Radlett

I remember seeing this single fin Halifax from the train in about 1958.

John

Where did the original shot go at the start of this thread (Victors)?

Any other shots of Victors at Radlett?

I still try to mentally picture Victors every time I go past the remains, on the train:p

Spent many a happy hour during my childhood lurking near the fence up the Napsbury cottages end of the field. How the inhabitants of those houses coped with having a V-bomber run up to full power before launching escapes me – they were about 100 yards or so from the pan, the buildings must have trembled.
At one point in time there was a railway running across the airfield site, connecting the St.Pancras line with the ‘Abbey Flyer’ line from St.Albans to Watford Junction, but this was taken up before H-Page arrived.
Can anybody tell me what the pylon-like thingy mounted on a circular track adjacent to the wind tunnel was for ? It’s been puzzling me for the past 50 years.

I believe that railway line was used during the construction of the Midland Main Line,during the WW1 I was told it was used for hospital trains to Napsbury Hospital.Napsbury also had a station on the main line.
Colin.

You can’t have a Radlet thread without reference to the UK’s best looking propliner. Can you?

Lovely Hermes shots, the Hermes V (2nd pic) with Bristol Theseus engine is my favourite prop-liner. The Hercules actually looks quite streamlined in those nacelles and spinners aswel.

Spent many a happy hour during my childhood lurking near the fence up the Napsbury cottages end of the field. How the inhabitants of those houses coped with having a V-bomber run up to full power before launching escapes me – they were about 100 yards or so from the pan, the buildings must have trembled.
At one point in time there was a railway running across the airfield site, connecting the St.Pancras line with the ‘Abbey Flyer’ line from St.Albans to Watford Junction, but this was taken up before H-Page arrived.
Can anybody tell me what the pylon-like thingy mounted on a circular track adjacent to the wind tunnel was for ? It’s been puzzling me for the past 50 years.

Went for a job interview at Radlett once. As soon as I arrived I was taken on a tour of the factory and then straight out to lunch where I was offered the job. I said:” But you haven’t asked me any questions yet!” They said: “Oh! We don’t need to do all that”.

It seemed odd to me and I didn’t take up the offer. HP folded within the year.

But I’m so glad I had that chance to look around before it closed. I would have loved to have been there in its heyday. It seemed such a civilised place.

Some interesting links & pictures. That was a very cold looking factory, hard to believe that the Victor came from there.
You can’t have a Radlet thread without reference to the UK’s best looking propliner. Can you? :diablo:

Yes it is, on both counts.

http://maps.google.com/maps?q=radlett+england&ie=UTF8&hq=&hnear=Radlett,+Hertfordshire,+United+Kingdom&gl=us&ei=r_WkTIHrCYKqsAP5-dj9Dg&ved=0CBgQ8gEwAA&ll=51.717298,-0.325556&spn=0.020127,0.052314&t=h&z=15

Is this the location of the old Handley-Page works? It seems such a tragedy that it’s been erased from the landscape.

All the best,
Richard

Victor Test Pilots

My dad was at radlett with the Victor bomber as a test pilot

I have the full listing of all test flights from Radlet till it closed who was your Dad

…and cue Mark12! Fantastic stuff, bet it isn’t in the..!
Can you confirm that it is PN323?

I cannot confirm the serial but I took the photo. I and friend gained entry to Radlett via a SMAE event one weekend, then quietly walked around the inner perimeter.

This is the Halifax that donated its nose, Staverton …etc.

Mark

…and cue Mark12! Fantastic stuff, bet it isn’t in the..!
Can you confirm that it is PN323?

Radlett c1958

Mark

Behind the wind tunnel at Park Street was a Halifax,without outer wings and engines,it appeared to have three fins!!

Isn’t this the Halifax (PN323) that the cockpit section survives from at the IWM?

Anyone know what the trials were?

Jordan, 2 in Dec.63.

My dad also flew the Herald…. tested them off the production line… took some to Libya for King Idris.

Last time I went past on the train, it was a mass of Gravel extractors, piles of soil and sand all over the airfield.

On Saturday, I went past once more, and all I saw was sheep!

Bruce

One of the lesser known schoolboy ‘spotting’ points, circa 1958.

Mark

My dad was at radlett with the Victor bomber as a test pilot

Radlett had two distinct parts,production at the Radlett end and testing at the Park Street end.I lived in Park Street and can remember Hastings,Hermes,Victor,Herald & Jetstream aircraft being at the airfield.Victors running up at 0700 is a noisy memory.Staff from the test end used to use my local,The Red Lion,after work.Behind the wind tunnel at Park Street was a Halifax,without outer wings and engines,it appeared to have three fins!! I later discovered the centre fin was actually a section of laminar flow wing.At the end there were Victors awaiting a contract for conversion to tankers which never came.They were eventually flown to Manchester,I think, after many months on the ground and making them airworthy for the move cost us taxpayers a fortune.
Colin

My dad was at radlett with the Victor bomber as a test pilot