| Rex Pierson | |
|---|---|
| Born | 9 February 1891 Little Fransham, Norfolk, England |
| Died | 10 January 1948 Cranleigh, Surrey, England |
| Nationality | United Kingdom |
| Education | Felsted School |
| Work | |
| Engineering discipline | Aircraft designer |
| Institution memberships | Vickers Limited Vickers-Armstrongs Limited |
| Significant design | Vickers Vimy |
| Significant awards | Commander of the Order of the British Empire |
Reginald Kirshaw "Rex" Pierson CBE (1891–1948) was an English aircraft designer and chief designer at Vickers Limited later Vickers-Armstrong.[1] He was responsible for the Vickers Vimy heavy bomber during the first world war and the first aircraft to cross the atlantic non-stop and was chief designer of the 1930s Vickers Wellington.[1]
Pierson was born 9 February 1891 at Little Fransham, Norfolk the son of the rector the Reverend Kirshaw T. Pierson and his wife Helen Mary, he was educated at the Felsted School in Essex.[1] Although his father wanted him to work in a Bank young Pierson started an apprenticeship in 1908 with Vickers at Erith.[1] As soon as the company started an aircraft section in 1911 he joined that part of the company and learned to fly.[1] He gained Royal Aero Club Aviators's certificate number 660 on 14 October 1913 at Brooklands.[1] By 1917 he was chief aircraft designer at Vickers.[1]
In 1917 he designed the twin-engined Vickers Vimy biplane heavy bomber which entered service with the Royal Air Force in 1919.[1] A Vimy was used to make the first non-stop crossing of the Atlantic Ocean by Alcock and Brown in June 1919.[1] Among his designs were the Vickers Vespa which held a world height record in 1932 and the Vickers Wellesley which held a world long distance record in 1938.[1] He later was chief designer of the Vickers Wellington twin-engined bomber.[1]
He died after a long illness at his home in Cranleigh, Surrey on 10 January 1948 aged 56.[1]