Aircraft manufacturer 1920 – 1935 Hawker Aircraft Ltd was formed following the bankruptcy of the Sopwith Aviation Company, which had struggled after the First World War due to a lack of demand. In 1920 the assets of the company were purchased by Harry Hawker, a former Sopwith test pilot, Thomas Sopwith, Fred Sigrist and Bill Eyre for £5,000 each. They would form H.G. Hawker Engineering, which was named so that it did not have a link with the previous company, but Thomas Sopwith became chairman. Initially, the company would be focused on contracts to recondition existing Sopwith designed aircraft, as it owned the rights to these designs. It would produce its first design in December but this would not be produced and it wouldn’t be until 1923 that the first Hawker design was introduced. In 1921 Harry Hawker would die in an air crash but the company would continue manufacturing many designs produced by Sir Sydney Camm. In 1933 the company would be renamed Hawker Aircraft Ltd and the following year it would purchase Gloster Aircraft Co. In 1935, 50% of the shares of Hawker Aircraft Ltd were bought, along with Armstrong Siddeley Development Co, to form a public company - Hawker Siddeley Aircraft Co. Hawker Aircraft continued to produce designs under its own name as a part of Hawker Siddeley Aircraft. During the Second World War Hawker would be part of the largest aviation group in the UK and would produce the Hurricane fighter aircraft. Following the war, it would produce several jet-powered designs, including the widely used Hawker Hunter. In 1955 it would become part of the Hawker Siddeley Group and from 1963 the Hawker name would cease to be used.