Fifth of eight F9/40 prototypes, Gloster Meteor DG206/G was the first to fly, 5 March 1943. (BAE Systems)
5 March 1943: Gloster test pilot Neill Michael Daunt took Gloster Meteor DG206/G for its first flight at RAF Cranwell in Lincolnshire, England. DG206/G was the fifth of eight F9/40 prototypes, but first to fly. (The “/G” in the identification indicated that the aircraft was to be guarded at all times.)
Designed by Wilfred George Carter, Gloster’s Chief Designer, the Meteor was a single-place, twin-engine, low-wing monoplane with tricycle landing gear. It was powered by two turbojet engines.
Gloster F9/40 DG205/G, the first prototype Meteor to fly. Left to Right: Test pilot John A. Crosby-Warren; test pilot Neill Michael Daunt; Frank McKenna, Managing Director, Gloster Aircraft Co.; Air Commodore Frank Whittle, RAF; and Wilfred George Carter, Chief Designer, Gloster. (Mary Evans Picture Library)Test pilot Neill Michael Daunt, center, with a Gloster Meteor. (Test & Research Pilots, Flight Test Engineers)
Before the Meteor’s first flight, more than 100 Meteors had been ordered. The Mk.I was the first operational model with 20 built, but these were quickly upgraded to the Mk.III.
The Meteor Mk.III was 41 feet, 0 inches (12.497 meters) long with a wingspan of 43, feet 0 inches (13.106 meters) and overall height of 13 feet, 0 inches (3.962 meters). The wings had an angle of incidence of 1°. The center wing section had 0° 52½’ dihedral, while outboard of the engine nacelles, the wings had 6°. The total wing area was 374.0 square feet (34.8 square meters).
DG206 was initially intended to be powered by two Power Jets W.2 turbojet engines, however, when these were not ready, the Halford H.1 was substituted. The Halford H.1 turbojet which produced 2,300 pounds of thrust (10.231 kilonewtons) at 9,300 r.p.m. This engine was produced by de Havilland and named Goblin.
Cutaway illustration of the Halford H.1B Goblin turbojet engine. (Flight)
The Goblin is a linear descendant of the early Whittle units. It comprises a single-sided centrifugal compressor delivering air to sixteen combustion chambers grouped symmetrically around the axis of the unit and leading to the nozzle of the single-stage axial turbine which drives the compressor. Compressor impeller and turbine rotor are coupled by a tubular shaft to form a single rotating assembly which is mounted on only two ball bearings. The maximum diameters of the engine, around the compressor casing, is 50in., [1.27 meters] and with a jet pipe of minimum length fitted the overall length is about 8ft. [2.438 meters] Equipped with a jet pipe and all the necessary engine auxiliaries the dry weight of the complete unit is 1,500 lb. [680 kilograms] Fuel consumption is at the rate of 1.23 lb. / hr. per lb. thrust.
—FLIGHT and AIRCRAFT ENGINEER, No. 1923. Vol. XLVIII. Thursday, 1 November 1945 at Page 472, Column 2
The first fifteen Mk.IIIs were powered by Rolls-Royce Welland W.2B/23 engines, while subsequent airplanes were equipped with Rolls-Royce Derwent B.37 which produced 1,800 pounds of thrust (80 kilonewtons).
The Meteor Mk.III had a maximum speed at Sea Level of 435 miles per hour (700 kilometers per hour) and 465 miles per hour (748 kilometers per hour) at 30,000 feet (9,144 meters). Its critical mach number (Mcr) was 0.74. The maximum permissible speed (VNE) of 500 miles per hour (805 kilometers per hour) up to an altitude of 6,500 feet (1,981 meters). The airplane could maintain a rate of climb of at least 1,000 feet per minute (5 meters per second) until 31,000 feet (9,449 meters). At 20,000 feet (6,096 meters) with two 180 gallon (681 liters) drop tanks its range was 581 miles (935 kilometers).
The Meteor was armed with four Hispano Mk.II 20 mm autocannon grouped together in the nose, with 180 rounds of ammunition per gun. Total duration of fire was 15 seconds.
First operational sortie by a Meteor was flown from RAF Manston, by Flying Officer William H. McKenzie, RCAF, 1430, 27 July 1944, patrolling for inbound V-1s.
Gloster Meteor F Mk.I EE227, YQ Y, No. 616 Squadron, RAF Manston. (Flight Lieutenant Miller, RAF Official Photographer/Imperial War Museums CL 2926)
Avro Canada CF-100 Mark 1, 18101 (Avro Canada, via Harold A. Skaarup)
19 January 1950: At Malton Airport,¹ northwest of Toronto, Ontario, Canada, the Gloster Aircraft Company’s chief test pilot, Squadron Leader William Arthur Waterton, AFC and Bar, GM, took the prototype Avro Canada CF-100 Mark 1, serial number 18101, for its first flight. Waterton, a Canadian, had been loaned to Avro Canada by Gloster for the test flight. (Avro Canada and Gloster were both owned by the Hawker Siddeley Group. Waterton was the most experienced jet aircraft pilot in the group at the time.)
The first flight lasted approximately 40 minutes, reaching 180 knots (207 miles per hour/333 kilometers per hour) and 5,000 feet (1524 meters). The only problem was that the button for cycling the landing gear would not operate, so Waterton decided to continue the flight with the gear down.² After landing Waterton said,
“She handled extremely well. Avro Canada seems to have overcome many points of criticism in existing fighters.”
The trouble had been simple. The shock-absorbing undercarriage legs were British developed and, unknown to the makers, were contracting slightly in the cold. Consequently, when the ‘plane’s weight came off the wheels, the legs did not “stretch” as much as they should have done—there was insufficient “stretch” to release the electrically triggered safety switch. When modifications were made the undercarriage gave no further trouble.
—The Quick and The Dead, Squadron Leader W.A. Waterton, G.M., A.F.C. and bar. Frederick Muller Ltd., London, 1956, Chapter 11 at Page 168
Avro Canada CF-101 Mark 1 18101 with government officials and test pilot Bill Waterton (Library and Archives Canada, MIKAN No. 4047130/Neil Corbett, Test & Research Pilots, Flight Test Engineers)
CF-100 18101 was the first of two Mark 1 prototypes for a twin-engine, all-weather, long range fighter. It had originally been designated XC-100. It was a large two-place aircraft, with a low, straight wing and a high-mounted horizontal stabilizer. It had tricycle landing gear. Each strut mounted two tires to support the weight of the aircraft. The two engines were mounted in long nacelles above the wings and on either side of the fuselage.
The CF-100 Mark 1 prototypes were 52 feet, 6 inches (16.002 meters) long, with a wing span of 52 feet, 0 inches (15.850 meters) and overall height of 14 feet, 6.4 inches (4.430 meters). They had an empty weight of 19,185 pounds (8,702 kilograms), and gross weight of 31,877 pounds (14,459 kilograms).
The prototypes were powered by two Rolls-Royce Avon RA.2 turbojet engines. (Some sources say the engines were RA.3s, though a specific mark is not described.) The Avon R.A.2 was a single-spool, axial flow turbojet with a 12-stage compressor section and single-stage turbine. It was rated at 6,000 pounds of thrust (26.69 kilonewtons). The RA.2 weighed 2,400 pounds (1,089 kilograms). The RA.2 also powered the English Electric Canberra B.1 prototype. Production CF-100s would be powered by the Avro Canada Orenda engine.
The Mark 1 had a maximum speed of 552 miles per hour (888 kilometers per hour) at 40,000 feet (12,192 meters). It could climb at 9,800 feet per minute (49.8 meters per second). Its service ceiling was 50,000 feet (15,240 meters).
The two Mark 1s had no radar and were not armed.
Avro Canada CF-100 Mark 1 18101, FB D. (Avro Canada)
Following the two Mark 1 prototypes, Avro Canada produced ten Mark 2 pre-production aircraft, two of which were trainers. The first operational variant was the CF-100 Mark 3. It was equipped with radar and armed with eight Browning M3 .50-caliber machine guns with 200 rounds of ammunition per gun.
The Mark 4 was equipped with a more powerful radar. In addition to the machine guns, armament consisted of 58 unguided 2.75 inch (70 millimeter) Mark 4 Folding Fin Aerial Rockets (FFARs), each with a 6 pound 92.7 kilogram) explosive warhead. These were carried in wingtip pods.
Two Avro Canada CF-100 Mark 4B all-weather, long-range interceptors, 18423 and 18470. (Royal Canadian Air Force)
On 18 Dec 1952, Avro Canada test pilot Janusz Żurakowski put CF-101 Mark 4 serial number 18112 into a dive from 30,000 feet (9,144 meters) and reached Mach 1.10. This was the first time that a straight wing aircraft exceeded Mach 1 without rocket power.
The majority of CF-100s were the Mark 5 variant. These had a greater wing span and larger horizontal stabilizer. The machine guns were eliminated.
Avro Canada CF-100 Mark 5 18539. (Royal Canadian Air Force)
A total of 692 of all types were built. 53 were sold to the Belgian Air Force. The CF-100 remained in service with the Royal Canadian Air Force until 1981.
CF-100 Mark 1 18102 was used to test wingtip-mounted fuel tanks. It crashed 5 April 1951 and was destroyed. Test pilot Flight Lieutenant Bruce Warren and flight engineer Jack Hieber were killed. The crew may have suffered hypoxia.
18101 was retained for testing. It was scrapped in 1965.
“Royal Air Force test pilot Squadron Leader Bill Waterton (1916-2006) AFC, of the RAF High Speed Flight, posed at a RAF station in England in August 1946. Bill Waterton, with fellow test pilots Neville Duke and Edward Donaldson, are preparing to attempt to break the world air speed record in a Gloster Meteor F4 jet aircraft. (Photo by Edward Malindine/Popperfoto via Getty Images)” Waterton’s ribbons are the Air Force Cross and the 1939–45 Star campaign medal.
William Arthur Waterton was born 18 March 1916, at Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. He was the first of two sons of William Albert Waterton, a police officer, and Mary Elizabeth Sereda Waterton. After high school, he attended Camrose Normal School, Alberta, a college for teachers. He then spent two years the Royal Military College, Kingston, Ontario, graduating 1937. While there, he was a boxer. Waterton was commissioned in the 19th Alberta Dragoons in 1938.
Waterton crossed the Atlantic Ocean to attend the Civil Flying Training School, Hanworth, Feltham, Middlesex. He departed St. John, New Brunswick, aboard the 22,022 gross registered ton (62,322 cubic meters) Canadian Pacific passenger liner Duchess of Richmond, arriving at Liverpool on 17 April 1939.
Duchess of Richmond (John H. Brown & Co., Ltd.)
On 10 June 1939, Bill Waterton was granted a short service commission in the Royal Air Force as an Acting Pilot Officer on probation for six years on the active list. (RAF serial number 42288)
Six months later,18 November 1939, Acting Pilot Officer on probation William Arthur Waterton was graded as Pilot Officer on probation.
A Hawker Hurricane Mk.I, N2320, assigned to No. 242 Squadron, Royal Air Force, circa 1940.
Pilot Officer Waterton was assigned to No. 242 Squadron, the first all-Canadian fighter squadron, at RAF Church Fenton, southeast of Tadcaster, North Yorkshire, England. The Second World War had been underway for twelve weeks.
On 25 May 1940 his Hawker Hurricane Mk.I ² (squadron code “LE”), was disabled by anti-aircraft fire over Dunkerque, France. Waterton made it across the English Channel to Dover where he crash landed, suffering a severe head injury. Waterton was unconscious in a London hospital for five days, and remained hospitalized for three months.
Waterton’s Hurricane was repaired and returned to service.
On 18 Nov 1940, Pilot Officer on probation Waterton was confirmed in his appointment and promoted to the rank of Flying Officer.
After returning to flight status, Flying Officer Waterton was assigned as a flight instructor with No. 6 Operational Training Unit (OTU).
Flying Officer Waterton was promoted to the rank of Flight Lieutenant, 18 January 1941.
Waterton served as a flight instructor in Canada in throughout 1942.
Air Force Cross
Flight Lieutenant William Arthur Waterton was awarded the Air Force Cross, 1 January 1943.
Waterton was next assigned to the Transatlantic Ferry Command, then transferred to No. 124 Squadron at RAF Manston, where he flew the Supermarine Spitfire Mk.VI and VII. In September 1943, he was assigned to No.1409 (Meteorological) Flight at RAF Oakington, which was equipped with unarmed de Havilland Mosquitos.
In May 1944, Waterton was assigned to the Air Fighting Development Unit (Central Fighter Establishment) at RAF Wittering, testing captured enemy aircraft and comparing them to Allied aircraft.
On 13 April 1945, Flight Lieutenant Waterton was transferred to reserve and called up for Air Force service.
Flight Lieutenant Waterton was promoted to the rank of Squadron Leader in June 1946.
Waterton attended No. 5 Empire Test Pilots School at Hanworth, where he had begun his aviation career in 1939.
After the War, Waterton was selected for the RAF High Speed Flight. Along with Group Captain Edward Mortlock (“Teddy”) Donaldson and Squadron Leader Neville Frederick Duke, he was to attempt a world speed record with the Gloster Meteor F. Mk.IV fighter.
Gloster Meteor F. Mk.4 EE549, the world record holder, at RAF Tangmere, 1 August 1946. (FlightGlobal)
On Friday, 16 August 1946, Squadron Leader Waterton flew Gloster Meteor F. Mk.IV EE550 ³ to 620 miles per hour (998 kilometers per hour) over a 3 kilometer course. Although this was 14 miles per hour (23 kilometers per hour) over the existing record, it was not an official record.
Squadron Leader William Arthur Waterton, AFC, RAF, climbing from the cockpit of his Gloster Meteor IV after a speed record attempt, at RAF Tangmere, 1946. (Neil Corbett, Test & Research Pilots, Flight Test Engineers)
On 7 September 1946, Waterton made made five runs over the course with EE550 during a 21 minute period. However, Group Captain Donaldson, flying Meteor IV EE549, established a new Fédération Aéronautique Internationale (FAI) World Record for Speed Over a 3 Kilometer Course, averaging 991 kilometers per hour (615.779 miles per hour). [FAI Record File Number 9848] This exceeded the record record set by Group Captain Hugh Joseph Wilson with Meteor IV EE455, 7 November 1945. [FAI Record File Number 9847] (Please see This Day in Aviation for 7 November 1945 at: https://www.thisdayinaviation.com/7-november-1945/ )
Interestingly, Donaldson had said that he thought that Waterton’s Meteor was the faster of the two.
Group Captain Edward M. Donaldson passing a timing station on the high speed course in Gloster Meteor F. Mk.IV EE549. (Royal Air Force)“Squadron Leader Bill Waterton leaves Gloster Meteor EE549 at Farnborough after flying from Le Bourget to Croydon in 20 minutes at an average speed of 616 mph on 16 January 1947.” (Mary Evans Picture Library Media ID 18387988)
On 16 January 1947, Bill Waterton flew Meteor IV EE549 (the world record holder) from Aéroport de Paris – Le Bourget, to London, a distance of 208 statute miles, in 20 minutes, 11 seconds, at an average speed of 618.4 miles per hour (995.2 kilometers per hour). (This is not an official record.)
(The Daily Telegraph, No. 28,571, Friday, January 17, 1947, Page 13, Columns 4–5)Great Circle route from Aéroport de Paris-Le Bourget to Croydon Airport, 174 nautical miles (200 statute miles/322 kilometers). (Great Circle Mapper)
Acting Squadron Leader William Arthur Waterton, R.A.F.O. (Reserve of Air Force Officers), was awarded a Bar to his Air Force Cross (a second award of the AFC), 12 June 1947.
Waterton left the Royal Air Force and joined Gloster Aircraft Co. Ltd. on 21 October 1947as a test pilot at a salary of £1,000 per year. In addition to testing improved Meteor variants, he was also assigned to the experimental E.1/44 and the delta-winged GA.5 Javelin. On 1 April 1948, he was appointed the company’s chief test pilot with an increase to £1,500 per year.
On 6 February 1948, Squadron Leader Waterton, flying a Gloster Meteor F. Mk.IV, VT103, set an Fédération Aéronautique Internationale (FAI) World Record for Speed Over a Closed Circuit of 100 Kilometers, averaging 873.786 kilometers per hour (542.945miles per hour/471.807 knots). The course was from RAF Moreton Valence, southwest of Gloucester, to Evesham Bridge, Pershore Aerodrome, Defford Aerodrome and Grange Court Junction.⁴
Waterton had made an attempt earlier in the day with a Meteor F. Mk.V, averaging only 522 m.p.h. (840 kilometers per hour). Disappointed, he switched to a standard production Meteor IV and tried again.
The second E.1/44 prototype was the first to fly, with Waterton at the controls, 9 March 1948. (The first had been damaged while being transported by truck.) Waterton called the airplane the Gloster Gormless, “since she was so heavy for her single Nene engine.”
Gloster E.1/44 (Imperial War Museum ATP 17442B)
Waterton took the prototype Gloster GA.5 Javelin, WD804, for its first flight, 26 November 1951.
Gloster GA.5 Javelin WD804. (Royal Air Force)
On 29 June 1952, while Waterton was conducting the Javelin’s 99th flight, it experienced extreme flutter and both elevators separated from the airplane. Using the horizontal stabilizer’s trim control, Waterton was able to land the aircraft at RAF Boscombe Down, Wiltshire, though at a much higher speed than normal. The landing gear collapsed. The aircraft caught fire and was ultimately destroyed.
Bill Waterton was awarded the George Medal by Queen Elizabeth II.
In July 1953, Bill Waterton married Marjorie E. Stocks at Cheltenham, Gloucestershire.
A 1956 First Edition of Bill Waterton’s book, The Quick and the Dead.
Very critical of the safety record of the British aircraft industry, Waterton left Gloster and became an aviation correspondent for the Daily Express. After publishing his autobiography, The Quick and the Dead, in 1956, in which he continued his criticism of the aircraft industry, he was fired. The newspaper said that the aviation industry had stopped buying advertising space.
Bill Waterton returned to Canada, residing at Owen Sound, Ontario.
Squadron Leader William Arthur Waterton, AFC and Bar, GM, Royal Air Force, died 17 April 2006, at Owen Sound. He was 90 years of age. His remains were interred at the Oxenden Cemetery, Oxenden, Ontario, Canada.
¹ Today known as Toronto Pearson International Airport (YYZ)
² Martin’s Aviation Pages states L1654: https://martinaviationpages.com/25-may-1940/
Royal Air Force Commands Hurricane Mk.I data base says L1852: https://www.rafcommands.com/database/hurricanes/details.php?uniq=L1852
³ EE550 was destroyed 6 January 1951, west of Ashford, Kent. At 20,000 feet (6,096 meters) its pilot, Pilot Officer Thomas Charles Hood, RAF, was seen not wearing his oxygen mask. The meteor pitched up, rolled over and dived into the ground.
7 November 1945: Wing Commander Hugh Joseph Wilson, A.F.C. and Two Bars, Royal Air Force, Commandant of the Empire Test Pilots’ School at RAF Cranfield, set the first world speed record with a jet-propelled airplane, and the first speed record by an airplane in excess of 600 miles per hour (965.606 kilometers per hour), when he flew the Gloster Meteor F Mk.IV, EE454, to 975.68 kilometers per hour (606.26 miles per hour)—0.80 Mach—at an altitude of 75 meters (246) above Sea Level.
The course was an 8 mile (12.9 kilometers) straight away from the Herne Bay Pier to Reculver Point, along the south coast of the Thames Estuary. This was a new Fédération Aéronautique Internationale (FAI) record for speed over a 3 kilometer course. ¹
Gloster Meteor F Mk.III EE457, sister ship of the two record-setting Mk.IV prototypes. (Unattributed)
Months of preparation by both the Royal Air Force, which formed a special “flight,” and Gloster Aviation Co., Ltd., went into the speed record effort. Two Meteor F Mk.III fighters, EE454 and EE455, were modified to the new Mk.IV version to attempt the speed record.
The standard B.37 Rolls-Royce Derwent Series I turbojet engines were replaced with Derwent Series V turbojets and lengthened jet nacelles. The wings were shortened, the tips reshaped and the canopy was cut down and strengthened. All trim tabs on flight control surfaces were disabled and their edges sealed. Landing gear and gear door up-latches were strengthened to prevent them from being sucked open at high speed. The airplanes were lightened and all armament deleted. The surfaces were smoothed and painted in a gloss finish. EE454 retained the standard camouflage pattern, while EE455 was painted in a distinctive yellow-gold color.
Many hours of flight testing were performed to ensure that the airplanes would be stable enough at high speeds while flying at the very low altitude required by the Fédération Aéronautique Internationale‘s rules. The slightest deviation from smooth flight could have disastrous results.
Wing Commander Hugh Joseph Wilson, A.F.C. and Two Bars, with Gloster Chief Test Pilot Eric Stanley Greenwood. (Photograph courtesy of Neil Corbett, Test & Research Pilots, Flight Test Engineers)
EE454 was flown by Wing Commander Hugh Joseph Wilson, A.F.C. and Two Bars (three awards), and EE455 by Gloster Chief Test Pilot Eric Stanley Greenwood. Each airplane was required to make four passes over the 3 kilometer (1.8641 statute miles) course, with two runs in each direction. The airplanes were required to remain at or below 75 meters (246 feet) during the runs over the course, and during the turns at the end of each run, below 400 meters (1,312 feet).
On the day of the speed runs, the weather was marginal. It was cold and overcast, and visibility varied from 7 to 12 miles 11–19 kilometers) along the course. The wind was 8–12 miles per hour (3.6–5.4 meters per second) from the northwest.
Wilson made four passes over the course. His speeds for each run were 604, 608, 602 and 611 miles per hour (972, 978, 969, and 983 kilometers per hour). Greenwood made his speed runs an hour later. His runs were 599, 608, 598 and 607 miles per hour (964, 978, 962 and 977 kilometers per hour).
Wilson’s average speed was the higher of the two. His official FAI-homologated record speed is 975.68 kilometers per hour (606.26 miles per hour). Greenwood’s average speed was 970.63 kilometers per hour (603.122 miles per hour.).² Both pilots are credited with official FAI world speed records.
Color photograph of Gloster Meteor Mk.IV EE455 (RAF Museum)
Post-flight inspections revealed that the sheet metal of the Meteors’ engine intakes had significantly distorted by the intense pressure differentials experienced during the speed runs.
The B.37 Rolls-Royce Derwent Series V, interestingly, was not a direct development of the preceding Derwent Series I–IV engines. Instead, it was a scaled-down version of the RB.41 Nene, which was in turn, a scaled-up and improved Derwent I. The Derwent V had a single-stage, two-sided, centrifugal-flow compressor and a single-stage axial-flow turbine. The compressor impeller and turbine rotor were mounted on a single shaft which was supported on each end by roller bearings, and in the center by a ball bearing. The Derwent V used nine combustion chambers, and burned aviation kerosene. Engine lubricating oil was added to the fuel at a 1:100 ratio, by volume. The Series V had a Normal Power rating of 3,000 pounds of thrust (13.345 kilonewtons) at 14,000 r.p.m., and a Take-off or Military Power rating of 3,500 pounds of thrust (15.569 kilonewtons) at 14,600 r.p.m. (There was no time limit for this power setting.) The engine produced a maximum 4,000 pounds of thrust (17.793 kilonewtons) at 15,000 r.p.m. at Sea Level. During the speed runs, thrust was restricted to 3,600 pounds (16.014 kilonewtons) on both Meteors. The Derwent V engine was 7 feet, 4.5 inches (2.248 meters) long, 3 feet, 7 inches (1.092 meters) in diameter and weighed 1,280 pounds (581 kilograms).
(Rolls-Royce named its piston aircraft engines after predatory birds, e.g., Kestrel, Merlin, but its turbine engines were named after rivers.)
Gloster Meteor F Mk. IV EE455 on jack stands. (Unattributed)Gloster Meteor F Mk. IV EE455 on jack stands. (Unattributed)
British Pathé news film of the speed runs can be seen at:
Group Captain Wilson was born at Westminster, London, England, 28 May 1908, the only son of Alfred Wilson and Jessie Wood Young Wilson. He was educated at the University School, Hastings, and the Merchant Taylors’ School, London.
Wilson received a short service commission as a Pilot Officer in the Royal Air Force, 13 September 1929 and was assigned to the No. 5 Flight Training School, at RAF Sealand, Flintshire, Wales. Pilot Officer Wilson was then assigned to 111 Squadron at Hornchurch, Essex, 1930–1932. He was promoted to Flying Officer, 13 March 1931. From 1932 to to 1934, “Willie” Wilson was assigned to the School of Naval Co-operation and Air Navigation at Lee-on-Solent, Hampshire.
On the completion of his five-year short service, Wilson was transferred to the Reserve Air Force Officers list. He qualified in flying boats and acted as a flight instructor for the RAF Reserve School. Wilson was promoted to Flight Lieutenant 1 April 1937, with seniority retroactive to 1 April 1936.
Flying Officer Hugh Wilson in the cockpit of a prototype Blackburn Roc fighter, RAF Northolt, 22 May 1939.
While a reserve officer, Wilson was a test pilot for Blackburn Aircraft Ltd., and made the first flight of the Blackburn Roc. He then became a civil test pilot at the Royal Aircraft Establishment, Farnborough.
In 1939 Flight Lieutenant Wilson was recalled to active duty. He was assigned as Commanding Officer, Aerodynamic Flight, RAE Farnborough, and also flew with No. 74 Fighter Squadron at Biggin Hill. On 1 September 1940, Wilson was promoted to the rank of Squadron Leader. In 1941, Wilson was appointed chief test pilot at the Royal Aircraft Establishment and was responsible for testing all captured enemy aircraft. He was promoted to Wing Commander, 20 August 1945.
Squadron Leader Hugh J. Wilson, A.F.C. and Bar, in the cockpit of a captured Focke-Wulf Fw 190A 3, W.Nr. 313, in RAF markings as MP499, August 1942. (Detail from Imperial War Museum photograph)Commander of the Order of the British Empire Medal with Military Division Ribbon. (Wikipedia)
Wing Commander Hugh Joseph Wilson, A.F.C. and Two Bars, Royal Air Force, was named Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (C.B.E.) in the King’s Birthday Honours List, 13 June 1946.
On 22 February 1947, Wing Commander Wilson married Mrs. Moira Garnham (the former Miss Thom Isobel Moira Sergeant). They had one son. On 4 December 1959, he married Miss Patricia Frances Stanley Warren. They had two children.
Wing Commander Hugh J. Wilson retired from the Royal Air Force at his request 20 June 1948, with the rank of Group Captain. He died at Westminster, London 5 September 1990 at the age of 82 years.
Gloster Chief Test Pilot Eric Stanley “Terry” Greenwood (29 November 1908–February 1979) was the first pilot to exceed 600 miles per hour, while test flying the Meteors. He was appointed an Officer of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (O.B.E.) in the King’s Birthday Honours List, 13 June 1946.
The Gloster G.37, prototype of the Gloster Gladiator Mk.I (Gloster Aircraft Co., Ltd.)
12 September 1934: Hawker Aircraft Company test pilot Flying Officer Phillip Edward Gerald Sayer made the first flight of the Gloster G.37, a prototype fighter for the Royal Air Force, designed to reach a speed of 250 miles per hour (402 kilometers per hour) while armed with four machine guns. The flight took place at Gloster’s private airfield at Brockworth, Gloucestershire.
The Gladiator was designed by Gloster’s chief designer, Henry Philip Folland.
The Gladiator was a single-place, single-engine, single-bay biplane, with fixed landing gear. The airplane was primarily of metal construction, though the aft fuselage, wings and control surfaces were fabric covered.
The production Gladiator Mk.I was 27 feet, 5 inches (8.357 meters) long with a wingspan of 32 feet, 3 inches (9.830 meters) and overall height of 11 feet, 9 inches (3.581 meters). It had an empty weight of 3,217 pounds (1,459 kilograms) and gross weight of 4,594 pounds (2,084 kilograms).
Gloster G.37 prototype, right profile
The G.37 was equipped with a left-hand tractor, air-cooled, supercharged, 1,519.083 cubic-inch-displacement (24.893 liters) Bristol Mercury IV-S2 nine cylinder radial engine. With a compression ratio of 5.3:1, the IV-S2 was rated at 505 horsepower at 2,250 r.p.m., and 540 h.p. at 2,600 r.p.m., both at 13,000 feet (3,962 meters). It developed a maximum 560 horsepower at 2,600 r.p.m. at 16,000 feet (4,877 meters). The engine had a take-off power rating of 530 horsepower at 2,250 r.p.m., at Sea Level (3-minute limit). The IV-S2 drove a two-bladed fixed-pitch propeller through a 0.655:1 gear reduction. This engine weighed 920 pounds (417 kilograms).
The G.37 was repowered with a Bristol Mercury VI-S engine, which had a 6:0:1 compression ratio and a 0.5:1 gear reduction ratio. This engine produced a maximum of 636 horsepower at 2,750 r.p.m. at 15,500 feet.
The prototype was armed with two synchronized, air-cooled Vickers .303-caliber machine guns, firing forward through the propeller arc, and two .303-caliber Lewis guns mounted under the bottom wing.
With the upgraded engine and armament, the G.37 reached 242 miles per hour (389 kilometers per hour).
The Gloster Gladiator Mk.I with an enclosed cockpit and a Bristol Mercury IX engine had a maximum speed of 257 miles per hour (414 kilometers) per hour) at 14,600 feet (4,450 meters).
This production Gloster Gladiator Mk.I, K6131, shows the cockpit enclosure. (This airplane, the second production Gladiator Mk.I, was damaged beyond repair when it ran out of fuel near RAF Church Fenton, 26 March 1938.) (Royal Air Force)Gloster Gladiator Mk.I L8032. (SDASM)
The Gladiator Mk.I entered service with the Royal Air Force in February 1937. It was the last biplane fighter to do so, and was the first fighter with an enclosed cockpit. Beginning with No. 72 Squadron, eight fighter squadrons were equipped with the type, though by the beginning of World War II, these were being phased out by more modern airplanes like the Hawker Hurricane and Supermarine Spitfire.
A total of 737 Gloster Gladiators, Mk.I and Mk.II, were built. In addition to the Royal Air Force, there were operated by several other countries in Europe, the Mediterranean and the Middle East.
Prototype Gloster Gladiator G.37 in flight, now marked K5200. A .303-caliber Lewis machine gun is visible under the right wing. (Royal Air Force)Phillip E.G. Sayer, O.B.E. (Flight)
Phillip Edward Gerald Sayer was born at Colchester, England, 2 February 1905. He was the second of three children of Edward James Sayer, a retired British Army officer and Ethel Jane Hellyar Sayer.
Sayer was granted a short service commission in the Royal Air Force as a Pilot Officer on probation, 30 June 1924. His rank was confirmed 23 May 1925. He was promoted to Flying Officer 30 March 1926. Flying Officer Sayer was transferred to the R.A.F. Reserve, 2 March 1929.
In 1930, Gerry Sayer joined Hawker Aircraft Company as a test pilot. When Hawker took over Gloster Aircraft Co., Ltd. in November 1934, he was appointed Chief Test Pilot of Gloster.
Flight Lieutenant Sayer completed his service and relinquished his commission, 2 March 1937. He was permitted to retain his rank.
On 15 May 1941, Sayer made the first flight of the Gloster-Whittle E.28/39, a prototype jet fighter.
Chief Test Pilot Phillip Edward Gerald Sayer, Esq., was appointed an Officer of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (OBE) in the New Years Honours list, 30 December 1941.
Gerry Sayer was flying a Hawker Typhoon from RAF Acklington, 22 October 1942, to the Druridge Bay gunnery range. He never returned.
