de
Havilland DH 50
Realizing in 1922 that war surplus D.H.9Cs
could not be expected to serve much longer, de Havilland used the
experience gained in their operation to design a replacement, the de
Havilland D.H.50, which carried four passengers in an enclosed cabin
between the wings, with the pilot to the rear in an open cockpit. The
D.H.9C's Siddeley Puma engine was retained and the result was a reliable
and economical light transport.
First flown in August 1923, the D.H.50 made an excellent start to its
career when, four days later, it was flown by Alan Cobham to compete and
win first prize in reliability trials which were being flown daily between
Copenhagen and Gothenburg from 7th-12th August. Cobham made several long
distance flights with the prototype before using the second aircraft,
powered by a 385 hp (287 kW) Armstrong Siddeley Jaguar radial engine and
redesignated D.H.50J, for a 16,000 mile (25,749 km) flight from Croydon to
Cape Town, carried out between 16th November 1925 and 17th February 1926.
This was followed later in 1926 by a survey flight to Australia and back,
for which twin floats were fitted.
A number of orders were placed for D.H.50s, and 16 production aircraft
were built by de Havilland. Australian licence production was carried out
by QANTAS, who built four D.H.50A and three D.H.50J aircraft; by West
Australian Airways, who built three D.H.50As; and by the Larkin Aircraft
Supply Company, who built a single D.H.50A. European licences were granted
to SABCA for construction of three D.H.50As at Brussels and to Aero at
Prague for seven. The SABCA aircraft were used in the Belgian Congo.
Of the total de Havilland production (17 aircraft), only four were based
in the UK, two of them with Imperial Airways. One went to the Czech
government, 10 to Australia and one to New Zealand. The longest survivor
was the 15th British production aircraft, delivered in 1928 to the
Australian Controller of Civil Aviation and destroyed by enemy action in
New Guinea during 1942.
A wide variety of engines was used in the D.H.50 family; in addition to
those mentioned already there were the 300 hp (224 kW) A.D.C. Nimbus, 420
hp (313 kW) Bristol Jupiter IV, 450 hp (336 kW) Jupiter VI, 515 hp (384
kW) Jupiter XI, 450 hp (336 kW) Pratt & Whitney Wasp C and, in the
Czech-built versions, the 240 hp (179 kW) Walter W-4.
Design
Company: |
The de
Havilland Aircraft Co. Ltd, Stag Lane Aerodrome, Middlesex |
First
Flight: |
30 July 1923 |
D.H.50: |
3 - de
Havilland |
D.H.50A: |
14 - de
Havilland
4 - QANTAS, Australia
3 - West Australian Airways Ltd, Australia
1 - Larkin Aircraft, Australia
3 - SABCA, Belgium
7 - Aero, Czechoslovakia |
D.H.50J: |
3 - QANTAS,
Australia |
Type
Specification |
Applies
to: |
De Havilland
D.H.50 |
Type: |
Four seater
transport aircraft designed for service with the de Havilland Hire
Service |
Wing: |
Two bay,
staggered biplane. Equal span, unswept wings. Ailerons on all four
surfaces |
Fuselage: |
Plywood
covered fuselage on lower wing |
Tail
Unit: |
Braced
tailplane at top of fuselage with split elevator. Single fin and rudder
|
Landing
Gear: |
Cross axle
type. Main leg is attached to lower wing root with radius rod forward to
engine lower support |
Power
Plant: |
One 230 hp
Siddeley Puma engine in the nose |
Accommodation: |
Open cockpit
for pilot aft of wing. Enclosed cabin for four passengers between wings |
Dimensions |
Span: |
42 ft 9 in |
Length: |
29 ft 9 in |
Height: |
11 ft |
Wing
Area: |
434 sq ft |
Weights |
Tare: |
2,253 lb |
All-up: |
3,900 lb |
Performance |
Max
Speed: |
112 mph |
Initial
Climb: |
605 ft/min |
Ceiling: |
14,600 ft |
Range: |
380 miles |
|