British companies, their facilities, and what became of them

Stargazer

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One small question: is there a list somewhere of all the British Aerospace divisions that would indicate both the facilities and what company it corresponded to previously? For instance, what company used to be BAe Warton before it became integrated?
 
Ok... I'm modifying the list to indicate closed factories and bring it up to date... feel free to correct me...

Warton: English Electric>BAC > British Aerospace > BAE Systems
Salmsbury: English Electric >BAC> British Aerospace > BAE Systems

Brough: Blackburn > HSA > British Aerospace > BAE Systems

Woodford: Avro > HSA > British Aerospace > BAE Systems > Closed
Chadderton: Avro > HSA> British Aerospace > BAE Systems > Closed

Chester: Vickers > DeHavilland > HSA > British Aerospace > BAE Systems> Airbus / Raytheon / Marshal Cambridge (Sept 2013)
Hatfield: DeHavilland > HSA > British Aerospace > Closed

Dunsfold: Hawker > HSA > British Aerospace > Closed
Kingston: Hawker > HSA > British Aerospace > Closed

Filton: Bristol > BAC > British Aerospace > BAE Systems > Airbus / GKN
Brooklands: Vickers > BAC > British Aerospace > Closed
Hurn: Vickers > BAC > British Aerospace > Closed
Prestwick: Scotish Aviation > British Aerospace > BAE Systems /Sprit Aerosystems

I think thats the aircraft factories..

Zeb
 
Also contributing in some way
Supermarine/Southampton >Vickers >BAC>closed

Gloster/ Huccelcoat >HSA>closed

Armstrong Witworth /Baginton HSA>closed

Follands /Hamble> HSA >closed

Hunting /Christchurch >BAC > FR

Percival /Luton > BAC > closed

Airspeed > DH > HSA >closed

Plus the Shadow factories
 
Zeb, Brooklands was Vickers' airfield; the factory was known as Vickers Weybridge works. The design office was also located here...

cheers,
Robin.
 
Thanks Robin... I knew Id left one off...


Zooty... the Folland Hamble works is still with us...!


Follands /Hamble> HSA > BAe > Hamble Aerostructures > Dowty > Smiths > GE Aerospace

Mods.. can I suggest we split this bit of the thread...?

Zeb
 
About Airspeed, I have found mention of three sites for the company's facilities:
  • York (active in the 1930s)
  • Portsmouth (active in the 1930s, 1940s and 1950s)
  • Christchurch (active in the 1940s at least)
What happened to these eventually? Was the York facility already closed down when DH took over?

Also, one company that wasn't covered here is Miles (actually called Phillips & Povis). Again, I have found three facilities mentioned:
  • Woodley
  • South Marston
  • Lancaster
What became of these?
 
Ok... not BAe, but still part of the 50's/60's mergers...


Westland/Saunders Roe/BHC facilities:

Saunders Roe:

Cowes, Columbine Works: Saunders Roe > Westland > BHC > Westland Aerospace > GKN Westland Aerospace >Closed
Osborne: Saunders Roe > Westland > BHC > Wetland Aerospace > GKN Westland Aerospace > GKN Aerospace Services
Beaumaris, Angelsey: Saunders Roe > ? > Cammell Laird > Laird Group > FAUN > Closed
Folley Works: ?

Westland:
Yeovil: Westland, GKN Westland > AgustaWestland/GKN Aerospace Services
Weston Super Mare: Bristol > Westland > GKN Westland > Closed
Haynes: Fairey > Westland > Closed

BHC:

Itchen: Supermarine > Vickers > BHC >Closed
Falcon Yard, Cowes: J Samuel White > BHC > Westland Aerospace > GKN Westland Aerospace > GKN Aerospace Services


Again, feel free to correct...




Zeb
 
Miles went bust in 1947> it was partially taken over by HP

One missing from the list is General Aircraft > Blackburn> HSA/Closed
 
Zootycoon said:
Mr Mod can you add my comments on the Avro730 mock up back into the Uk Mock up thread. It would be fantastic if a picture was to turn up
Click to expand...

As I told you in a private message even before you asked (check "My Messages" in the top bar) I cannot add it myself because I cannot recreate your original post there after moving it here. You'll have to rewrite the message there. Sorry for the inconvenience!
 
Handley Page had a factory and airfield at Radlett, Herts which closed in 1970 with the company. They moved there from Cricklewood Aerodrome when that closed in 1929 but some production stayed in Cricklewood until 1964.
HP used a subsidiary (Handley Page Transport) to buy Miles Aircraft in 1947 and retained the design office at Reading.
 
Couple of updates to this thread...

Yeovil: Westland > GKN Westland > AgustaWestland/GKN Aerospace Services > Leonardo MW (GKN Aerospace Services Yeovil closed 2017)

Hamble: British Marine Aircraft > Folland > HSA > BAe > Hamble Aerostructures > Dowty > Smiths > GE Aerospace > Hamble Aerostructures (Purchased from GE Aerospace by Aernnova Aerospace SA 2019)

Chester: Vickers > DeHavilland > HSA > British Aerospace > BAE Systems> Airbus / Raytheon / Marshal Cambridge (Sept 2013) > Airbus / Raytheon (Marshal Cambridge site closed Sept 2017)

Stockport: Fairey > WFEL

Brough: Blackburn > HSA > British Aerospace > BAE Systems (manufacturing ceased Dec 2020, site concentrating on design & engineering)

Belfast: Short Brothers & Harland > Bombardier > Sprit AeroSystems

Beaumaris, Anglesey: Saunders Roe > DeHavilland > HSA > Cammell Laird > Laird Group > FAUN > FAUN Trackway (consolidation at Llangefni)

Zeb
 
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Russel Brown Slingsby ltd> Slingsby Sailplanes Ltd > Slingsby Aircraft ltd> Vickers Slingsby Sailplanes ltd > Slingsby Engineering Ltd> Slingsby Advanced Composites Ltd> Marshal Slingsby Advanced Composites Ltd. ..... and still at Kirby Mooreside.
 
Parnell (Yate) Ltd > out of aircraft by 46. > to Newman’s Engineer > gone by 1990.
 
Thanks Scheiderman... have amended... Zoo... Slingsby was on my list, again thanks...!

Boulton Paul goes something like this, first two entries non aviation related:

Moore & Barnard > Barnard & Boulton > Boulton Paul > Dowty Boulton Paul > Dowty Aerospace > Smiths > GE Aerospace > Moog Inc (Original site closed)
 
Another location for Short Brothers was at Cardington near Bedford. The Admiralty established a works there for airship development for the company in 1916. The company pulled out of airship work around 1919. The workers village nearby was called Shortstown. In the 1980s I used to live there when it had great unobstructed views of the two massive airship sheds over the road when Airship Industries were residents.

Another location for de Havilland might be Salisbury Hall, London Colney where the first DH98 Mosquito was built.
 
red admiral said:
zebedee said:
Belfast: Short Brothers & Harland > Bombardier > Sprit AeroSystems
Click to expand...
I think that Shorts is actually still called Shorts i.e. the NI business unit, but obviously now owned by Spirit
Click to expand...
People in Northern Ireland still call it Shorts, but it was Bombardier when they took it over, and a quick look at the Spirit AeroSystems homepage shows that it’s Spirit AeroSystems Belfast now :(
 
Stargazer2006 said:
Also, one company that wasn't covered here is Miles (actually called Phillips & Povis). Again, I have found three facilities mentioned:
  • Woodley
  • South Marston
  • Lancaster
What became of these?
Click to expand...

I believe all of those are gone and redeveloped. The only Miles factory still standing is the short lived operation in Northern Ireland;- Miles Aircraft (Northern Ireland) ltd at Newtownards.

Edit - a quick check of Ards Airport on the Google Sat shows it’s been demolished.

When you look outside of the main company HQ, it’s surprising what can be found. I thought the last GAC factory was lost with the demolition of their experimental shop at Bentham a fews years back. But then I discovered the former GAC wing production factory in Ledbury still exist.
 
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zebedee said:
Thanks Scheiderman... have amended... Zoo... Slingsby was on my list, again thanks...!

Boulton Paul goes something like this, first two entries non aviation related:

Moore & Barnard > Barnard & Boulton > Boulton Paul > Dowty Boulton Paul > Dowty Aerospace > Smiths > GE Aerospace > Moog Inc (Original site closed)
Click to expand...

Just to clarify, I assume by 'original site', you mean the Norwich site. Moog are still operating in Wolverhampton, on the Southern side of the old Pendeford Aerodrome, along with UTC Aerospace, and other businesses.

cheers,
Robin.
 
Boulton Paul's aircraft factory in Norwich was located at RAF Mousehold Heath as part of No. 3 Aircraft Acceptance Park which also served Mann Egerton, Portholme and Ransome Simms & Jeffries. The airfield survived as Norwich's first airport until 1950.
Most of the site is now the Heartsease housing estate (part of the flying field became a school field) but apparently some of the airfield buildings survive within Roundtree Way industrial estate estate. http://www.heritage.norfolk.gov.uk/record-details?uid=MNF12415
 
Shorts Rochester Airport Works was taken over by Elliott Automation at some point after Shorts vacated it (not sure when, sometime in the 1950s I think), Elliott Automation then became part of Marconi, which became part of GEC and then went to BAE Systems on its creation. The original Shorts hangar is still at the core of the production facilities, but much of the engineering development work is in GEC-era office blocks built around it.

The Shorts Flying School site at the other end of the airfield was at one time the Pobjoy works IIRC, it was a training facility for customers for a long time, but lost that role in the '90s and was demolished about 10 years ago.

The associated research centre in the middle of Chatham (whose proper name I forget - architecturally notable for having a board room built as a sort of flying bridge/penthouse) was sold off and turned into an apartment block in the 90s.

I'm not sure that anyone ever did anything with the Seaplane Works on the Esplanade after Shorts upped sticks. ISTR parts of the site were still extant when I moved here in the mid-80s, but that area is all modern housing developments now.
 

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