Armstrong Whitworth Starling
| Industry | Aerospace |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1912 |
| Founder | Armstrong Whitworth |
| Headquarters | United Kingdom |
| Products | Aircraft, including Armstrong Whitworth A.W.14 Starling |
The Armstrong Whitworth A.W.14 Starling was a British prototype single-seat biplane fighter designed in the late 1920s for the Royal Air Force. It competed unsuccessfully against the Bristol Bulldog.
Development
Armstrong Whitworth created the A.W.14 Starling as the exclusive candidate responding to Specification 28/24, which called for a single-seat fighter capable of both day and night operations to succeed the earlier Armstrong Whitworth Siskin. The aircraft was a single-bay sesquiplane, featuring staggered wings with unequal spans—the lower wing being significantly smaller than the upper. Its fuselage consisted of a bolted steel-tube framework, while the wings incorporated steel spars combined with wooden ribs and were equipped with ailerons solely on the upper wings. The wings adopted the experimental symmetrical RAF 30 aerofoil profile. The fighter was armed with two synchronised .303 inch Vickers machine guns.
Two prototypes were commissioned. The first, designated J8027, was powered by a 385 hp Armstrong Siddeley Jaguar VII radial engine and took to the air on 12 May 1927. However, it proved underpowered and was later fitted with a more powerful 460 hp Jaguar V engine. Despite this upgrade, its performance remained disappointing—the maximum speed failed to surpass 160 mph, falling short of the 180 mph requirement—and its low-speed handling was also unsatisfactory. Evaluated against Specification F.9/26 in February 1926, it was rejected by the RAF in favour of the Bristol Bulldog. Subsequently returned to Armstrong Whitworth, J8027 received new wings featuring a Clark YH aerofoil section with leading-edge slots on the upper surfaces. Registered as G-AAHC, it was displayed at Olympia in London in July 1929 before being removed from the register in December 1930.
The second prototype, J8028, underwent substantial redesign, incorporating a more streamlined fuselage and modified wings that retained the Clark YH aerofoil but featured smaller lower wings. Powered by a 525 hp Armstrong Siddeley Panther II engine, it first flew on 5 December 1929. This version was assessed both as a land-based interceptor under Specifications F.9/26 and F.20/27 and as a naval fighter to satisfy Specification N.21/26. Although its performance showed improvement, it ultimately did not succeed; nonetheless, it contributed valuable development insights that informed the design of the Armstrong Whitworth A.W.16.
Variants
- Starling I
- 1927 – initial prototype – equipped with an Armstrong Siddeley Jaguar VII or V engine.
- Starling II
- 1930 – second prototype – developed to meet naval fighter specification N.21/26. Powered by an Armstrong Siddeley Panther II engine.
Operators
Specifications (Starling I)
See also
Citations
Bibliography
- "The Armstrong Whitworth "Starling"". Flight. Vol. XX, no. 31. 2 August 1928. pp. 660–665.
- Green, William; Swanborough, Gordon (1994). The Complete Book of Fighters.
- Jackson, A. J. (1974). British Civil Aircraft since 1919 Volume I.
- Mason, Francis K. (1992). The British Fighter since 1912.
- Tapper, Oliver (1988). Armstrong Whitworth Aircraft since 1913.
- Williams, Ray (July 1980). "Siskin Successor". Aeroplane Monthly.
External links
