Boulton Paul Mailplane

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P.64 Mailplane
Type	Mailplane/Light Transport
Manufacturer	Boulton & Paul Ltd
Designed by	J D North
Maiden flight	March 1933
Retired	October 1933
Status	Destroyed
Number built	1

The Boulton & Paul P.64 Mailplane was a British twin-engined all-metal biplane designed for Imperial Airways and built by Boulton & Paul Ltd.

1 History
2 Specifications
3 Reference
4 External links
5 Related content

[edit] History

The airline had a requirement, which was translataed into Air Ministry specification 21/28, for a mailplane to carry a 1,000lb (454 kg) payload over a 1,000 miles (1609 km) at a reasonable speed. The P.64 Mailplane (registered G-ABYK) first flew in March 1933 at Norwich. It was not a success, deemed to be expensive and unsatisfactory. It was destroyed during trials at Martlesham Heath when it struck the ground during an unexplained dive on 21 October 1933.

The company went back to the drawing board and designed a lighter, slimmer and longer aircraft the Boulton Paul P.71A.

[edit] Specifications

General characteristics

Crew: 3 (2 pilots plus navigator or radio operator)
Length: 42 ft 6 in (12.95 m)
Wingspan: 54 ft 0 in (16.46 m)
Height: 13 ft 0 in (3.96 m)
Wing area: 756 sq ft ()
Empty weight: 7,008 lb (3,180 kg)
Max takeoff weight: 10,500 lb (4,760 kg)
Powerplant: 2× Bristol Pegasus I.M2 radial engine, 555 hp (415 kW) each

Performance

Maximum speed: 150 knots (172 mph, 275 km/h)
Range: 1,250 mi (2,010 km)
Service ceiling: 22,500 ft ()

[edit] Reference

The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Aircraft (Part Work 1982-1985). Orbis Publishing.
Jackson, A.J. (1974). British Civil Aircraft since 1919. London: Putnam. ISBN 0 370 10014 X.