de Havilland Engine Company

The de Havilland Engine Company was a British aircraft-engine manufacturer created from the engineering activities of the de Havilland Aircraft Company. Its origins lay in the Engine Division established in 1926 to design and manufacture powerplants for de Havilland aircraft, beginning with the Gipsy family of air-cooled piston engines. The company was formally established as a separate entity in February 1944, during the period when Britain was expanding and reorganising its aviation-industrial base for wartime and post-war requirements. The Gipsy engines formed the foundation of the business. Variants including the Gipsy Minor, Gipsy Major, Gipsy Six, Gipsy Queen, Gipsy Twelve and Gipsy King powered a range of light aircraft and utility aircraft. These engines helped establish de Havilland as an important British producer of relatively compact aircraft powerplants before and during the Second World War. The company’s engine work was closely connected with de Havilland’s aircraft programmes, rather than being solely an independent supplier to the wider aviation market. After the Second World War, de Havilland Engine Company became an important participant in Britain’s transition from piston-powered aircraft to jet propulsion. The company developed the Goblin turbojet, one of the early British jet engines, which powered the de Havilland Vampire fighter. It subsequently developed the Ghost turbojet, used in early versions of the de Havilland Comet airliner and the de Havilland Venom fighter. These engines gave the de Havilland name a significant role in the first generation of operational British jet aircraft and in the emergence of commercial jet aviation. The business also worked on larger and more advanced propulsion concepts. Its turbojet portfolio included the Gyron and Gyron Junior, while its rocket-engine activities included the Sprite, Super Sprite and Spectre families. Later, the company developed the Gnome turboshaft under licence from General Electric’s T58 design. The Gnome represented a move into turboshaft propulsion for helicopters and other applications, broadening the company’s work beyond piston engines and turbojets. The company’s independent existence ended in 1961, when it was absorbed into Bristol Siddeley Engines Limited. Bristol Siddeley was itself subsequently incorporated into Rolls-Royce Limited in 1966, after which the Rolls-Royce name continued for the combined engine business. The de Havilland Engine Company therefore survives primarily as a historical engineering identity rather than as an operating manufacturer. Its former Leavesden factory, which had been leased by the government in 1946 and had previously been associated with Handley Page Halifax production, later became the site of Leavesden Film Studios. The company’s principal legacy is its contribution to British piston-engine development and to the first generation of British turbojet aircraft.

The de Havilland Engine Company developed from the engine-design and manufacturing activities of the de Havilland Aircraft Company. Those activities began in 1926 as the company's Engine Division, whose first major identity was the Gipsy series of piston engines. The Gipsy family supplied power for light and utility aircraft and included numerous derivatives, among them the Gipsy Minor, Gipsy Major, Gipsy Six, Gipsy Queen, Gipsy Twelve and Gipsy King. The engine operation was formally constituted as the de Havilland Engine Company at Stag Lane in February 1944. In 1946 it moved into a government-leased factory at Leavesden. The site had previously been used for production associated with Handley Page Halifax bombers and later became known for Leavesden Film Studios. The company's post-war history was defined by jet propulsion. It produced the Goblin turbojet, which entered service in the de Havilland Vampire, and the Ghost turbojet, which powered early de Havilland Comet jetliners and Venom fighters. These programmes placed the company among the British firms responsible for bringing jet propulsion into military and commercial service during the early post-war period. Further development produced the Gyron and Gyron Junior turbojets. The company also pursued rocket propulsion through the Sprite, Super Sprite and Spectre engines. In the turboshaft field, it developed the Gnome under licence from the General Electric T58 design. The Gnome programme connected the company with the growing helicopter-engine market and showed the breadth of its post-war propulsion activities. In 1961 the company was absorbed into Bristol Siddeley Engines Limited. Bristol Siddeley later became part of Rolls-Royce Limited in 1966. The de Havilland Engine Company consequently ceased to operate as a separate corporate manufacturer, while many of its engine designs and engineering achievements remained part of the broader history of British aero-engine development.

• 1966

  Bristol Siddeley became part of Rolls-Royce

  [1]de Havilland Engine Companyen.wikipedia.org

  Bristol Siddeley subsequently became part of Rolls-Royce Limited, which retained the Rolls-Royce name for the combined engine business.

• 1961

  Absorbed into Bristol Siddeley

  [1]de Havilland Engine Companyen.wikipedia.org

  The de Havilland Engine Company was absorbed into Bristol Siddeley Engines Limited, ending its separate corporate existence.

• 1949

  Ghost turbojet supports early jet aircraft

  [1]de Havilland Engine Companyen.wikipedia.org

  The Ghost turbojet was used in early versions of the de Havilland Comet airliner and Venom fighter.

• 1946

  Operations moved to Leavesden

  [1]de Havilland Engine Companyen.wikipedia.org

  The company moved into a government-leased factory at Leavesden, a site previously associated with Handley Page Halifax production.

• 1944

  Company formally established

  [1]de Havilland Engine Companyen.wikipedia.org

  The de Havilland Engine Company was officially formed at Stag Lane in February.

• 1940

  Goblin turbojet enters the company's jet-engine story

  [1]de Havilland Engine Companyen.wikipedia.org

  The company developed the Goblin turbojet, which powered early post-war de Havilland Vampire fighters.

• 1926

  Engine Division established

  [1]de Havilland Engine Companyen.wikipedia.org

  The de Havilland Aircraft Company established an Engine Division, beginning the work that later developed into the de Havilland Engine Company and producing the Gipsy family of aircraft piston engines.

A British aircraft-engine specialist that progressed from light-aircraft piston engines into early turbojets, turboshafts and rocket propulsion, closely supporting the de Havilland aircraft business and the United Kingdom's post-war shift to jet aviation.

• Piston engine

  de Havilland Gipsy

  The Gipsy family was the company's foundational aircraft-engine line. It comprised air-cooled piston engines developed for light and utility aircraft and included the Gipsy Minor, Gipsy Major, Gipsy Six, Gipsy Queen, Gipsy Twelve and Gipsy King variants. The family established de Havilland's reputation as an aircraft-engine producer before the company expanded into jet propulsion.

• Turbojet engine

  de Havilland Goblin

  The Goblin was an early de Havilland turbojet developed during the transition from piston-powered aircraft to jet aircraft. It powered the de Havilland Vampire fighter and formed an important part of the company's early post-war jet-engine portfolio.

• Turbojet engine

  de Havilland Ghost

  The Ghost was a later turbojet used in early versions of the de Havilland Comet jetliner and the de Havilland Venom fighter. It extended the company's role from military jet propulsion into the first generation of commercial jet transport.

• Turbojet engine

  de Havilland Gyron

  The Gyron and its smaller Gyron Junior derivative represented the company's work on later-generation turbojet propulsion. They are part of the company's experimental and developmental jet-engine legacy.

• Turboshaft engine

  de Havilland Gnome

  The Gnome was a turboshaft engine developed by de Havilland under licence from the General Electric T58 design. It marked the company's expansion into turboshaft propulsion, particularly relevant to helicopter and other rotary-wing applications.

• Rocket engine

  de Havilland Sprite and Super Sprite

  The Sprite and Super Sprite were rocket-engine projects in the company's broader post-war propulsion portfolio. They complemented its piston, turbojet and turboshaft programmes and illustrate the range of propulsion technologies investigated by the business.

• Rocket engine

  de Havilland Spectre

  The Spectre was another de Havilland rocket-engine design. It belongs to the company's rocket-propulsion work undertaken alongside its aircraft-engine programmes.

• 1961

  Absorption into Bristol Siddeley EnginesM&A

  Background

  The de Havilland Engine Company had developed a broad portfolio spanning piston engines, turbojets, turboshafts and rocket engines, but its independent corporate life ended during the consolidation of the British aero-engine industry.

  Action taken

  The company was absorbed into Bristol Siddeley Engines Limited.

  Aftermath

  Bristol Siddeley later became part of Rolls-Royce Limited in 1966, and the de Havilland Engine Company ceased to exist as a separate manufacturer.

  Source

1. 1de Havilland Engine Companyen.wikipedia.org