Here are the details I have gathered regarding the handful of original and reproduction Avro 504’s in the World. I consider an “Original” 504 one that has provenance, recorded history and is publicly displayed. There are several “replicas’ that are not originals and do not have historical significance, but I have listed them for those who may be interested.
The Shuttleworth Trust , Old Warden Aerodrome, Biggleswade, Beds SG18 9EP
The following story appeared in WW I Aero No. 73 April of 1979
Avro 504K the following article on the Avro owned by the Shuttleworth Collection, Old Warden Aerodrome, Biggleswade, Beds, is taken from their fine journal, PROP—SWING:
We are most grateful to Brian Lewis one-time owner of our Avro 504, for this detailed story of its background, which in the past has been obscure. Now that we have picked one thread of its true identity, we can add more. This aircraft, spuriously serialled E3404, was
known to have been a 504N and converted to a K during its restoration programme for the Collection. What we have just discovered, though, is that it was built in 1918 as a 504K as H5199, later converted to a 504N, sold on the civil market in 1937 to become G-ADEV
as which it won the Devon Air Race in 1937 at an average speed of 103 m.p.h., flown by Captain Percival Phillips, D.F.C., formerly pioneer joy-riding pilot of Cornwall Aviation CO.; in 1940 ‘EV was pressed for glider towing work to gain a second Service serial, BK892, spending some time at the Central Landing Establishment at Ringway before being withdrawn as late as June 1942; then, a.’ an instructional airframe, it became 3118M to end with No. 1264 Squadron. Air Training Corps, at Ashville College, Windermere. So
E3404’ has a longer life behind it than we had realised . When it is next repainted – alas, not due for some time, would members prefer it to revert to its true, original 504K serial as H5199?
Further to recent discussions concerning the Avro 504K I think that after some pretty exhaustive research I may have finally discovered its origin.
It came as something of a surprise to learn that it started life as a civil aircraft used for towing advertising banners, briefly joined the RA.F. for experimental work, and spent the war and early post war years stripped of fabric and identity until I acquired it in 1951,
Following our meeting I took the opportunity of a brief stay in Portsmouth to seek out some former colleagues of my old Airspeed days, who would have been with the company before the war. As you can imagine they took quite a lot of finding, but I was able to track down
a small number. From one or two veteran gentlemen I was able to piece together the fact that the aircraft first appeared at Portsmouth in 1939, and although a military aeroplane, had markings painted over -a civil registration. Then I had the good fortune to meet a lively
eighty-year-old, former Airspeed flight shed man, called Harry Knight, who remembered that the 504 had the same serial as were his late wife’s initials. B.C., although he could not recall the numbers.
A check of the records of early RAF. serial numbers for a 504N as it then was, which had serial letters BK, and might have been in civil livery revealed that it was in fact BK892. The rest was comparatively easy. A couple of phone calls, and a few visits to the reference
library later, and I had the remaining pieces of the jig-saw. I will try and set out the history in chronological. In 1935 the Armstrong Siddeley Lynx-powered Avro 5O4N was first registered as G-ADEV, and operated by Air Publicity Ltd at Heston as an advertising
banner tug (hence the winch gear which I removed in 1952) and general transport. Sometime in 1939 it was with three other 5O4N’s acquired from Air Publicity by the RAE and designated for experimental glider work. Roundels and the serial 8K892 were painted over
the existing Air Publicity colour scheme, and sometime later in the same year it arrived at Portsmouth in connection with some projected glider work to be undertaken by Airspeed Ltd.
After standing about in the hangar for a time the engine was for some reason removed. Cynical ex-employees of the Company suggest that Airspeed were not above cannibalising anything, but I prefer to think that it was re moved for servicing. However, the engine was never refitted, as the now power less air frame was eventually taken into the main fitting shop where, by even more obscure reasons, it was dismantled and stripped of fabric.
The war years passed, and where the 504 rested the workshops were re organised to become the main components store. As the racks and shelving grew so the air frame was lifted to the top, and years later in 1951, this is where I found it. I had at the time just obtained my first pilots licence and was completing my apprenticeship with Airspeeds, or de Havillands as it was by then, and after a number of interviews, obtained the aircraft for a nominal sum. I was even at first allowed to use a corner of the workshop for the initial inspection and renovation work. The air frame was in excellent condition, but alas, not so the engine which had been dumped in a remote corner. As you will have seen from my 1952-3 correspondence with Avro, I toyed with the idea of fitting a Gipsy engine even though I could not afford to buy one.
A couple of years, and considerable airframe work later (with more than a little
help from my friends) I joined the R.A.F. and had to remove the 504 to a large hut owned by my father. Needless to say time and available funds dried-up, and when agents for Elstree Studios were found to be looking for a typical training aeroplane of the inter-war
years I reluctantly parted with what my family described as my “hair-brained hobby’! Looking back, I should probably still have been trying to afford to complete the machine, so perhaps it was for the best. In order to prepare the aircraft for the film “Reach for the Sky” it
was sent to Avro at Woodford where it was rebuilt as a 504K in the Apprentice School. The rest you know, but I am glad that the story is now complete. I cannot imagine why I did not bother to find all this out in 1951; impetuous youth I suppose!
One final thing I admit with shame. The old, probably irreparable Lynx engine did not leave me with the airframe. What actually happened to it is obscure, but it remained in my father’s hut and when he sold the land for building it was probably bulldozed with much other junk that I had left be hind. It may now well be resting under the front room of somebody’s ”semi’. I do hope that you will find all this as interesting as I have done; it is somehow contenting to know the whole story.
Avro 504K H-2311, G-ABAA, The Museum of Science and Industry in Manchester, England
(Thanks to David Lunn for the picture).
History of the Qantas Avro 504K on display at Mascot
In July of 1965 Qantas Airways embark on the project to recreate a flying replica of the very first aircraft they began service with in February of 1921. The Trustees of the Australian War Memorial in Canberra loaned Qantas an original Avro 504K that had been in storage at the Royal Military College Duntroon. The complete airframe was loaded into a DC-3 and flown to Sydney for restoration. This particular 504 had been built in Manchester some time late in 1918 and was assigned the RAF serial H.2174. Approximately one year later it was made part of the British Government’s Imperial Gift to Australia of 47 504’s. Stationed at Point Cook airfield it was ssigned the serial A3-4 and used for basic pilot training.
With the advent of new training aircraft, A3-4 was turned over to the War Memorial by the Australian Air Board in 1929 where it was later placed on public display. Then sometime in the 1950’s it was placed into storage where it remained for at least 8 years. During the initial phase of the Qantas restoration the Avro as fitted with an authentic nine cylinder Clerget rotary engine similar to those installed on many 504Ks. But historically, the original Qantas Avro had been powered by a water cooled, six cylinder, in-line Sunbeam Dyak engine. Fortunately for Qantas, they were able to purchase from an individual in Mullumbimy, New South Wales an original Dyak engine which was refurbished by Qantas engineers and apprentices and later installed in the modified fuselage of the 504 K.
The history of the original Qantas Dyak Avro is interesting in itself. A.V.Roe had granted sales rights in Australia to H.E. Broadsmith, a former manager at their Manchester factory. Broadsmith formed the Australian Aircraft and Engineering Co. Ltd., in association with Capt. Nigel Love and Lt. Warneford and they set up shop at Mascot Field, near Sydney. G-AUBG as Qantas’s aircraft had been designated was built from parts that were shipped out to Australia in late 1920. It was fitted with a Sunbeam Dyak engine due primarily to the lack of spare rotary engines at the time. G-AUGB went on to fly more than 280 passengers and cover more than 7,400 miles in the time of only a few months.
December 19, 1965 saw the public debut of the new Dyak Avro. Sir Hudson Fysh, one of the original founders of Qantas, taxied the aircraft into position under the massive wing of a Qantas Boeing 707 passenger jet at the Mascot airport, much to the delight of the many aviation enthusiasts looking on.
In November on 1991 I traveled to Australia and was fortunate enough to be able to see the “new” Dyak Avro on display, hanging in the Sydney Powerhouse Museum. Unfortunately, since it was suspended I was unable to perform a thorough photographic survey of this particular example. Following a great deal of letter writing and waiting many months a package arrive in the mail address to me with an Australian return address. Upon opening the package I discovered at least 50 carefully made mechanical drawings from the original Qantas Airframe and Power plant mechanic who had lead the restoration work back in 1965. He said in his letter that he was sending me the drawings because no one else had expressed any interest in them and that I was the first person to contact him in over 20 years about this project. So I have carefully added them to my Avro 504 Archive. They, of course, included the necessary modified engine brackets to allow the hanging of the Sunbeam Dyak engine.
These six “new Avros” had construction numbers A.201 thru A.206 and were designated by the RNZAF as ‘201’ thru ‘206’. By 1931 the RNZAF had acquired sufficient number of DH60 Moths to retire the remaining 504’s (‘204’ and ‘205’ having been destroyed by accidents) and the four surviving 504’s were sold into private hands. These aircraft were given the civilian registry of ZK-ACN, ACU, ACT, and ACS. ZK-ACU went through the hands of several owners and was modified privately during this post military operational period. It was finally removed from the civil registry in August of 1938!
The remains of the ZK-ACU were sold to C. Parker of New Plymouth and went to E.R. Brewster of New Plymouth. Upon this person’s death what was remaining of the aircraft was transferred to the Taranaki Aviation Marine & Transportation Museum. In 1987 the Vintage Aero Club set out to restore the aircraft but lack of a suitable engine hampered the project.
A few years later Stuart Tantrum of Levin assumed the project and has been working on it ever since. This web site owner has been in touch with Mr. Tantrum on numerous occasions and has offered some modest assistance to his project. The aircraft is currently located at the Omaka airport outside of Blenheim in the South Island. (Thanks Peter Lewis for all of this update!)
