| De Havilland building, Hatfield. | BAE SYSTEMS |
DE HAVILLAND was an extraordinary company. What made it special was the modest, dedicated leadership of its founder, Sir Geoffrey de Havilland, and his board. They treated everyone generously, regardless of position, and encouraged communication at all levels.
Where many companies welded their order books to the military, de Havilland had their own view about the future of commercial aviation. They made their own decisions, and didn’t wait for the government to tell them what to do. From the outset, they championed recreational flying, business use, and light transports – all the Moths and Dragons – earning a reputation for elegant, light-weight, aerodynamic designs with higher performance than mere engine output suggested. This would prepare the ground for the record breaking DH-88 Comet, and the legendary Mosquito.
| Mosquito production, Canada. | BAE SYSTEMS. |
De Havilland were a global organisation. As early as 1917, the DH4 became America’s first front-line aircraft, and 4,000 were built under licence. By 1928, de Havilland had their own factories in Canada and Australia. De Havilland placed great importance on service. An efficient global service and repair network to ensured the best possible ownership experience, and this was key to new sales.
As an aircraft manufacturer, they
were unique in building their own engines and
propellors, not
| Ghost engine test bed. | BAE SYSTEMS |
only for their own aircraft, but as suppliers to other companies. For example:
The Engine Division was under Frank Halford, who had designed every DH engine since the original 4-cylinder Gipsy. For the Hawker P.1121, a Mach 2.7 replacement for the Hunter, they developed a large and powerful axial-flow jet engine, called the Gyron. It was the first engine specifically for super-sonic flight. A smaller version, the Gyron Junior, was developed for the Blackburn Buccaneer, and a turbo-shaft engine called the Gnome was produced for Westland helicopters.