Handley Page Herald

Handley Page Herald
Tim Rees · GFDL 1.2 · source
Name	Handley Page Herald
Role	Regional airliner
Manufacturer	Handley Page
First flight	9 August 1955
Introduced	1958
Retired	1970s
Primary user	Skyways, Cambrian Airways
Produced	1955–1960
Numberbuilt	39

Handley Page Herald The Handley Page Herald was a British turboprop regional airliner developed in the 1950s by Handley Page to compete in post‑war civil aviation markets. It evolved from wartime and postwar work by Handley Page at Radlett and reflected design trends from contemporaries such as de Havilland Heron, Vickers Viking, Avro 748, Fokker F27 Friendship and Britten-Norman Islander. The type saw limited commercial success with operators including Skyways Ltd, Cambrian Airways, Airwork and export customers in East Africa and South America.

Development

Work on the aircraft began at Handley Page in the early 1950s at the Handley Page design office at Radlett Aerodrome following market studies by company leaders and sales teams who monitored demands from British European Airways and independent carriers such as British United Airways. The initial design, influenced by wartime transport experience at RAF, aimed to replace older types like the Douglas DC-3 and to compete with designs from Fokker, Avro, de Havilland and Vickers-Armstrongs. The prototype, developed by a team led by chief designers together with production engineers from Cricklewood and test pilots from Boeing-era training groups, first flew on 9 August 1955. Economic pressures from British government policies affecting aircraft manufacturing and subsidies, combined with competition from the Fokker F27 and the emerging Avro 748 programme, limited sales and led Handley Page to scale back production at its Radlett and Bovingdon facilities.

Design

The Herald was a high‑wing, all‑metal cantilever monoplane incorporating a large unpressurised or pressurised fuselage depending on customer specification, designed to carry approximately 44–56 passengers. Its configuration drew lessons from contemporary designs by de Havilland and Fokker, featuring high aspect ratio wings and large flaps for short‑field performance sought by regional operators such as Cambrian Airways and Skyways. Powerplants included Alvis Leonides radial engines on early versions and later Rolls-Royce Dart turboprops on converted airframes, following trends set by operators of Vickers Viscount and Bristol Britannia types. The undercarriage was a robust tricycle layout developed with input from maintenance teams at British European Airways workshops, and the cabin interior was configured by Handley Page stylists who had worked previously on contracts for Imperial Airways successors. Avionics packages were often supplied by firms such as Marconi, Decca and Smiths Industries to meet operator requirements.

Operational history

Early operators included independent British carriers like Skyways Ltd and Cambrian Airways, with the type entering service in the late 1950s on short haul routes across the United Kingdom and to nearby European destinations served by carriers competing with British European Airways and Transair. Exports were modest, with airframes acquired by regional carriers in Kenya, Nigeria, Peru and Trinidad and Tobago, where the rugged undercarriage and short-field capability suited operations from unprepared strips used by companies such as Airwork and state airlines influenced by Colonial Office procurement. Despite competent performance, the Herald struggled against the more commercially successful Fokker F27 and the Avro 748, and many operators retrofitted turboprop powerplants similar to those used on the Handley Page Dart Herald conversions by engineering firms associated with Rolls-Royce service centres and independent MROs.

Variants

Handley Page produced several experimental and customer variants including prototypes with Alvis Leonides radials, production piston models, and turboprop conversions powered by Rolls-Royce Dart engines. Design studies explored stretched fuselages, increased seating layouts targeted at operators like British European Airways and Cambrian Airways, and freighter conversions eyed by cargo operators similar to Airwork and United Cargo subsidiaries. Proposed military transport and reconnaissance versions were evaluated by procurement officers from organizations such as the Royal Air Force and overseas air arms, but few non‑civil variants reached serial production.

Operators

Civil operators included Skyways Ltd, Cambrian Airways, Airwork, regional carriers in Kenya Airways’s predecessor markets, state airlines in Peru and operators from Trinidad and Tobago. Maintenance and conversion work was undertaken by firms based at Blackbushe, Southend, and Cardiff which had experience with types operated by British United Airways and British European Airways. Proposed military operators included evaluations by the Royal Air Force and other Commonwealth air forces, though substantive RAF orders were not placed.

Accidents and incidents

A small number of Herald airframes were involved in accidents and incidents during the type’s limited service life, investigated by authorities such as the Air Ministry and later UK Civil Aviation Authority accident boards. Causes ranged from operational factors noted by airline safety officers to maintenance issues addressed by MROs at Blackbushe and Cardiff bases. Detailed inquiries referenced procedures promulgated by bodies like International Civil Aviation Organization investigators and published in incident reports used by operators including Cambrian Airways and Skyways Ltd to revise training manuals.

Specifications

General characteristics - Crew: 2 (pilot, co‑pilot) plus cabin crew from airlines such as Cambrian Airways - Capacity: 44–56 passengers typical, influenced by customer layouts from Skyways Ltd - Length, wingspan and height: dimensions comparable to contemporaries such as the Fokker F27 and Avro 748 - Powerplant: early versions Alvis Leonides radial engines; later conversions used Rolls-Royce Dart turboprops

Performance - Cruise speed, range and service ceiling approximately matching regional transports of the era including the Vickers Viscount and de Havilland Heron - Takeoff and landing performance suited to short airfields used by regional operators across United Kingdom, East Africa and South America

Category:1950s British airliners