Hurel Dubois Airliner

Here’s another image of the beautiful HD-32 prototype F-WGVG.

Hi Ozplane, Yes, there was a link across from the Miles Aerovan to the Short Skyvan, involving the HD wing. Fred Miles approached Shorts in 1958 regarding the HDM 106 Caravan ( A development of the HDM105 of which I posted a piccie) and Shorts purchased the design. Shorts carried on with Frank Robertson as Chief Designer (ex-Miles ) to evolve the design into the Skyvan. Miles of course ,went to be part of Beagle.
A company which I once worked for built the sponsons for the 330/360 – but thats another story. 🙂

IIRC, Miles threatened legal action against Shorts, but how much of the Caravan really went into what became the Skyvan? Always found both types very appealing in an odd sort of way, so I’d be interested in any more info. Cheers.

G-AHDM/G-35-3 flew at the Farnborough Airshow in 1957. I saw it there on the 7th September that year,
Jim

Hi Bri,
I recently read your May 10th, 2006 post regarding your experience at Shoreham Airport in the mid 50’s. I too was cycling around the peri-track that day. The actual date was April 2nd, 1955.
Cheers, Barry

Sorry for the delay in answering – I’ve been on holiday in Norway!

Interesting that you did the same as me in those days. But when I saw it, it was a nice day and the grass was dry. I think she made a few visits to F G Miles to swap details of their high-aspect wing.

Incidentally, I lived in the Lancing Broadway estate and went to school at Worthing Tech. Thanks for the aircraft ident and pictures. Don’t worry about the quality, the fact you have them is important enough.

Bri

The first of the Hurel-Dubois designs to use the high aspect ratio wing was a little single engine test type the HD10. I have a photo somewhere of the HD34? which was at RIAT a few years ago. BTW the special section struts contributed to the overall lift.

John

it was nonetheless the shortest landing ever for this a/c, largely due to the ground being very soggy. The wheels had sunk up to the spats. It had to be eventually towed out.

Ah, the Shoreham runways of old! They used to say that you would be better off to fly to Shoreham in an amphibian during the wet season. You never knew whether you would find grass or water. Hardly surprising that, eventually, the hard runway was built.

HD-32 pics

Pics of HD-32 F-WGVG, taken April 2nd,1955 at Shoreham Airport

HD-32

Hi Bri,
I recently read your May 10th, 2006 post regarding your experience at Shoreham Airport in the mid 50’s. I too was cycling around the peri-track that day. The actual date was April 2nd, 1955. I had stopped at the black flight shed in the S.E. corner, when a huge aircraft came lumbering out of the misty drizzle, barely 50 feet above the railway bridge. .It landed no more than 400 feet away, immediately stopping. Despite the high aspect ratio wings and the ability of the aircraft to land in a very short space, it was nonetheless the shortest landing ever for this a/c, largely due to the ground being very soggy. The wheels had sunk up to the spats. It had to be eventually towed out. You are correct in your last post. It was the Hurel Dubois HD-32, prototype. 001. F-WGVG
I took the following pics the next day, they are unfortunately rather poor. Notice the van parked beneath the tail during refuelling. On the nose was, I think, a nickname, just under the pilots window and above the HD symbol. I have a neg of this ,but cannot find it.
This highly buffed and unusual aircraft departed the following day, April 3rd,
There are a couple of good sites on the net, showing much better pics. Some by Nico Braas are particularly good.

Cheers, Barry

Sorry, I meant ‘GEE’

Or was it ‘OBOE’?

🙂

Moggy

“following straight line nav off the GPS “

GPS, really, I thought this was a historic aviation forum?;)

Thanks for that, it was during the long drag through France to Lyon at 80 knots. Trinny was driving and following straight line nav off the GPS so I didn’t bother to track our position.

I’ve always wondered since where it was.

Moggy

“Idly looking out of my window last May I happened to glance this passing below me.”

Ah, you were overhead Fontenay-Tresigny , when I was there 20 years ago it was a restaurant.

http://www.airliners.net/search/photo.search?placesearch=Fontenay-Tresigny%20(-%20Chaubuisson)%20(LFPQ)&distinct_entry=true

Moggy,

Another interesting Gallic oddity but your pic is of a Breguet Deux Ponts / Sahara and not a Hurel Dubois.

Regards
Tim

I can’t remember the exact quote, but it was something along the lines of

“The French build some very strange aircraft, but don’t shoot one down, however tempting it might be”

Derek Robinson – Piece of Cake (loosely)

Moggy

Moggy,

Another interesting Gallic oddity but your pic is of a Breguet Deux Ponts / Sahara and not a Hurel Dubois.

Regards
Tim

See Moggy, you can’t get away with anything even at 1.30 in the morning! Is this a French Airpark, looks as though you could live comfortably in that plane.

Moggy,

Another interesting Gallic oddity but your pic is of a Breguet Deux Ponts / Sahara and not a Hurel Dubois.

Regards
Tim

Idly looking out of my window last May I happened to glance this passing below me.

Moggy

Could well be the same one, there cant be many still flying even back then.

Even Older Fart!

HD.34

Hi Guys, this thread has just introduced me to this forum. On 1.8.1999 I saw an aircraft flying over my house in Nottingham which I am now convinced was a HD.34, (probably F-BHOO). While trying to find more information I Googled ‘Hurel Dubois’ and one of the hits (about page 3 I thing) was this thread.
This has convinced me even more that I’m on the right track.
Could the one I saw be the same as ‘Old Fart’s’ and his 5 years be 8?
They (or it) don’t seem to be common visiters to this country.
Thanks for all your info.

I’ve found this thread really absorbing, nice one Bri. I have to add that the HD34 does not look ‘right’ to me in many ways, but that makes it all the more interesting. Many unusual features are obvious, especially bothering to have hydraulic plumbing for a retractable nose gear but not for the mains :confused:

It must have taken big balls for the designer to lay all the plans out, and have the financiers agree to what appears to have been, ultimately, a perfectly sound aircraft.

Fascinating, would have loved to see it in flight 🙂

Getting back to the original question, the Miles high-aspect ratio winged Aerovan was officially recorded as the Miles HDM.105 (‘HDM’ standing for Hurel-Dubois Miles, of course). It was a conversion of a formerly standard Miles 57 Aerovan 4 G-AJOF, c/n 6403. The aircraft retained its original 155-hp Blackburn Cirrus Major 3 engines on the all-metal HD wings, which increased the span from 50 ft 0 in to 75 ft 4 ins. The Aerovan 4 tail surfaces were replaced by those of larger area as fitted to the Aerovan 6. The beast received a new c/n, 105/1009 and first flew from Shoreham on 31 Mar 1957 under B Conditions as G-35-3. It was allocated the appropriate registration G-AHDM and received its Cert of Airworthiness on 20 May 1957. Test and demonstration flights continued until it was damaged on landing at Shoreham in Jun 1958, whereafter it was dismantled and some of the parts used in building the mock-up of the proposed Miles HDM 106 Caravan.

Performance trials generally showed little difference between the 105 and a standard Aerovan 4. The 105 was heavier at 3,219 lb empty compared to the ‘van at 3,070. but could lift a payload of 2,781 lb compared to 2,730. Cruising speed was slightly better at 116 mph against 110 mph. Take-off at 6,000 weight was 284 yards against the Aerovan’s 285 at 5,800 lb. The 105’s climb rate was significantly better at 560 ft/min against 455 for the ‘van, both at the same take-off weights as above. I don’t have any figures on landing runs. The costs of construction and flight-testing were shared by Miles and Hurel-Dubois.