Airspeed Ambassador
The Airspeed AS.57 Ambassador is a British twin piston-engined airliner that was designed and produced by the British aircraft manufacturer Airspeed Ltd. It was one of the first postwar airliners to be produced.
Background
The origins of the Ambassador can be traced to 1943 and the work of the Brabazon Committee, which sought to define what types of aircraft would be desired by the postwar civil aviation sector. One of the committee's recommendations was a twin-engined short-to-medium-haul replacement for the Douglas DC-3, known as the Type 2. The British manufacturer Airspeed Ltd. was interested in this requirement and established a small design team to work on the project from a dispersed office in Fairmile Manor at Cobham in Surrey in 1943. This effort was headed by ex-de Havilland aeronautical engineer Arthur Hagg, who had joined the company earlier that year.
Into flight
On 10 July 1947, the first prototype, registered G-AGUA, conducted the type's maiden flight, flown by chief test pilot George B.S. Errington. After the generally successful first flight, the prototype underwent a month of alterations, including deleting the spring tab and replacing it with geared tabs fitted to the outer rudders and locking the inner rudder; reversible propellers were also installed. During September 1947, the prototype made its first public display alongside elements of the second prototype, including its cockpit and control system, at the Society of British Aircraft Constructors (SBAC) show at Radlett. On 22 November 1947, the programme received a setback when the prototype was forced to perform a belly landing after the port undercarriage leg failed to deploy due to a loss of hydraulic pressure. This did not seemingly deter customer confidence, as the newly created operator British European Airways (BEA) continued to openly express their preference for the type, and in September they placed a £3 million order for 20 Ambassadors. This support was so impactful that, according to aviation author H. A. Taylor, rival aircraft manufacturer Vickers was close to cancelling development of the Viscount over fears that airlines held a preference for advanced piston-powered airliners over the unfamiliar turboprop.
The Airspeed Ambassador was an all-metal twin-engine airliner, designed to serve short-to-medium haul routes. It was relatively advanced for the era, being relatively aerodynamically clean, having a high aspect–ratio wing with hoped-for near-Laminar flow characteristics, a tricycle undercarriage, a steerable nosewheel, integral fuel tanks, and other recent innovations. Distinctive external features of the Ambassador included its three low tailfins and a long pointed nose, giving it a resemblance to the larger transcontinental Lockheed Constellation. Its tricycle gear gave it a more modern appearance than contemporaries such as the DC-3, Curtiss Commando, Avro Lancastrian and Vickers Vikings that were common on Europe's shorter airline routes. In a standard configuration, the Ambassador could accommodate up to 47 passengers; somewhat unusually, its passenger cabin could be either pressurised or not as the customer preferred. To reduce cabin noise levels, considerable effort went into soundproofing and general furnishings; Taylor described the Ambassador as being particularly quiet for a piston engine airliner, although also noting it could not equal the lower noise levels of turboprop-powered airliners such as the Vickers Viscount. It was typically powered by conventional Bristol Centaurus radial engines, although individual aircraft were reengined with various powerplants, including turboprops.
During 1952, British European Airways (BEA) introduced the first of its 20 strong fleet of Ambassadors to revenue service, the airline referred to them as the "Elizabethan Class" in honour of the newly crowned Queen Elizabeth II. The planned 1951 introduction date had been pushed to 1952 to address development issues. By May 1951, intense proving trials of the Ambassador were being conducted by a joint team of Airspeed and BEA employees, while official BEA training commenced in August of that year. The flagship of BEA's fleet was G-ALZN, appropriately named "RMA Elizabethan". The first "Elizabethan" scheduled flight was from Heathrow Airport to Paris Le Bourget on 13 March 1952, soon the type was used across BEA's main UK routes. According to Taylor, the Ambassador's performance gave BEA a competitive edge over its rivals. By December 1955, the "Elizabethan Class" had reached 2,230 flying hours annually, per aircraft, the highest in BEA's fleet. However, the rival Vickers Viscount, which was introduced in 1953, was even more popular with BEA's passengers than the Ambassador. Rival airlines, such as Air France, had also quickly introduced the Viscount, and thus held an advantage over BEA's Elizabethan service. Accordingly, the airline decided to withdraw the type despite its relative youth, with BEA's final scheduled Ambassador flight on 30 July 1958.
One Elizabethan, Christopher Marlowe (G-ALZO, c/n 5226) is on display at the Imperial War Museum, Duxford near Cambridge having undergone major restoration by the Duxford Aviation Society. The restoration was completed in April 2013 and the aircraft is presently part of the Duxford Collection.
Data from Airspeed aircraft since 1931, British Civil Aircraft since 1919 Volume 1
