| In 1934 Lord Rothermere, who was then proprietor of the Daily Mail, required for his personal use a fast and spacious private aeroplane, for this aviation-minded organisation had then appreciated the potential of what is today called the business or corporate aircraft. Lord Rothermere envisaged his requirements as a fast aircraft that would accommodate a crew of two and six passengers, and it just so happened that the Bristol Aeroplane Company had already drawn up the outline of a light transport in this category.
The brain-child of Frank Barnwell, the new aeroplane had been designed originally to be powered by two 373kW Bristol Aquila I engines which were then under development. Lord Rothermere's interest in a high-speed transport resulted in Barnwell's proposal to mount a couple of 485kW Bristol Mercury VIS engines in his embryo airframe and this resulted in the Bristol Type 142. First flown at Filton on 12 April 1935, it sparked off a hubbub of comment and excitement when during its initial trials it was found to be 48km/h faster than the prototype of the most-recently procured British fighter. Named Britain First, it was presented to the nation by Lord Rothermere after the Air Ministry had requested that it might retain it for a period of testing to evaluate its potential as a light bomber. This, then, was the sire of the Bristol Blenheim, which proved an important interim weapon at the beginning of World War II. The Aquila-engined Type 143 was similar, and first flew in January 1936. Only limited testing was undertaken, performance being severely curtailed by the non-availability of variable-pitch propellers.
MODEL | 142 Britain First |
CREW | 2 |
PASSENGERS | 4 |
ENGINE | 2 x 650hp Bristol Mercury VIS 2 |
WEIGHTS |
Take-off weight | 4248 kg | 9365 lb |
Empty weight | 3097 kg | 6828 lb |
DIMENSIONS |
Wingspan | 17.17 m | 56 ft 4 in |
Length | 12.12 m | 40 ft 9 in |
Height | 3.91 m | 13 ft 10 in |
Wing area | 43.57 m2 | 468.98 sq ft |
PERFORMANCE |
Max. speed | 494 km/h | 307 mph |
Range | 1610 km | 1000 miles |
 | A three-view drawing (800 x 787) |
George Galea, e-mail, 03.12.2016 17:25 This forgotten, privately funded & 307mph, fighter-bomber flew past recently purchased biplane fighters (at the time) by 100 mph faster and made the British Air force crap themselves! Brilliant! Nice read thanks. reply | Richard Brock, e-mail, 26.06.2014 23:04 Hello
I have a B&W photo-postcard from my late father's collection of what I believe to be the 'Britain First', standing on grass, 3 /4 front view. The wings are mounted near the bottom of the fuselage which I think distinguishes it from a Bristol Blenheim Mk1. I'd be happy to scan and send it if it is of interest.
Thanks for the informative article.
Best wishes Richard reply |
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