|
Austin
Austin Motor
Company (1914) Ltd.
Centered at Northfield, Birmingham, Warwickshire, this engineering company
became a War Office contractor for airplanes during the First World War, building over 2,000 subcontract aircraft. the aircraft
department was set up in 1914, under the leadership of J.D. North (later of Boulton Paul) following his departure from Grahame-White Aviation. In 1917 the company began to build aircraft of original design, the first being designed by C.H. Brooks, with input from
fighter ace Albert Ball, whose father was on the Board of Directors of Austin and used his influence to have his sons specifications
considered by the company. The Osprey (1918) was a triplane single-seater designed by John Kenworthy (later of ADC) and C. H. Brooks; this was followed by the Greyhound two-seat fighter, also designed by Kenworthy and assisted
by Harold Roxbee-Cox, but not flown untill after the Armistice. Post war, the company built two civil types; the Kestrel side-by-side
two-seater (awarded 2nd prize in an Air Ministry competition) and the Whippet single-seater. Aircraft activities ceased 1920,
but in 1936 the "shadow factory" scheme began and Austin once again had aircraft connections, producing more than
2400 aircraft of other companies designs during World War II.
Company References - British Built Aircraft
Volume 4, Ron Smith(Tempus Publishing Ltd., 2004)
- http://www.austinmemories.com/page6/page6.html
- Aviation In Birmingham, Geoffrey Negus and Tommy Staddon (Midland Counties Publishing, 1984)
Project Data 
Project No |
Type
No | Name | Alternative Name(s) | Year |
Spec
(Requirement) | Status | Qty | Description |
References |
| |
A.F.B.1 |
| Austin-Ball | 1918 |
| Proto | 1 |
1S,
1E biplane fighter. | 1,2,5,6,8,12,14,16,17 |
| |
A.F.B.2 |
| | 1918 | |
Proj |
0 |
1S,
1E biplane fighter. | (6) - See Note 1 | | | A.F.T.3 |
Osprey |
| 1918 | A1.(a) |
Proto |
1 |
1S,
1E triplane fighter. | 1,2,5,9,12,15,18 | | | | Greyhound | |
1918 |
RAF
Types IIIA, IIIB
and IX | Proto | 3 |
2S,
1E biplane fighter. | 1,2,5,12 | | | |
Whippet |
| 1919 | |
Prdn |
5 |
1S,
1E biiplane light aircraft. | 3,4,7,10,13,14 | | |
| Kestrel | |
1920 |
| Proto | 1 |
2S,
1E biplane light aircraft. | 3,4,11 |
Notes - Bruce [6] speculates
that the second, unbuilt, Austin-Ball fighter would have been designated A.F.B.2.
Project References - British Aeroplanes
1914-18, J.M. Bruce (Putnam, 1957)
- British Fighter Since 1912, Francis K. Mason (Putnam 1992)
- British
Civil Aircraft Since 1919, Vol 1, A.J. Jackson (Putnam, 1973)
- British Light Aeroplanes, Arthur
W.J.G. Ord-Hume (GMS Enterprises, 2000)
- Fighters Of W.W.I, Vol 1, J.M. Bruce (McDonald, 1965)
- Aeroplane
Monthly, Nov-Dec 1978
- Aeroplane Monthly, Jul 1989
- Air Pictorial Sep 1957
- Aviation
News Vol 18 No. 15
- Flight 14 Aug 1919
- Flight 05 Aug 1920
- The British Fighter
since 1912, Peter Lewis (Putnam, 1965)
- Ultralights, The Early British Classics, Richard Riding (Patrick
Stephens, 1987)
- Aviation in Birmingham, Geoffrey Negus and Tommy Staddon (Midland Counties Publications,
1984)
- British Research and Development Aircraft, Ray Sturtivant (Haynes, 1990)
- Fighter Aircraft
of the 1914-1918 War, W. M. Lamberton (Harleyford, 1960)
- Air Pictorial Nov 1957 (letters)
- British
Aircraft of WWI, Volume 1 - Experimental Fighters Part 1, Colin A Owers (Aeronaut Books, 2017)
Production Summary
Select the  button to go to the appropriate listings page.
Note: In the Production Summary, conversions are only listed where
they result in a change from one Type to another. Changes to sub-type or Mark Number are not shown in the summary. For details
of these, see the individual listings.
Type No | Name | Qty (New) | Qty (Conv.) | Canc'd | | A.F.B.1 | | 1 |
| 1 |
| A.F.T.3 | Osprey | 1 |
| 2 |
| | Greyhound | 3 |
| |
| | Whippet | 5 |
| |
| | Kestrel | 1 |
| |
|
Total Austin Production | 11 | Total Austin Cancelled Orders | 3 |
|
