Taylorcraft Auster
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| Auster | |
|---|---|
 Auster V |
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| Type | Liaison aircraft |
| Manufacturer | Taylorcraft Aeroplanes (England) Limited |
| Introduced | 1942 |
| Primary user | Royal Air Force |
| Number built | 1,630 |
| Developed from | Taylorcraft Plus C |
| Variants | Beagle A.61 Terrier |
The Taylorcraft Auster was a British military liaison and observation aircraft produced by the Taylorcraft Aeroplanes (England) Limited during the Second World War.
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[edit] Design and development
The Auster was a twice removed development of an American Taylorcraft design of civilian aircraft, the Model B. The model B had to be redesigned in Britain to meet more stringent Civil Aviation standards and was named the Taylorcraft Plus C. After the start of the Second World War, the company developed the model further as an Air Observation Post (AOP) aircraft for working with the British Army Royal Artillery units.
The Plus C was re-engined with the Blackburn Cirrus Minor I engine and re-designated the Taylorcraft Plus D. Most of the civil Plus Cs and Ds were impressed into Royal Air Force service, the Plus Cs were re-engined with the Cirrus Minor I and re-designated as Plus C2.
The first Auster I was the eleventh Taylorcraft Plus C aircraft which was delivered to the Air Ministry for trials in 1939. The trials led to an order for 100 aircraft placed in 1941.
The Auster II was a re-engined aircraft with an American 130 hp (97 kW) Lycoming O-290 engine. Due to the shortage of American engines that version was not built but led to the Auster III, which was the same as the Auster I but had a 130 hp (97 kW) de Havilland Gipsy Major engine. The next development was the Auster IV which had a slightly larger cabin with three seats and used the Lycoming 0-290. The major production version was the Auster V which was an Auster IV with blind flying instruments.
Post war the Auster Mark V was used as the basis for the Auster J1 Autocrat intended for the civilian market; the British firm having changed their name to Auster and stopped licensing from Taylorcraft. Further military aircraft were supplied post war; the Auster AOP6, Auster T7 (a trainer), and the Auster AOP9.
[edit] Operational history
The Auster Mark IV and V were issued to fifteen Royal Air Force (RAF) Air Observation Post (AOP) Squadrons. Four of them (Nos. 651, 654, 655 and No. 657) fought since 1943 in North Africa and Italy, being joined from August 1944 by No.663 Polish squadron. Other seven squadrons (Nos. 652, 653, 658, 659, 660, 661 and No. 662) operated since D-day in France and then the Low Countries. No. 664, 665, and 666 (AOP) Squadrons of the RCAF, also with Auster IV and V, were formed in the UK in late 1944 and early 1945. These were manned exclusively by Canadian personnel of the Royal Canadian Artillery and theRoyal Canadian Air Force. The three squadrons deployed from RAF Andover, England, to the Netherlands, to Dunkirk, France, where the last Canadian 'shots' in Europe were fired, and later to occupied Germany. No.656 Squadron RAF used Austers within the South East Asia Command (SEAC) in Burma/India theatre.
The Royal Australian Air Force's No. 16 AOP Flight and No. 17 AOP Flight operated Auster Mark III aircraft in support of the Australian Army in the Pacific Theatre from October 1944 until the end of the war.
Several AOP squadrons were reformed within the Royal Auxiliary Air Force in 1949 and these operated some AOP.Vs until at least 1950.
The air observation duties, insurgency and casualty evacuation roles performed by Auster and similar light aircraft were generally taken over by light helicopters from the mid 1960s.
[edit] Variants
- Taylorcraft Plus C
- Original civilian version with a Lycoming 0-145-A2 engine, 23 built.
- Taylorcraft Plus C2
- Plus C re-engined with a 90hp Cirrus Minor I engine for the Royal Air Force, 20 conversions.
- Taylorcraft Plus D
- Plus C with a 90hp Cirrus Minor I engine, 9 built.
- Taylorcraft Auster I
- Military version of Plus C, 1 conversion and 100 built.
- Taylorcraft Auster II
- Auster I with a Lycoming 0-290 engine, 2 built.
- Taylorcraft Auster III
- Auster I with a de Havilland Gipsy Major engine, 470 built.
- Taylorcraft Auster IV
- Three-seat version with a Lycoming 0-290 engine, 254 built.
- Taylorcraft Auster V
- Auster IV with blind flying instruments, approx 800 built.
[edit] Operators
[edit] Military operators
- Army Air Corps
- Royal Air Force
- No. 651 (AOP) Squadron RAF
- No. 663 (AOP) Squadron RAuxAF
- No. 664 (AOP) Squadron RAuxAF
[edit] Specifications (Auster V)
General characteristics
- Crew: 3
- Length: 22 ft 5 in (6.83 m)
- Wingspan: 36 ft 0 in (10.97 m)
- Height: 8 ft 0 in (2.44 m)
- Wing area: 167 ft² (15.51 m²)
- Empty weight: 1,100 lb (499 kg)
- Max takeoff weight: 1,850 lb (839 kg)
- Powerplant: 1× Lycoming O-290-3 flat-four piston, 130 hp (97 kw)
Performance
- Maximum speed: 130 mph (209 km/h)
- Range: 250 miles (402 km)
[edit] See also
Related development
Comparable aircraft
[edit] References
[edit] Notes
[edit] Bibliography
- "Taylorcraft Auster". The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Aircraft (Part Work 1982-1985). Orbis Publishing.
- Jackson, A.J. British Civil Aircraft since 1919, Volume 1. London: Putnam and Company Ltd., 1974. ISBN 0-370-10006-9.
[edit] External links
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