de Havilland Hercules
The de Havilland DH66 Hercules was a three -engined airliner of the British manufacturer de Havilland Aircraft Company in the 1920s.
History
The DH66 Hercules was commissioned by the Imperial Airways, which had taken over the air mail service of the Royal Air Force between Cairo and Baghdad. In contrast to the previously used DH10, the new aircraft could carry seven passengers in addition to the post office. Proved to be a disadvantage of the low speed and high operating costs.
The prototype denied its first flight on September 30, 1926. Imperial Airways initially bought five machines. The first scheduled flight began on December 27, 1926 in Croydon, reaching Delhi on January 8, 1927.
One designed for fourteen passengers version was created for West Australian Airways, which wanted to replace their DH50 by a larger aircraft. On 2 June 1927, the new model first flew between Perth and Adelaide. Two of the four aircraft were later sold to Imperial Airways, which had lost three machines by crashes. Previously, two other Imperial Hercules had ordered from de Havilland.
After another crash Imperial Airways placed the remaining DH66 in December 1935 out of service. Three aircraft acquired the South African Air Force. The last remaining machine in Australia in 1942 was destroyed by enemy action.
Construction
The Hercules was designed as a biplane and had a triple tail and a spur wheel chassis. The fuselage consisted of a fabric-covered steel tube frame, the cabin inside was covered with plywood. The drive served three radial engines Bristol Jupiter VI.
Operator
- West Australian Airways
- South African Air Force
- Imperial Airways