| Industry | Aviation |
|---|---|
| Fate | Bankruptcy |
| Successor | de Havilland |
| Founded | 1912 |
| Defunct | 1920 |
| Headquarters | The Hyde, Hendon, London, England |
| Key people | Geoffrey de Havilland |
The Aircraft Manufacturing Company Limited (Airco) was established in 1912 by George Holt Thomas at The Hyde in Hendon, north London, England.
Contents |
Two years later, learning that Geoffrey de Havilland, who was then at the Royal Aircraft Factory in Farnborough, might be available, Holt Thomas invited de Havilland to join Airco as chief designer. De Havilland's Airco designs were to provide around 30% of all trainers, fighters and bombers used by Britain and the United States during the First World War.[1]
De Havilland's designs for Airco were marked with his initials "DH". The first great success was the Pusher configuration fighter DH.2 of 1916, that helped to end the "Fokker scourge" of 1915. Later notable aircraft produced during the war were the DH.6 trainer, of which more than 2,280 examples were built, and the DH.4 and DH.9 light bombers. These types, and the DH.9A, a developed version that served for many years with the postwar Royal Air Force, formed the basis of early de Havilland designed airliners, including the company's DH.16 and DH.18 types which were operated by Aircraft Transport and Travel Limited, the first airline established in the United Kingdom, also owned by George Holt Thomas.
By November 1918, Holt Thomas was able to advertise that his was the largest aircraft company in the world. His companies built aeroplanes and their engines and propellors in large numbers and also airships and flying boats. He had the latest metal-working machinery, a laboratory for materials testing and a wind tunnel. Between 7,000 and 8,000 people were employed at Hendon.[2] His companies turned out a new aircraft every 45 minutes.[3]
Airco subsidiary Aircraft Transport and Travel using DH.16s carried out that first flight from Hounslow Heath Aerodrome to Le Bourget on 25 August 1919.
Following the cessation of hostilities the large number of war-surplus machines, sharp fluctuations in business confidence and the government's failure, unlike those of USA and France, to provide any form of support Hendon became a 'white elephant'[2] which he endeavoured to sell to car manufacturers. Airco and Daimler parent company BSA announced on 1 March 1920 Airco had amalgamated with Birmingham Small Arms Company.[4]
Within days BSA discovered Airco was in a far more serious financial state than George Holt Thomas had revealed. Thomas was immediately dropped from his new seat on the BSA board and all BSA's new acquisitions were placed in the hands of a liquidator. BSA failed to pay a dividend for the following four years.[5]
With help from Holt Thomas Geoffrey de Havilland bought the group's assets he required to form de Havilland Aircraft Company in 1920.
In early 1921, using Airco's aircraft bought from the liquidator of Aircraft Transport and Travel which had been allowed to continue to operate until December 1920, BSA established under Daimler Hire Limited's Frank Searle, Daimler Airway including in the new company their Daimler Air Hire.
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||