John Bewsher was born on 5 May 1894, in East Sheen, Surrey, the son of Harry Edward Bewsher and Eva Amy Julia Bewsher (née Lawton).

His career started in 1913 when he joined the Sopwith Aviation Co at Kingston-upon-Thames as a junior draughtsman, and he rose to be assistant to the chief designer Herbert Smith. There he was concerned with all the famous Sopwith types of the First World War, specializing in the design of controls and main structures and in stressing. He worked for the Sopwith firm until it dissolved in October 1920.

In February 1921, the Mitsubishi Internal Combustion Engine Manufacturing Company in Nagoya invited Smith to assist them in creating an aircraft manufacturing division. (See Smith for details of the ex-Sopwith team in Japan).

Bewsher returned to England in 1924 and joined the Air Navigation and Engineering Company (A.N.E.C.) as Chief Engineer following the departure of W.S. Shackleton to Beardmore in 1924. There he was responsible for the ANEC III, a redesign of the Handasyde H.2. The new design first flew at Brooklands on 23 March 1926. Bewsher's next, and last, design for the Air Navigation and Engineering Co was the ANEC IV biplane, designed for the 1926 Lympne light aircraft trial for two seaters fitted with engines of less than 170 lb. It did not make the competition as the undercarriage collapsed in a taxiing accident.

In 1927, Bewsher joined Vickers Aviation as senior draughtsman under Pierson. There, his first job was as designer of the Vickers Jockey. He progressed through the company and was successively Assistant Chief Draughtsman, Chief Draughtsman (experimental), Drawing-Office Manager and Design Office Manager, responsible for administering all the design departments.

While working at Vickers, Bewsher also produced designs for other companies on a freelance basis. He designed the Henderson HSF.1, intended as a four passenger joy-riding aircraft, in 1927, the Surrey Flying Services AL.1, a single-engined side-by-side two-seater in 1929 and in 1931 was responsible for the design of the RFD Sailplane.

Bewsher retired from Vickers-Armstrongs (Aircraft) Ltd in February 1959.

John Bewsher died in mid-1974, in Worthing, Sussex.

1. British Light Aeroplanes 1920-1940, Arthur W.J.G. Ord-Hume (GMS Enterprises, 2000)
2. Flight 4 Oct 1929
3. Flight 6 Mar 1959
4. ancestry.co.uk