The bird of prey thing really seems to have been a Hawker (company or MoS) thing though.
In one of the links (also a modelling page) posted by DaveF86, there is an admission by someone that he may have been responsible for the Eagle name being related to the TSR-2 becoming a popular myth today.
I really don’t see how it fits with the naming policy (or lack of!) of the day
Joe has been researching the TSR2 for a lot of years, and probably has seen more about it than anyone else. His ascertation of ‘Eagle’ was based on a conversation with one of the project team, and was the first time he had heard a ‘favoured’ name.
If you take Harrier as an example of how a name evolves. According to F K Mason, the name for a possible P1127 RAF was originally suggested in 1961. He put forward a list of names including Hawk, Harrier, Kestrel and Heron. Sir Sidney Camm favoured ‘Harrier’. He felt that Hawk could be confused with Seahawk and Heron had been used before on a Hawker design (as well as being a De Havilland name) – Mason says Camm evidently forgot there had been a previous Harrier. Camm also felt Kestrel was a Rolls Royce name.
In 1963, Kestrel was chosen for the Tripartite P1127 (and is probably appropriate for a hovering aeroplane). Harrier was retained as a name for the P1154.
When the P1154 was cancelled, and the P1127 (RAF) was ordered, it was given a ‘new’ name – Harrier. An apocrophal tale tells that this was deliberately not ‘Kestrel GR2’ so that HMG could claim it was a new aircraft and not have to pay any royalties to those who funded the Kestrel (Germany & the US).
Names are authorised by the then Air Council/Board from a list supplied by what would now be called the Project team.
As to post war policy, in Gordon Wainsborough-White’s book ‘Names with Wings’ he reveals that a 1951 Memo confirms the Air Council make the decison, and also states that previous traditions, including alliterative naming of fighters, was considered unneccessarily restrictive, and that in future each name should be considered on it’s own merits
‘Names with wings’ also gives some alternatives, from researched sources, for some of the aircraft discussed.
A 1952 memo notes that they should move away from town names for Bombers as town names were placid and stodgy. Avro wanted ‘Ottowa’ for the Vulcan and ‘ HP ‘London’ or ‘Hostile’ for the Victor. The Chief of the Air Staff wanted a ‘V’ class to follow on from Valiant. The Civil Service rep thought descriptive names should apply.
Other names considered included:
Avro – Andover,Argus, Arcturus, Atalanta, Arthur, Attiles
HP -London, Edinburgh, Hamilton, Hertford, harwell, Hostile
for other types:
VC10 – Victoria (Favoured by CiC Transport Command), Venture, Voyager, Viceroy, Windsor, Warwick, Winchester, Upavon, Valentia, Van Dyke (!!!!), with Vickers suggesting Weybridge. Sir Geoffrey Tuttle was the AVM who suggested ‘just calling it VC10″)
Nimrod – Plymouth, Osprey, Cormorant, Trenchard, Drake, Slessor, Albatross were all proposed. Mr Wandsborough-White reveals that he himself suggested ‘Nimrod’ to Lord Shackleton.
Andover – Abingdon, Tramp, Aden, Arab
It’s all fascinating stuff!!
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