Country of origin:

United Kingdom

Description:

Two-seat cabin monoplane

Power Plant:

One 97 kw (130 hp) de Havilland Gipsy Major 1 four-cylinder in-line air-cooled engine

Specifications:

History:

The M.11 series of light monoplanes was designed by F G Miles to meet a requirement formulated by Mr Whitney Straight, who operated a series of flying clubs in the southern United Kingdom. The prototype was flown for the first time in 1936 and demonstrated at the Hatfield SBAC Show on 28 June. The aircraft consisted of spruce and plywood construction, accommodating two occupants side-by-side in an enclosed cabin with luggage space behind the seats. The prototype G-AECT (c/n 290), which was similar in appearance to a scaled-down Falcon, had two-position vacuum-operated trailing-edge flaps. This aircraft was initially operated by Phillips & Powis Aircraft, eventually being impressed by the RAF in October 1940 as B5755, and ended its days as an Instructional Airframe.

Shortly after production commenced it was decided to revise the undercarriage, and fit a one-piece windscreen in place of the two-piece. Subsequently the aircraft became known as the M.11A. By the time private flying was stopped in the United Kingdom at the outbreak of war in 1939, 50 Whitney Straights had been completed. Two other variants of the type were built, although only one example of each was built: the M-11B with a 101 kw (135 hp) Amherst Villiers Maya I engine; and the M.11C with a 108 kw (145 hp) de Havilland Gipsy Major 2 engine.

One example was used on a long distance flight. This aircraft G-AEVG (c/n 319) was based at Heston, was impressed by the RAF as DP854 in 1941, and operated with the Andover Station Flight. It was rebuilt in 1947 and, fitted with a long-range fuel tank, was flown to Australia, carrying on the side 1954 England – Australia, arriving at Moorabbin, VIC, on 16 October 1954, becoming VH-EVG. It was registered to W A Strauss of St Kilda, VIC in May 1955 but was withdrawn from service in 1958 and was noted at Ballarat, VIC in 1960.

Two others have been registered in Australia. VH-ABN (c/n 303 – ex G-AENH) was registered to F W Hewson in December 1937 but was exported to New Zealand as ZK-AXN in February 1951 to the Auckland Aero Club. The other, VH-UZA (c/n 350), was registered to the Royal Victorian Aero Club but crashed at Essendon, VIC on 12 September 1942.

Eight examples have been registered in New Zealand, three of these being impressed into service with the RNZAF during World War II. These, with the registrations and serials they carried, were: ZK-AEO (c/n 308) first registered in April 1937, was operated by the RNZAF in World War II as NZ576, later became ZK-AJF but crashed at North Loburn in June 1950 and was struck off the register. ZK-AFG (c/n 323), first registered in 1937, was operated by the RNZAF as NZ579, later became ZK-AJZ after the war and crashed at Hastings in January 1959. ZK-AFH (c/n 311), first registered in 1937, was withdrawn from service in July 1962 due to frost damage and was scrapped at Omaka in 1965.

ZK-AGB (c/n 503) was first registered in March 1938, and operated by the RNZAF as NZ577 during World War II. It later returned to the civil aircraft register as ZK-ALE but crashed at Mamaku in September 1953 and was written off. ZK-AUK (c/n 507 – G-AUJX) was first registered in September 1938 to Brigadier General Arthur Lewin who was stationed in Kenya. It was operated in Kenya by him and returned to the United Kingdom in 1939. It was impressed and operated by the RAF as BD183 during the war. It returned to the British register as G-AFJX to Dorothy Shuttleworth and Allan Wheeler at Warden Aviation and was based at Shuttleworth. It was sold, arrived in New Zealand in 1950 and operated with Mt Cook & Southern Lakes Tourist Co from March 1950. It subsequently had a number of owners before it was retired in June 1966. It spent some time with the RNZAF Museum at Wigram before going to the Ferrymead Museum and survives stored in Christchurch.

ZK-AXD (c/n 506 – ex G-AFZY, U-0227) operated with the RAF in World War II as NF747. It later became G-AXDM in October 1950 before being shipped to New Zealand. It was withdrawn from service in 1964 and placed in storage at Drury but was scrapped in 1969. ZK-AXN (c/n 303 – ex VH-ABN) was first registered in December 1950. It was withdrawn from service in October 1962 and destroyed by fire at Otematata in November 1963. ZK-AZX (c/n 322 – ex NF751 and G-AEVL) was shipped to New Zealand as deck cargo in 1951 but the fuselage was rendered useless by water soakage en route so the registration was not taken up, the aircraft being scrapped at Hastings in 1952.

A few of the New Zealand M.11s were modified to have a third seat, a small window being installed to the rear of the main fuselage windows when this occurred. One example, ZK-AFH, was used in the early development of top-dressing and / or aerial crop spraying. Mr Alan Prichard, a pilot with the NZ Department of Public Works, flew trials of lupin seed, sowing along Ninety Mile Beach in the 1940s. He also trialled the technique of super spreading and at one time had experience sowing seeds for a farmer from a de Havilland DH.60 Gipsy Moth. The Whitney Straight at the time was owned by the New Zealand Government and was fitted with a specially-built hopper which provided a capacity of 150 kg (330 lb). During one demonstration Mr Prichard sowed a ton of seed in seven-hours over a period of two days. In mid-1946 ZK-AFH, flown by another pilot, spread 2,676 kg (5,900 lb) of bluestone crystals over 567 hectares (1,400 acres) of land in the Thames region. The registration was cancelled in 1966.