The destruction of our aircraft industry
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British industry, the British Empire and our vast global trading area was sacrificed in 1939 for the benefit of a group of warmongers, who sought to use the second-world-war as a means to gain world-power for themselves. It was Winston Churchill, an enthusiastic agent of these usurpers of nation-state power, who set in motion the global tyranny that is causing much suffering to all nations today. The full impact of the Second-World-War, its cost to us, our allies and those who we fought against was not realized until much later. There are still some people who feel that there is something radically wrong with the way the world is governed today, but have not yet have come to, what is to us, the obvious conclusion.
We all enjoy seeing the aircraft of our glory days flying, from early types such as the Hawker Hart and Sopwith Camel (the first plane to land on a ship) to the wartime Supermarine Spitfire, Hawker Hurricane, Avro Lancaster and De Havilland Mosquito. These were followed by a series of successful jet engined aircraft including the Gloucester Meteor, De Havilland Vampire, and the Hawker Hunter ( the first aircraft to break the sound barrier.) Other great British aircraft companies were Shorts who made the impressive Sunderland Flying Boats, Blackburn creators of the large Beverly transport planes, English Electric who produced the awesome Lightning fighter which made its first appearance around the same time as the three V bombers. They were the Vickers Valiant, the Avro Vulcan and Handley Page Victor. Other great names in British aircraft manufacturing, most now long gone, are Bristol Aviation and Westland. Rolls Royce is still in business but they now do rely heavily on overseas assistance to keep them solvent. The Hawker Harrier was the first successful vertical take off aircraft. Its exceptionally long and illustrious time in service is testament to the skill of British designers and skilled engineers.
During the 1950s Britain led the world in aviation with its dozen or so world beating aircraft companies. British manufacturers had the most futuristic designs, a host of research prototypes and several new aircraft on the way. These were either on the drawing board or in their test stages. Our regular customers the Royal Australian, New Zealand, Rhodesian, South African and Canadian air forces were waiting for us to supply a replacement aircraft for their ageing Meteors and Canberras. Jordanian and Libyan Air Ministers were also awaiting the arrival of new aircraft eagerly waiting with their cheque books at the ready. Another boost to the industry came in March 1957 when the German Naval Air Arm ordered sixteen anti-submarine versions of the Fairey Gannet. In the same month the English Electric Lightning showed outstanding performance during its test trials. The British aircraft industry at the time could not have been in a better shape.
Then in 1957 the government carried out a despicable act. Duncan Sandys ( Churchill's son in law ) announced that all production of manned military aircraft would cease. "From now on we would concentrate solely on rocket and nucleur weapons" he said. In response George Ward, who was Secretary of State for Air said " There has been a lot of speculation about the role of the Royal Air Force. "The gradual introduction of rockets would merely be a further development in the deterrent strategy on which our defence must be shaped. He went on "the actual size of the bomber force required was a difficult matter to judge." But "even with the ballistic rocket", he wondered, "whether it would be wise to talk about the ultimate weapon." He was "certain that for many years to come we should remain upon the fighter pilot for the defence of Britain."
The success in building military aircraft had been helped enormously by the production of civil aircraft. The De Havilland Comet, the " whispering" Bristol Britannia and the Vickers Viscount provided, speed and comfort for long distance travellers, at a level which had never been seen before. Our aircraft industry had been viable because both our military and civil aircraft were at the leading edge of technology. Britain, particularly at this time, relied on the partnership between the military and civil aircraft factories to remain viable, in the face of competition from America. Once the government forced an end to the production of military aircraft, the inevitable happened - our airline business soon faltered and closed down.
As a sop to the aircraft industry over its sudden demise, the government announced that if the aircraft were to amalgamate, they could share one single project between them. Vickers, Armstrong, English Electric and Shorts joined forces. The commission was given to Vickers, and they were made the head company. Despite the obvious disadvantages they managed to produce a spectacular aircraft that was twenty years ahead of its time. This was an incredible achievement considering the inbuilt difficulties due to the fragmentation of the workforce carrying out different tasks on different sites.
The plane was named the TSR2. It was first tested in September 1964. Despite its obvious potential the Conservative government was looking for ways of ending the project. The Tories left it to the incoming Labour government to pass the death sentence. After some minor alterations the TSR2 was put through more vigorous tests in 1966. It even outperformed the expectations of its most adoring designers. Those who worked on it loved it, not only was it a tremendous aircraft, but it was a work of art. The Labour Cabinet Committee including Harold Wilson, Dennis Healey and Roy Jenkins were responsible for terminating the project, but not one of them would admit to having endorsed the decision.
This was followed by a rather curious directive from the government to the aircraft companies concerned - it was"that all completed TSR2s capable of flying must be destroyed immediately." So Governments both Labour and Conservative, working together had successfully managed to bring an end to the British aircraft industry. Soon after they were to do the same to the Shipbuilding works, followed by the British car industry.
The TSR2 flew just 24 times on test. It cost £200 million to produce and was reduced to £50,000 of scrap within months. At the time the TSR2 was being built, a team of American aircraft engineers and designers had been allowed to look around the factories, on the pretext that there could be a market for it in the United States. They took notes and had access to the relevant technical information. Some years later, and at enormous expense, our government bought from the Americans their Cruise missile. Their weapon incorporated much of the technology they had gleaned by studying the TSR2. However despite flying earlier, the British aircraft outperformed its American counterpart, in as much as the TSR2 would travel at supersonic speeds at ground level, whereas the Cruise missile could not.
If you look at the line and form of the TSR2, if you can get access to the video footage that was salvaged, you can see a clear resemblance between it, and the world-beating Concorde that followed some years later. What the British government did to our aircraft industry was more than criminal it was treason.
The Vulcan was one of the most
successful aircrafts ever. It was versatile and extremely manoeuvrable
It first flew in 1958 and plaid a vital role in the Falklands war. A testament
to its long service