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Airspeed Limited
The company's first aircraft was the AS.1 Tern, a small glider created to gain publicity through record breaking. Launched from hillsides, it could be privately purchased for just £248 although, even at such a low cost, only 2 aircraft were ever produced.
In 1933, the Airspeed relocated to Portsmouth and the following year it became associated with Swan Hunter and Wigham Richardson Ltd, after which it became known as Airspeed (1934) Limited.
Various aircraft designs followed including the AS6 Envoy, AS8 Viceroy and then in 1937, the extremely successful AS10 Oxford (of which over 8,500 were produced).
In 1940, it was announced that De Havilland Aircraft Company Limited had purchased a controlling interest in Airspeed (1934) Limited although the firm continued to operate and market its products under its own name.
At the same time Airspeed (1934) Limited were brought in to manage the Ministry of Aircraft Production factory at Christchurch, where it built nearly 700 of the 3,600 Horsa Gliders used to great effect during the D-Day landings.
In 1944, the company reverted to its original name of Airspeed Limited and in addition to the production of various De Havilland Types such as the Mosquito, Sea Vixen and Vampire, it concentrated on the development of the AS57 Ambassador.
23 Ambassador aircraft were produced, with the primary user being British European Airways (BEA) on their ‘Elizabethan Routes’.
BEA Elizabethan Service passengers boarding for a flight to Paris
The last aircraft marque to carry the Airpseed designation was the AS65 Consul, a type which flew in 1946 and was a direct development of the Airspeed Oxford, dating from the 1930's.
The company produced 162 aircraft which saw service with smaller airlines around the world and with a number entering military service with both the RAF and Isreali Air Force.
Airspeed Limited was fully merged into the De Havilland Aeroplane Company in June 1951 and thus the name disappeared from aviation production.
Genealogy
| 1931 | Airspeed Limited |
| 1934 | Airspeed (1934) Limited |
| 1940 | Purchased by De Havilland Aircraft Company Ltd but retained name |
| 1951 | De Havilland Aeroplane Company |
| 1963 | Hawker Siddeley Aviation |
| 1977 | British Aerospace |
| 1999 | BAE Systems |
Aircraft
| 1931 | AS1 Tern | 1937 | AS30 Queen Wasp |
| 1932 | AS4 Ferry | 1940 | AS39 Fleet Shadower |
| 1933 | AS5 Courier | 1941 | AS45 Cambridge |
| 1934 | AS6 Envoy | 1941 | AS51 Horsa I / AS58 Horsa II |
| 1934 | AS8 Viceroy | 1946 | AS65 Consul |
| 1937 | AS10 Oxford | 1947 | AS57 Ambassador |
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1956
Airspeed AS65 Consul
A successful civil conversion of the Oxford, meeting a post-war need for a light civil transport aircraft.
1956
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1941
Airspeed Horsa Glider
Airspeed's Glider was critical to the success of the Allied Forces during the D-Day landings.
1941
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1937
Airspeed Oxford
A British Commonwealth Aircrew Navigational and Radio Communications Trainer during World War II.
1937
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1937
Airspeed AS30 Queen Wasp
An attractive Cheetah-powered cabin biplane intended for use as an unmanned target aircraft.
1937
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1934
Airspeed AS6 Envoy
A successful commercial aircraft that was later developed into the Oxford aircrew and navigation trainer for the RAF.
1934
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1933
Airspeed AS5 Courier
The Courier was the first British private aircraft to be fitted with flaps and to have an undercarriage that retracted into the wings.
1933
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