Hawker Siddeley Andover

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hawker_Siddeley_Andover

The Hawker Siddeley HS 780 Andover is a twin-engined turboprop military
transport aircraft produced by Hawker Siddeley for the Royal Air Force (RAF),
developed from the Avro-designed HS 748 airliner. The Andover was named after
the Avro Andover, a biplane transport used by the RAF for medical evacuation
between the first and second world wars; and RAF Andover, where some of its
trials were carried out. The Andover had a kneeling landing gear to make ramp
loading easier.

At the start of the 1960s the Royal Air Force (RAF) issued a requirement for a
medium tactical freighter and Avro started work on a military variant of the
Rolls-Royce Dart-powered twin-engined Avro 748 airliner. Handley Page also
proposed a variant of the Handley Page Herald and both types were tested by the
Air Force in February 1962 at Martlesham Heath in Suffolk. A prototype Avro 748
Srs 2 was used for the trials.

The RAF decided to order a military variant of the 748, designated the Avro 780;
and the original Avro 748 prototype was modified with an upswept rear fuselage
and rear loading ramp as the Avro 748MF, to test the military version. It had
more powerful Dart Mk 301s engines and a unique kneeling landing gear. In April
1963, the RAF ordered 31 aircraft as the Andover C.1 by the RAF. The 748MF first
flew from Woodford Aerodrome on 21 December 1963. The aircraft had larger
four-bladed propellers than the 748, which required a greater distance between
the engines and the fuselage, although the wingtips were reduced by 18 inches to
maintain the same wingspan as the 748. A dihedral tailplane was also fitted to
keep it clear of the propeller slipstream.

The first production Andover C.1 flew from Woodford on 9 July 1965 and the first
four aircraft were used for trials and tests with Hawker Siddeley and the
Aeroplane and Armament Experimental Establishment at Boscombe Down. Following a
release to service in May 1966, the fifth production aircraft was delivered to
No. 46 Squadron RAF at RAF Abingdon in June 1966. Subsequent RAF types are the
Andover CC.2 VIP transport and Andover E.3 electronic calibration aircraft.


Role
Transport aircraft

Manufacturer
Hawker Siddeley

First flight
21 December 1963

Retired
2015

Status
Retired

Primary users
Royal Air Force
Royal New Zealand Air Force
748 Air Services

Number built
37

Developed from
Hawker Siddeley HS 748

The Andover C.1 was flown for the first time on 9 July 1965 and the first four
examples were flown to RAF Boscombe Down for acceptance trials that year. The
full contract of 31 aircraft were delivered to squadrons in Transport Command.
These were No. 46 Squadron RAF at RAF Abingdon and later RAF Thorney Island, No.
52 Squadron RAF at RAF Seletar (Far East) and No. 84 Squadron RAF at RAF Sharjah
(Middle East).

There was a follow-on order placed with Hawker Siddeley for six aircraft as the
CC.2, a version of the standard HS 748, and these went initially to 21 Squadron
at RAF Khormaksar. The squadron had these for six months before being disbanded;
the aircraft went to 32 Squadron at RAF Northolt, the Metropolitan
Communications Squadron. The aircraft were with 32 Squadron for over 18 years,
including some time spent on detachment at RAF Bruggen (Germany).

Three of the RAF Andovers continued to fly into the second decade of the 21st
century, a C.1 with the Empire Test Pilots' School and one C.1 with the Heavy
Aircraft Test Squadron of the Joint Test and Evaluation Group. The remaining
aircraft was a modified C.1 converted for photo-reconnaissance, the Andover
C.1(PR), serial number XS596; the UK-named aircraft under the Treaty on Open
Skies; all three were based at RAF Boscombe Down.

The Royal New Zealand Air Force operated ten aircraft from 1976, acquired from
the RAF while still relatively new. These saw service with UN missions to
Somalia and on the Iran-Iraq border and in disaster-relief work in the Pacific.
The type was retired from service in 1998. The main difficulty with the
Andover's service in New Zealand was its limited range—1,000 nmi (1,900 km) of
Pacific Ocean separates New Zealand from its nearest neighbours. New Zealand's
Andovers were purchased to replace the Bristol Freighter which had even shorter
range.

Specifications (Andover C.1)

General characteristics
Crew: two–three
Capacity: 52 troops, 40 paratroops or 24 stretcher cases
Payload: 14,365 lb (6,546 kg)
Length: 78 ft 0 in (23.77 m)
Wingspan: 98 ft 3 in (29.95 m)
Height: 30 ft 1 in (9.15 m)
Wing area: 831.4 ft² (77.2 m²)
Aspect ratio: 11.55:1
Empty weight: 29,324 lb (13,301 kg)
Max. takeoff weight: 51,000 lb (23,133 kg)
Powerplant: 2 × Rolls-Royce Dart RDa.12 Mk 201 turboprop, 3,245 eshp (2,421 kW)
each

Performance
Maximum speed: 320 mph (278 knots, 515 km/h) at 15,000 ft (4,570 m)
Cruise speed: 270 mph (235 knots, 430 km/h)
Stall speed: 90 mph (78 knots, 145 km/h) (flaps and wheels down)
Range: 1,425 miles (1,239 nmi, 2,300 km) (fuel for 230 mi (370 km) diversion and
30 min stand-off)
Service ceiling: 24,000 ft (7,300 m)
Rate of climb: 1,200 ft/min (6.1 m/s)




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