellschaft, also referred to as LFG, was a German aircraft manufacturer during World War I. They are best known for their various "Roland" designs, notably the Roland C.II Walfisch (whale), Roland D.II haifisch (Shark) and Roland D.VI, although they also produced a number of airships and many experimental designs.
The Short Springbok was a two-seat, all-metal reconnaissance biplane produced for the British Air Ministry in the 1920s. All together six aircraft of the Springbok design were built but none entered service with the armed forces.
Blériot Aéronautique was a French aircraft manufacturer founded by Louis Blériot. It also made a few motorcycles between 1921 and 1922 and cyclecars during the 1920s.
The Parnall Heck was a 1930s British four-seat cabin monoplane built by Parnall Aircraft Limited at Yate, Gloucestershire. Originally a Hendy design, few were built. It combined the strength and comfort of a cabin aircraft with the speed of a racer.
The Bristol M.1 Monoplane Scout was a British monoplane fighter of the First World War. It holds the distinction of being the only British monoplane fighter to reach production during the conflict.
The Bristol Bullfinch was an experimental British military aircraft first flown in 1922. Variants were built as both parasol wing monoplanes and biplanes, but both versions proved unsuccessful, and only the three prototypes were built.
The Hendy 302 was a British two-seat cabin monoplane designed by Basil B. Henderson and built by George Parnall & Company Limited at Yate in 1929. Only one aircraft was built registered G-AAVT.
The Morane-Saulnier AF, also known as the Morane-Saulnier Type AF and the MoS 28 was a French First World War single-seat biplane fighter prototype from 1917.
The Parnall G.4/31 was a 1930s design from the George Parnall and Company to meet Air Ministry Specification G.4/31 for a "general purpose" aircraft.
The Parnall Pixie was a low powered British single-seat monoplane light aircraft originally designed to compete in the Lympne, UK trials for motor-gliders in 1923, where it was flown successfully by Norman Macmillan. It had two sets of wings, one for cross-country flights and the other for speed; it later appeared as a biplane which could be converted into a monoplane.
The Halton Mayfly was a British two-seat biplane designed by C.H. Latimer-Needham and built by the Halton Aero Club between 1926 and 1927. Registered G-EBOO and named the HAC.1 Mayfly it first flew on 31 January 1927. It was converted to a single-seater and was flown in a number of air races including the King's Cup Race. It was entered in the 1926 Lympne light aircraft trials as No. 8 but failed to arrive in time for the elimination trials.
The Kondor E 3, sometimes erroneously known as E.III, was a German single seat, monoplane fighter aircraft designed and built close to the end of World War I. Though successful in the third D-type fighter competition at Aldershof in September 1918, only a few were produced, given the Idflieg designation of Kondor D.I.
The Hendy Aircraft Company was an early 1930s British light aircraft design company.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.
