Avro 706 Ashton
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Contents
Type Description
- Type 706 Ashton Mk.1
- High altitude research aircraft based on the Type 689 Tudor 9, this was a development of the Tudor II with thicker skins and fuselage length reduced to that of the Tudor I, jet engines and a tricycle undercarriage. The aircraft also featured a new, tall, angular fin and rudder. The main undercarriage units, located between the engines in the under-wing nacelles, were sourced from the Handley Page Hermes/Hastings, while the all new nosewheel unit, supplied by Dowty, was fitted in a new lower nose section attached over the the existing pressurised nose. The crew of 6 comprised pilot, co-pilot, flight engineer, navigator and radio operator, all located in the crew cockpit, with, for the Mk1 only, a second navigator in the main cabin. Four 5000 lb.st. Rolls-Royce Nene 5 or 6 turbojets in under-wing paired nacelles.
- Type 706 Ashton Mk.2
- As Mk.1 specially fitted for high altitude powerplant research, and was fully fitted out as an airliner with seating for 32 passengers.
- Type 706 Ashton Mk.3
- As Mk.1 but featuring a shorter internal pressurised section of fuselage. Two of the three aircraft built featured wing mounted bomb nacelles, while one had a Mk.IX H2S scanner mounted in a radome under the central fuselage.
- Type 706 Ashton Mk.4
- As Mk.3 with bomb nacelles, but featuring a pressurised ventral pannier for a bomb aimer.
| Avro 706 Ashton Specification | |||||||||
| Span | Length | Height | Wing Area | Empty Wt | Max AUW | Cruise Speed | Maximum Speed | Range | Service Ceiling |
| 120 ft | 89 ft 7 in | 31 ft 3 in | 1421 sq ft | 82000 lb | 406 mph/ 353 kn | 439 mph/ 381 kn | 1725 mi | 40500 ft | |
| 36.58 m | 27.31 m | 9.53 m | 132.02 m2 | 37195 kg | 653 km/h | 707 km/h | 2776 km | 12344 m | |
Production Details
| Serial Range | Type | Batch Qty |
Conv. | Canc'd | Notes |
| 5 aircraft ordered from A.V. Roe and Co. Ltd., Woodford, to contract 6/Acft/3112. First flew September 1950. | |||||
| WB490 | Mk.1 | 1 | Based on Tudor II airframe G-AJJV. | ||
| WB491 | Mk.2 | 1 | Based on Tudor II airframe G-AJJW. See Note 1. | ||
| WB492, WB493 | Mk.3 | 2 | Based on Tudor II airframes G-AJJX, 'JJY. WB492 fitted with bomb nacelles and H2S scanner. See Note 2. | ||
| WB494 | Mk.4 | 1 | Based on Tudor II airframe G-AJJZ. | ||
| 1 aircraft ordered from A.V. Roe and Co. Ltd., Woodford, to contract 6/Acft/3118. First flew April 1952. | |||||
| WE670 | Mk.3 | 1 | Based on Tudor II airframe G-AJKA. Fitted with bomb nacelles. See Note 3. | ||
| Total Production | 5 | ||||
Production Summary
All Aircraft By Mark
| Type | Built New | Conv | Canc'd | Total |
| Ashton Mk.1 | 1 | 1 | ||
| Ashton Mk.2 | 1 | 1 | ||
| Ashton Mk.3 | 3 | 3 | ||
| Ashton Mk.4 | 1 | 1 | ||
| 1 | 1 |
Notes
- WB491 was modified with an under-fuselage mounting for testing turbine engines by D Napier and Son in 1954, and tested with Rolls-Royce Avon, Conway and Armstrong Siddeley Sapphire powerplants.
- Bristol Siddeley used Ashton WB493 as a testbed for its Olympus turbojet. The aircraft was fitted with two Olympus engines under the wings, outboard of the Nenes. Subsequently it was used for testing of the Bristol Orpheus engine.
- WE670 was modified with an under-fuselage mounting for testing turbine engines by D Napier and Son, and tested with Rolls-Royce Conway powerplant.
Production References
- Avro Aircraft Since 1908, A.J. Jackson (Putnam, 1965 and 1990)
- Aeroplane Monthly Sep 1995
- Aeroplane Monthly Oct 2013
Page Revision History
Revised at Version 2.0.0- Improved Type Description and Added Specification details.
- Contract details corrected.
- Notes 1 to 3 added.