De Havilland Hercules

infobox Aircraft
name = DH.66 Hercules
type = Airliner
manufacturer = De Havilland Aircraft Company



caption = Imperial Airways de Havilland Hercules
designer =
first flight = 1926
introduced = 1926
retired = 1942
produced =
number built = 11
status =
unit cost =
primary user = Imperial Airways
more users = West Australian Airways South African Air Force
developed from =
variants with their own articles = The de Havilland DH.66 Hercules was a 1920s British seven-passenger, three-engined airliner built by De Havilland Aircraft Company at Stag Lane Aerodrome. As a more modern replacement for the D.H.10s used on the RAF's air-mail service, Imperial Airways used the Hercules effectively to provide long-distance service to far-flung regions. Although the giant airliners were slow and cumbersome, they pointed the way for airliners in the future. [ [http://www.raafawa.org.au/wa/museum/aviation.htm Western Australian Aviation History] ]

Design and development

The Hercules was designed for Imperial Airways when they took over the air-mail service from Cairo to Baghdad from the Royal Air Force. The design was a three-engined biplane with room for seven passengers and the ability to carry mail. The prototype first flew on 30 September 1926, and an order for five aircraft was received from Imperial Airways. The type name Hercules was chosen in a competition in the Meccano Magazine in June 1926.

Operational history

An inaugural flight between Croydon and India left the United Kingdom on 27 December 1926, and arrived in Delhi on the 8 January 1927. West Australian Airways ordered four aircraft to replace the DH.50. On the 2 June 1927, the first service on the Perth-Adelaide route was carried out. Imperial Airways ordered two more aircraft but it lost three aircraft in accidents between September 1929 and April 1930. To replace the lost aircraft, two were purchased from West Australian Airways. The Imperial Airways aircraft were withdrawn from service in December 1935 following another crash in Southern Rhodesia in November 1935. Three aircraft were sold to South African Air Force. One of the Australian aircraft survived until 1942 when it was destroyed by enemy action.

Operators

;AUS
*West Australian Airways;flag|South Africa|1928
*South African Air Force;UK
*Imperial Airways

pecifications (DH.66A)

aircraft specification

plane or copter?=plane
jet or prop?=prop

ref
crew=3
length main= 56 ft
length alt= 17.08 m
span main= 79 ft 6 in
span alt= 24.24 m
height main= 18 ft 3 in
height alt= 5.56 m
area main= 1,547 ft²
area alt= 143.7 m²
empty weight main= 9,060 lb
empty weight alt= 4,110 kg
loaded weight main=
loaded weight alt=
max takeoff weight main= 15,600 lb
max takeoff weight alt= 7,076 kg
engine (prop)=Bristol Jupiter VI
type of prop= radial piston engine
number of props=3
power main= 420 hp
power alt= 313 kW
max speed main= 129 mph
max speed alt= 208 km/h
range main= 525 miles
range alt= 845 km
ceiling main= 13,100 ft
ceiling alt= 3,990 m
climb rate main= 635 ft/min
climb rate alt= 3.2 m/sec
loading main=
loading alt=
power/mass main=
power/mass alt=
armament=

ee also

aircontent

related=
*De Havilland DH.72

similar aircraft=

lists=
*List of aircraft of the South African Air Force
see also=

References

Notes

Bibliography

* "The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Aircraft (Part Work 1982-1985)". London: Orbis Publishing, 1985.
* Jackson, A.J. "British Civil Aircraft since 1919, Volume 2". London: Putnam, 1974. ISBN 0-370-10010-7.

External links

* [http://www.britishaircraft.co.uk/aircraftpage.php?ID=84 British Aircraft Directory]
* [http://www.imperial-airways.com/History_page_1.html Imperial Airways History]