United Kingdom aircraft test serials
Identification for U.K. aircraft
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
United Kingdom aircraft test serials are used to externally identify aircraft flown within the United Kingdom without a full Certificate of Airworthiness.[1] They can be used for testing experimental and prototype aircraft or modifications, pre-delivery flights for foreign customers and are sometimes referred to as "B" class markings.[1]
1930s
An initial set of markings was introduced in 1929, each company was allocated a letter to which would follow a number, sometimes with a hyphen or a gap between.[1] For example, A was allocated to the Armstrong Whitworth Aircraft and A 1 was used in March 1930 on an Armstrong Whitworth Starling.[1] Sometimes Hawker and Vickers would also add the letters PV to the markings to indicate a private venture (that is a type in development not paid for by the Air Ministry).[1]
1940s
The presentation was changed to look like a military serial for security reasons during the Second World War.[1] For example, the prototype de Havilland Mosquito was allocated test markings E-0234.
1948
Following a change back to the original system in 1946 a new system was introduced on 1 January 1948.[1] Each company was allocated a number which followed the British nationality marking G and then followed by an individual identity number.[1] For example, Blackburn Aeroplane & Motor Company were allocated G-2 and the first allocation G-2-1 was used on a Miles Messenger used as an engine testbed for the Cirrus Bombardier.[1] Companies could allocate and re-use the identities as they liked, some ran in sequence from 1 and others used the aircraft manufacturers serial number as part of the marking, for example G-51-200 was a Britten Norman Islander with a manufacturers serial number of 200.[1] Allocations of codes from defunct companies have been reallocated.
Letter sequence 1929–1947
| Allocation | Company | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| A | Armstrong Whitworth Aircraft | Replaced by G-1 in 1948 |
| B | Blackburn Aeroplane & Motor Company | Replaced by G-2 in 1948 |
| C | Boulton Paul | Replaced by G-3 in 1948 |
| D | Portsmouth Aviation | Replaced by G-4 in 1948 |
| E | de Havilland | Replaced by G-5 in 1948 |
| F | Fairey Aviation | Replaced by G-6 in 1948 |
| G | Gloster Aircraft | Replaced by G-7 in 1948 |
| H | Handley Page | Replaced by G-8 in 1948 |
| I | Hawker Aircraft | Replaced by G-9 in 1948 |
| J | Parnall Aircraft | Out of use by 1946 |
| J | Reid & Sigrist | From 1947, replaced by G-10 in 1948 |
| K | Avro | Replaced by G-11 in 1948 |
| L | Saunders-Roe | Replaced by G-12 in 1948 |
| M | Short Brothers | Replaced by G-14 in 1948 |
| N | Supermarine | Replaced by G-15 in 1948 |
| O | Vickers Armstrongs | Replaced by G-16 in 1948 |
| P | Westland Aircraft | Replaced by G-17 in 1948 |
| R | Bristol Aeroplane | Replaced by G-18 in 1948 |
| S | Spartan Aircraft | Out of use by 1936 |
| S | Heston Aircraft | Replaced by G-19 in 1948 |
| T | General Aircraft | Replaced by G-20 in 1948 |
| U | Phillips & Powis later Miles Aircraft | Replaced by G-21 in 1948 |
| V | Airspeed | Replaced by G-22 in 1948 |
| W | G & J Weir | 1933–1946 |
| X | Percival Aircraft | Replaced by G-23 in 1948 |
| Y | British Aircraft Manufacturing | Out of use by 1938 |
| Y | Cunliffe-Owen | 1940–1947, replaced by G-24 in 1948 |
| Z | Auster Aircraft | Replaced by G-25 in 1948 |
| AB | Slingsby Sailplanes | Replaced by G-26 in 1948 |
Numeric sequence since 1948
| Allocation | Company | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|
| G-1 | Armstrong Whitworth Aircraft later Hawker Siddeley Aviation | 1948–1967 | |
| G-1 | Rolls-Royce | Since 1969 | |
| G-2 | Blackburn Aircraft later Hawker Siddeley Aviation | Used at Brough | |
| G-3 | Boulton Paul | ||
| G-4 | Portsmouth Aviation | 1948–1949 | |
| G-4 | Miles Aviation | Since 1969 | |
| G-5 | de Havilland later Hawker Siddeley Aviation | Used at Hatfield then Chester | |
| G-6 | Fairey Aviation later Westland Helicopters | ||
| G-7 | Gloster Aircraft | 1948–1961 | |
| G-7 | Slingsby Sailplanes | Since 1971 | |
| G-8 | Handley Page | 1948-1970 | |
| G-9 | Hawker Aircraft later Hawker Siddeley Aviation | Mainly used on Hawker Hunters and Hawker Sea Fury's | |
| G-10 | Reid & Sigrist | 1948–1953 | |
| G-11 | Avro later Hawker Siddeley Aviation | Used at Woodford | |
| G-12 | Saunders-Roe later Westland Aircraft then British Hovercraft Corporation | G-12-1 was used on the first practical hovercraft, the SR-N1; G-12-1 had been used previously on the Saro SR/A1 | |
| G-13 | Not used | ||
| G-14 | Short Brothers | ||
| G-15 | Supermarine | 1948–1968 | |
| G-16 | Vickers-Armstrongs later British Aircraft Corporation | ||
| G-17 | Westland Aircraft later Westland Helicopters | ||
| G-18 | Bristol Aeroplane later British Aircraft Corporation | Used at Filton (Bristol) and Oldmixon (Weston-super-Mare) | |
| G-19 | Heston Aircraft | 1948–1960 | |
| G-20 | General Aircraft | 1948–1949 | |
| G-21 | Miles Aircraft later Handley Page Reading | 1948–1963 | |
| G-22 | Airspeed | 1948–1952 | |
| G-23 | Percival Aircraft later British Aircraft Corporation | 1948–1966 | |
| G-24 | Cunliffe-Owen Aircraft | 1948–1949 | |
| G-25 | Auster Aircraft | 1948–1962 | |
| G-26 | Slingsby Sailplanes | 1948–1949 | |
| G-27 | English Electric later British Aircraft Corporation | ||
| G-28 | British European Airways later British Airways Helicopters | ||
| G-29 | D. Napier & Son | 1948–1962 | |
| G-30 | Pest Control Limited | 1952–1957 | |
| G-31 | Scottish Aviation | ||
| G-32 | Cierva Autogiro Company | 1948–1951 | |
| G-33 | Flight Refuelling Limited | 1948–1972 | |
| G-34 | Chrislea Aircraft | 1948–1952 | |
| G-35 | F.G Miles then Beagle Aircraft | 1951–1970 | |
| G-36 | College of Aeronautics then Cranfield Institute of Technology | Since 1954 | |
| G-37 | Rolls-Royce | Used at Hucknall 1954–1971 | |
| G-38 | de Havilland Propellers later Hawker Siddeley Dynamics | 1954–1975 | |
| G-39 | Folland Aircraft | 1954–1965; G-39-1 was used on the prototype Folland Midge | |
| G-40 | Wiltshire School of Flying | ||
| G-41 | Aviation Traders | 1956–1976 | |
| G-42 | Armstrong Siddeley Motors | 1956–1959 | |
| G-43 | Edgar Percival Aircraft | 1956–1959 | |
| G-44 | Agricultural Aviation Limited | 1959 | |
| G-45 | Bristol Siddeley Engines | 1959–1969 | |
| G-46 | Saunders-Roe later Westland Aircraft | 1959–1962 | |
| G-47 | Lancashire Aircraft | ||
| G-48 | Westland Aircraft later Westland Helicopters | 1960–1969 | |
| G-49 | F G Miles Engineering | 1965–1969 | |
| G-50 | Alvis | ||
| G-51 | Britten Norman | Since 1967 | |
| G-52 | Marshall of Cambridge | ||
| G-53 | NDN Aircraft | ||
| G-54 | Cameron Balloons[2] | ||
| G-55 | W Vinten[2] | ||
| G-56 | Edgley Aircraft[2] | ||
| G-57 | Airship Industries[2] | ||
| G-65 | Solar Wings[2] | ||
| G-76 | Police Aviation Services Limited | ||
| G-77 | Thruster Air Services Ltd | ||
| G-78 | Bristow Helicopters Limited | ||
| G-79 | Eurocopter Oxford[2] | ||
| G-80 | British Microlight Aircraft Association Ltd | ||
| G-89 | Cosmik Aviation Limited |