Armstrong Whitworth Ensign

Infobox Aircraft
name=A.W.27 Ensign


caption=An Imperial Airways Ensign in flight: note the distinctive nose-down attitude caused by the angle of incidence at which the wing was mounted. The Ensign shared this feature with its stablemate, the Whitley
type=Airliner
manufacturer=Armstrong Whitworth Aircraft
designer=
first flight= 24 January, 1938
introduced=1938
retired=1946
status=
primary user=Imperial Airways
more users=BOAC
produced=
number built=14
unit cost=
variants with their own articles=The Armstrong Whitworth Ensign was a British four-engined airliner built during the 1930s for Imperial Airways. It could seat forty passengers and was designed for European and Asian routes, connecting Britain with further seaplane flights to Australia and South Africa.

Design and development

Armstrong Whitworth Aircraft started on the A.W.27 Ensign in 1934 after receipt of a specification from Imperial Airways. The first aircraft was ordered in September of that year, with delivery expected in 1936; eleven more were ordered in May 1935.cite web | title=Armstrong Whitworth A.W.27 Ensign | url=http://www.imperial-airways.com/Armstrong_whitworth_aw27_ensign.html | work=Imperial Airways | accessdate=2006-04-20] An order for a further two aircraft in 1937 brought the total to 14.

The Ensign was a high-wing cantilever monoplane of light alloy construction and an oval semi-monocoque fuselage with a conventional tailplane. It had a retractable landing gear and castoring tail wheel. The main landing gear was hydraulically operated and retracted into the inner engine nacelles. The cockpit had side-by-side seating for two pilots with dual controls; there was also accommodation for a radio operator. The fuselage was divided into separate cabins, either four cabins with accommodation for 40 passengers or three cabins with room for 27 by day or 20 at night with sleeping accommodation.Bridgman, Leonard. "Jane's Fighting Aircraft of World War II". New York: Crescent Books, 1988. ISBN 0-517-67964-7.]

Production of their Whitley heavy bomber for the Royal Air Force was a priority, and work on the Ensign proceeded slowly. Construction took place not at the main Coventry factory, but at the workshops of Air Service Training Ltd in Hamble. Constant changes were requested by Imperial, slowing production further. As a result, the Ensign's maiden flight did not take place until 24 January, 1938 Cite book|author=Jackson, A.J|title="British Civil Aircraft since 1919 Volume 1.|publisher=Putnam & Co|edition=2nd Edition|year=1973|isbn= 0-370-10006-9. Despite being underpowered, the aircraft was certified, and full airline service began between Croydon and Paris, France in October of that year.

Operational history

Three more Ensigns were completed by Christmas, 1938, and were dispatched with the holiday mail to Australia. All three suffered mechanical problems and did not reach their destination; all Ensigns were removed from active airline service and returned to Armstrong for improvements. Reliability was improved, and more powerful Armstrong Siddeley Tiger IXC engines aided performance somewhat.

Eleven aircraft were in service at the outbreak of World War II, with a twelfth following soon after, and all were withdrawn in October, 1939 to be camouflaged before flying a new route from Heston and Le Bourget Airport in Paris. The aircraft remained in service after formation of BOAC that November. Three Ensigns were destroyed or captured due to enemy action in 1940 , with one ("Ettrick"), which had been abandoned at Le Bourget after being damaged by bombs, eventually being used by the Germans, being re-engined with Daimler-Benz engines.

The final two aircraft that had been ordered by Imperial were equipped with more powerful Wright Cyclone geared radial engines and completed as A.W.27A Ensign Mk. 2s. The new engines significantly improved performance and allowed the Ensign to be used in hot climates and at high altitude. All eight surviving airframes were upgraded with these newer engines in 1941-43 and worked for BOAC on Africa to India routes.

Ensigns flew throughout the war. One ("Enterprise") force-landed in West African Vichy territory and served the Vichy forces and Air France, subsequently ending up with the "Luftwaffe" after being re-engined like "Ettrick". Several were broken up for spare parts to support the remaining fleet. The final Ensign flight took place in 1946, and the last seven aircraft were scrapped in 1947.

Variants

;A.W.27 Ensign I:Four-engine medium-range transport aircraft. Powered by four 850-hp (634-kW) Armstrong Siddeley Tiger IXC radial piston engines.;A.W.27A Ensign II:Four-engine medium-range transport aircraft. Powered by four 950-hp (708-kW) Wright GR-1820-G102A Cyclone radial piston engines.

Operators

Civil operators

;FRA
*Air France;UK
*British Overseas Airways Corporation (BOAC)
*Imperial Airways

Military Operators

;flag|Germany|Nazi
*Luftwaffe;flagicon|France|vichy Vichy France
*Armée de l'Air de Vichy;UK
*Royal Air Force
**No. 24 Squadron RAF

pecifications (A.W.27A)

aircraft specifications

plane or copter?=plane
jet or prop?=prop
ref=Jane's Fighting Aircraft of World War IIRef Jane's|The Armstrong Whitworth A.W.27A Ensign|103-104]
crew=5 (captain, first officer, radio operator, two cabin stewards)
capacity=
** European routes: 40 passengers in 4 cabins
** Asian routes: 27 passengers in 3 cabins
length main=114 ft
length alt=34.8 m
span main=123 ft
span alt=37.5 m
height main=23 ft
height alt=7.02 m
area main=2,450 ft²
area alt=227.6 m²
airfoil=
empty weight main=35,075 lb
empty weight alt=15,900 kg
loaded weight main=55,500 lb
loaded weight alt=25,200 kg
useful load main=12,000 lb
useful load alt=5,450 kg
max takeoff weight main=
max takeoff weight alt=
engine (prop)=Wright GR-1820-G102A
type of prop=geared radial engines
number of props=4
power main=1,100 hp
power alt=820 kW
max speed main=210 mph
max speed alt=180 knots, 330 km/h
cruise speed main=180 mph
cruise speed alt=160 knots, 290 km/h
range main=1,370 mi
range alt=1,190 nm, 2,200 km
range more=at 5,000 ft (1,500 m)
ceiling main=24,000 ft
ceiling alt=7,300 m
ceiling more=when fully loaded
climb rate main=900 ft/min
climb rate alt=4.57 m/s
loading main=22.6 lb/ft²
loading alt=110 kg/m²
power/mass main=.079 hp/lb
power/mass alt=130 W/kg

ee also

aircontent
similar aircraft=
* Avro York
related=
* Armstrong Whitworth Whitley
lists=
* List of airliners
* List of civil aircraft of the United Kingdom

References

External links

* [http://www.imperial-airways.com/Armstrong_whitworth_aw27_ensign.html Armstrong Whitworth Ensign web page] from Imperial 42 project
* [http://www.britishaircraft.co.uk/aircraftpage.php?ID=121 Armstrong Whitworth Ensign web page] from British Aircraft Directory