miles hawk trainer 3

L6906

trainer

used by raf and fleet air arm

1303 built

first flight 20 march 1937

two seat moniplane basic trainer aircraft

maggie

authorised for aerobatics

developed during 30s based on exisitng miles hawk trainer

became praised for handling quailities and was ordered in quantity production

key training aircraft as it entered service barely a year before start of ww2

first moniplane designed as a trainer to be used for raf

also brought by lots of overseas military operators

perfect intro to spitfire and hurricanes for new pilots

after war surplus ones were exported in large numbers many used for civilian use

developed from miles m2 hawk trainer which was the first low wing monopolane used as a trainer by raf to satisfy new air ministry specification. maggie ignored full metal aircraft specification 

differences to hawk trainer 

  • cockpit enlarged for space for parachutes and other training aids such as blind flying apparatus 

  • open cockpit made of perspex 

  • large bay aft at rear cockpit via exterior door for baggage and unused equipment 

  • new features to better meet military training requirements 

maiden flight march 1937 flown by miles 

early on it would spin so they elevated tailplane by 15cm, taller rudder, anti-spin strakes to rear fuselage 

alterations so good became first low wing cantilever monoplane to be authorised by air ministry to perform aerobatics 

pilots enter via wingroot walkway on starboard side 

largely built of wood

fueslage spruce structure and plywood covering. similar for wing and tail 

first raf trainer to have flaps 

130hp de havilland gipsy major engine 

fuel in pair of tanks in centre section 

superior perfomrnace to any contemporary elemaentary trainer 

miles showed hands free landing and formation flying while inverted 

some controls such as rudder pedals can be adjusted to suit individual pilot 

production in october 1937

miles focused completely on magisters  and abandoned plans such as miles peregrine so more resources for magister 

few survived cuz of contemporary glues used to assmeble wooden aircraft 

initially sent to flying clubs and overseas government customers 

by ww2 700 in raf elementary flying training schools such as cfs 

a lot of civilian owned hawk majors forced to military service as trainers alongside 

june 1940 rouglhy 15 fitted with bomb racks for carriage of up to eight 11.5 kg bombs as part of british anti invasion preparations in operation called operation banquiet. never put into effect and never saw active combat use 

used in experimental wartime research such as evaluating long range ground attack platform during 1941 

wanted to increase payload of conventional medium bombers so british military suggested ‘auxiliary wing’ that could be towed like a glider behind a bomber that would be loaded with additional fuel or munitions. modified magister produced but by this time raf had bolstered offensive force with heavy bombers so auxiliary wing concept not needed

also had experimental modifications to evaluate new equipment or aerodynamic features 

after war many magisters disposed of so lots converted for civilian use 

civil uses included air racing. 1950s kings cup air race, eight entered of which one modified one got first place achieving record speed of 138.5 mph 

postwar years many exported for overseas customers (private pilot owners and flying clubs). argentina, austrailia, belgium, denmark, egypt, france, iceland, ireland, Italy, kenya, lebanon, moroccoa, new zealand, portuglar, south afirca, thailand, tunisia 

currently 10 registered several airworthy 

replica. originally m14a magister t9841, lsat batch of 300 magister aircraft delivered from woodley between may 1940 and jan 1941 

used by EFTS then 1948 sold to BOAC for speedbird flying club. reigstered G-AKKY withdrew from use 1064. left abandoned for many years, fuselage and centre section were destroyed 

the 49 group (small group of enthusiasts including graham jonhson later was only graham johnson) purchased surviving pieces and built the replica L6906 around remaining componets between 1967 and 1979 at bristol 

is not intended to be built to flying standards but faithfully shows a magister

came to our museum 1987 after handing it to julian temple the then chairman of berkshire aviation group 

  • Crew: 2

  • Length: 24 ft 7.5 in (7.506 m)

  • Wingspan: 33 ft 10 in (10.31 m)

  • Height: 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)

  • Wing area: 176 sq ft (16.4 m2)

  • Airfoil: root: Clark YH mod (19%); tip: Clark YH mod (9%)[31]

  • Empty weight: 1,286 lb (583 kg)

  • Gross weight: 1,900 lb (862 kg) normal

1,845 lb (837 kg) for aerobatics

  • Fuel capacity: 21.5 imp gal (25.8 US gal; 98 L); oil 2.5 imp gal (3.0 US gal; 11 L)

  • Powerplant: 1 × de Havilland Gipsy Major I four cylinder air-cooled inverted in-line piston engine, 130 hp (97 kW)

  • Propellers: 2-bladed fixed-pitch propeller

Performance

  • Maximum speed: 142 mph (229 km/h, 123 kn) at 1,000 ft (300 m)

140 mph (122 kn; 225 km/h) at sea level

130 mph (113 kn; 209 km/h) at 5,000 ft (1,500 m)

125 mph (109 kn; 201 km/h) at 10,000 ft (3,000 m)

  • Cruise speed: 122 mph (196 km/h, 106 kn)

  • Stall speed: 43 mph (69 km/h, 37 kn) flaps down

52 mph (45 kn; 84 km/h) flaps up

  • Range: 367 mi (591 km, 319 nmi)

  • Endurance: 3 hours

  • Service ceiling: 16,500 ft (5,000 m) * Absolute ceiling: 19,000 ft (5,800 m)

  • Rate of climb: 850 ft/min (4.3 m/s)

  • Wing loading: 10.7 lb/sq ft (52 kg/m2)

  • Take-off run: 630 ft (190 m) in 5 mph (4 kn; 8 km/h) wind

  • Take-off distance to 50 ft (15 m): 1,200 ft (370 m) in 5 mph (4 kn; 8 km/h) wind

  • Landing run: 420 ft (130 m) in 5 mph (4 kn; 8 km/h) wind

  • Landing distance from 50 ft (15 m): 975 ft (300 m) in 5 mph (4 kn; 8 km/h) wind