Westland PV.7

Westland Aircraft

Industry	Aerospace
Founded	1930s
Headquarters	United Kingdom

The Westland PV.7 was developed as a private venture in response to a British military requirement from the 1930s for a versatile two-seat aircraft. This single-engine, high-wing monoplane showed potential but was lost early during official evaluation trials.

Design and development

Air Ministry specification G.4/31 sought a successor to the Westland Wapiti, demanding a multi-role platform capable of performing level bombing, army co-operation, dive bombing, reconnaissance, casualty evacuation, and torpedo bombing. Nine manufacturers submitted designs, with some receiving contracts for prototypes. However, attracted by the significant prospects, firms such as Westland chose to develop their entries independently. The competitors included the Armstrong Whitworth A.W.19, Blackburn B-7, Bristol 120, Fairey G.4/31, Handley Page HP.47, Hawker P.V.4, Parnall G.4/31, Vickers Type 253, alongside Westland’s PV.7. Among these, only Westland and Handley Page presented monoplane configurations. The Air Ministry showed a preference for air-cooled engines, leading most manufacturers, except Armstrong-Whitworth and Blackburn, to opt for the nine-cylinder Bristol Pegasus radial engine.

The PV.7 was a sizeable, tall high-wing monoplane powered by a single engine, featuring separate cockpits for its two crew members. Its wings had a constant chord and were constructed entirely from metal, comprising two main spars reinforced by ribs and inter-spar rods for rigidity. Outboard sections of the leading edges were equipped with Handley Page slats, while inboard trailing edges housed split flaps spanning 4 ft 9 in (1.45 m) that opened symmetrically above and below the wing surface to function as dive brakes. Ailerons extended immediately beyond the flaps nearly reaching the wing tips. The wings attached atop the fuselage, with the pilot’s position situated between them but set behind the outer leading edge line; this arrangement necessitated thinning and tapering of the central wing leading edge to enhance forward visibility. Initially open, the pilot’s cockpit was later enclosed with glazing due to draught issues caused by its proximity—only 6 ft (1.83 m)—to the propeller, featuring an entrance through an opening upper panel extending rearwards above the wing. Each side of the aircraft had two parallel, cranked lift struts connecting the lower fuselage to approximately mid-span of the wings, further supported by additional struts from these crank points to the upper fuselage. These main lift struts incorporated wide-chord airfoil sections contributing to overall lift generation. The primary undercarriage legs were mounted at these crank points, each axle stabilized by pairs of V-struts attached to the lower fuselage. Beneath the tailplane was a castoring tailwheel.

The fuselage primarily consisted of square-section duralumin tubing with steel reinforcements at critical areas and alloy formers and stringers shaping its contours. Most surfaces were fabric-covered except for some metal sheeting in the forward section and plywood decking around the rear cockpit area. The tail assembly was metal-framed and fabric-covered, featuring a narrow parallel-chord braced tailplane with elevators; its fin and rudder were broad with the rudder extending down to the base of the fuselage. Both elevators and rudder initially incorporated horn balances. The rear crew member occupied a sizable cockpit positioned just aft of the wing’s trailing edge, enclosed by a multi-pane segmented glazed canopy that could be folded forward to enable gunnery operations using a Scarff ring-mounted Lewis machine gun. From this location, access was available to a bomb aimer’s position beneath the fuselage floor lit by small windows under each wing on both sides, where he lay prone. The tall split-axle undercarriage design accommodated carrying an up to 1,100 lb (500 kg) torpedo secured between its legs; alternatively, two 500 lb (227 kg) bombs could be mounted on racks beneath the fuselage. The pilot controlled a forward-firing port-side Vickers machine gun.

Power came from a Bristol Pegasus IIIM3 radial engine enclosed within a Townend ring, delivering 722 hp (538 kW) and turning a two-bladed wooden propeller. Its maiden flight occurred on 30 October 1933, piloted by Westland’s chief test pilot Harald Penrose. Initial flights revealed requirements for cockpit glazing and lighter ailerons; subsequent higher-speed trials exposed wing twisting under aileron loads necessitating structural modifications—specifically replacing inter-spar rods with torsionally stiffer tubes. Testing also identified that aerodynamic over-balance in the rudder caused oscillations which were resolved by removing horn balances altogether.

Displayed in the New Types Park during the 1934 Hendon RAF Display at June’s end, it was then sent to RAF Martlesham Heath for official evaluation by Service pilots. Westland withdrew their insurance since any damage would be government-covered during these trials. Initial feedback from RAF pilots was positive. On 25 August, at Air Ministry request, Penrose conducted tests assessing handling with an aft centre of gravity despite receiving orders not to proceed due to structural stress concerns communicated via telegram—which he did not receive in time due to lack of radio contact. During a high-speed dive, calculations were validated when the port wing failed catastrophically. Penrose survived by parachuting out; as the upper hatch jammed he escaped through a small side window becoming Britain’s first pilot to bail out from an enclosed cockpit aircraft. This incident ended Westland’s hopes under specification G.4/31 since the Air Ministry declined compensation for loss of an aircraft flown by a civilian pilot and Westland lacked funds for another prototype.

Ultimately none of the original entrants under this specification entered mass production; although Vickers’ Type 253 was initially declared winner and ordered, it was soon replaced by the more advanced Vickers Wellesley.