The British Interplanetary Society (BIS) was founded in 1933 by a group of space flight enthuasiasts to promote and educate on the exploration and use of space for the benefit of humanity. In the years before World War II a technical core of BIS members made the first plans for a rocket capable of landing three men on the Moon and returning them to Earth. After World War II members of the Society developed ideas for the exploration of outer space including developing liquid rockets for launch into space, the construction of Space Stations, the human exploration of the Moon, the development of probes to investigate other planets in our Solar System and the use of space telescopes to observe distant stars and galaxies. In 1951 the BIS organized the world’s first International Congress on “The Artificial Satellite”, and became one of the founder members of the International Astronautical Federation (IAF). Earth Remote Sensing was initially advocated and studied at an international level at its NATO Conference in the 1950s, with space biology following soon afterwards. Planetary studies began with papers examining the propulsion requirements to reach Mars and Venus, as well as projected instruments for scientific probes. Advocacy of studies on comets and meteors helped further the Giotto mission to Halley’s Comet and later the ESA Rosetta mission. Studies and long term thinking on human spaceflight and launch vehicle development have always been a core area of activity amongst Society members, with the visionary early work on the BIS Lunar Lander, the Orbital Launcher and various other space launchers and space stations. With the demise of the Apollo Program in 1972, the British Interplanetary Society continued to encourage exploration of ideas on the possibilities of a return to the Moon and its eventual colonization. More recently a group within the Society has initiated a series of studies on the scientific and technical objectives of conducting a human exploration of the Martian North Polar Cap (Project Boreas), and another group within the Society has initiated a follow on study to the Daedalus Interstellar Starprobe, called Project Icarus.

Pye was founded by W.G. Pye in 1896 in Cambridge as a manufacturer of scientific instruments. During the First World War, Pye manufactured military equipment, including telescopes and surveying equipment. In 1925, the company branched out into radio; Charles Orr Stanley was hired to lead this branch of the company. Stanley bought the radio part of the company in 1928 from W.G. Pye, while W.G. Pye & Co continued as a separate company until it was bought out by Pye in 1946 (see separate W.G. Pye & Co entry). In 1929, Stanley registered the company as Pye Radio Ltd. Over the next three decades, he formed several subsidiary manufacturing companies, which together came to form the Pye Group. In 1937, the name was changed to Pye Ltd to reflect this widening of activity. The Pye Group was an international company, which made and marketed scientific instruments, communications equipment, radio and television transmitters and receivers, medical equipment, electronic components, electrical equipment and domestic appliances. By 1960, there were 60 UK companies operating under Pye and 20 overseas companies including in Ireland, Australia and New Zealand. It played a major role in the development of the electronic and communications industries in Britain, manufacturing and developing several important products. Pye played a key role in the development of television from as early as the mid-1920s. In 1930 it began to manufacture television receivers, as well as CRTs and valves. It pioneered television receivers such as the 9-inch receiver in 1936. Once the television service was stopped during World War Two, Pye focused once again on military equipment. It developed Radar, a system for protecting against mine-laying equipment, the Proximity Fuse and differing forms of wireless communication. After the resumption of the service in 1946, Pye maintained its dedication to television, continuing to manufacture receivers and parts. This included demonstrating colour television in 1949, transformer-less television sets, Black Screen Television (sets that did not require darkness to view), Automatic Picture Control (to help prevent reception interference) and the first 27-inch screen, shown at the Radio Show in 1955. The Pye Printed Circuit was incorporated into television receivers in 1956. In 1960, Pye TVT was established as a separate company for the manufacture of television studio equipment including transmitters and cameras. Pye’s communications division, Pye Telecommunications Ltd, made large developments in radio and wireless technologies. Following the merger of the Pye and EKCO groups in 1960 the combined company was known as British Electronics Industries Ltd. This was changed to Pye of Cambridge Ltd in 1963. Despite these successes, Pye was under increasing financial pressure in the 1960s and was eventually bought out by Philips in 1966. C.O. Stanley resigned as head of the company and went into retirement. In 1967 the Philips Group gained a majority shareholding in Pye and formed Pye Holdings Ltd to administer the Pye Group of companies. Gradually, over the next 7 years, most of the Pye Group companies were absorbed into the operating companies of Philips Electronics UK. In 1996, when Philips Electronics UK sold the large radio communications division (formerly Pye Telecommunications) to form Simoco International Ltd, this became the parent company of all the ex-Pye and Philips radio communications companies worldwide. Philips continued to selectively use the Pye name as a secondary brand in various countries for many years and to this day Pye branded consumer products are sold by the Philips Group, particularly in Australia and South East Asia.

Sir W.G. Armstrong, Whitworth and Company Ltd was formed in 1897 by the merger of Joseph Whitworth and Company with Armstrong Mitchell and Company, which itself had been formed by the merging of W.G. Armstrong and Co with Charles Mitchell and Co in 1882. This new company manufactured a wide range of products including hydraulic equipment, bridges, armaments and ships. Its shipyards produced many merchant vessels such as freighters, tankers, dredgers and icebreaking train ferries for Lake Baikal. They also constructed warships for the Royal Navy, Imperial Russian Navy, Imperial Japanese Navy and United States Navy, including the first polar icebreaker ‘Yermak’, which was constructed for the Russian Navy and launched in 1898. Initially the new company was headed by William George Armstrong but following his death in 1900 Andrew Noble was appointed as chairman. Also, at this time production of cars and truck would begin, in order to diversify production following the end of the Boer War and the resultant drop in the demand for artillery. Initially these were designed by other companies, but this would switch to inhouse designs later on. In 1913 an aerial department was formed to begin production of aeroplane and airships. This department produced a number of different designs during the First World War and in 1920 it became a subsidiary under the name Sir W.G. Whitworth Aircraft Ltd. Following the end of the First World War the company again recognised a need to diversify due to a greatly reduced demand for munitions. As part of this it formed a subsidiary under the name Armstrong Whitworth Development Company. This acquired Siddeley-Deasy, which became known as Armstrong Siddeley Motors, as well as a controlling interests in Crompton and Co and A and J Main and Co. The Scotswood Works would also be repurposed to build railway locomotives. This proved successful due to the modern machinery that had been installed and would produce 1,464 locomotives until 1937 when it was converted back to armament manufacturing. In addition to the steam locomotives common at the time this figure also included diesel locomotives and railcars due to a licence acquired for Sulzer. 1920 not only saw the aerial department’s reorganisation into the Armstrong Whitworth Aircraft Company but also the purchasing of a controlling interest in Pearson and Knowles Coal and Iron Co, along with its subsidiary Partington Steel and Iron Co. Later, in 1922, the company would also form the Newfoundland Power and Paper Utilities Corporation in order to finance a paper mill and in 1925 Boving Engineering Co was purchased. By 1926 the company was suffering financially. Due to the Newfoundland company going over budget and not achieving its productions goals the company was suffering from a greatly reduced cash flow. In the first 11 months of 1926 its losses amounted to £625,767 and by 1927 the decision had been take to merge the defence and engineering businesses with that of Vickers in order to create a new subsidiary of Vickers Armstrong. The ownership of this would be split so that Vickers held 2/3 and Armstrong-Whitworth held 1/3. The Armstrong Whitworth Development Company would also be sold, and it became the Armstrong Siddeley Development Company following its acquisition by J.D. Siddeley, although Armstrong-Whitworth still held a substantial shareholding and also retained the Pearson and Knowles Coal and Iron Company. Despite these actions heavy financial losses continued and, although they were offset by the sale of the company’s shares in the Armstrong Siddeley Development Company, they still resulted in a serious reduction in capital. As a result, the decision was taken to form two new companies to take over the activities of the original one. These were Sir W.G. Armstrong Whitworth and Company (Engineers) Ltd, which took over the general engineering business, and Sir W.G. Armstrong Whitworth and Company (Shipbuilders) Ltd, which took over the Devon, Walker and Tyne shipyards. A holding company was also formed to manage these, Armstrong Whitworth Securities Company Ltd. In 1930 a third company was added to the group, Sir W.G. Armstrong Whitworth and Company (Ironfounders) Ltd. Beyond this the 1930s saw a winding down of the Armstrong-Whitworth group’s activities. In 1935 Vickers bought the remaining shares of Vickers-Armstrong and in 1937 Sir John Jarvis acquired Sir W.G. Armstrong Whitworth and Co (Ironfounders) Ltd to relieve unemployment on Tyneside. By 1937 the group had also ended production of locomotives and only the engineering subsidiary remained. This was sold in 1943 and the group was liquidated.

In 1946 Normalair Ltd. was formed as a subsidiary company of Westland Aircraft Ltd. to meet the growing demands for this specialist equipment, and today employs 1,100 people and has its own extensive production facilities. Normalair operate the most extensive respiratory laboratory, and are the largest producers of aircraft pressurisation, air conditioning and oxygen breathing equipment, in Europe. All British military aircraft that are pressurised are fitted with Normalair equipment, and such famous airliners as the Viscount, Britannia and Comet are equipped by Normalair. With subsidiary companies in Canada and Australia, and with representatives and agencies all over the world, Normalair provides a very wide market with cabin pressure controllers, discharge valves, safety valves, humidifiers, water extractors, flow control valves, cooling turbines, oxygen regulators, liquid oxygen converters, and many items of equipment vital to the needs of the aircraft of today. For several years the company has had license agreements with the two American companies foremost in these fields, namely the Garratt Corporation of Los Angeles and Bendix Aviation of New York. These agreements have been the source of substantial dollar export business by Normalair. In 1953, Normalair provided the oxygen equipment that enabled Sir Edmund Hillary and Sherpa Tensing to be the first to conquer Everest and, in 1955, provided the oxygen sets that were used in the first successful assault on Mount Kanchenjunga. The company also produces lightweight portable oxygen equipment for medical, industrial and emergency use, and are the sales agents in the UK for the respirators and breathing equipment made by Mrs Dräger of Lubeck. This business is handled by Normalair's branch office in Manchester. The Garrett Corporation took a 48% share in the company in 1966, and was subsequently renamed Normalair-Garrett Limited (NGL). The company is now Honeywell Normalair Garrett Ltd.

The College of Aeronautics was founded in 1946 at RAF Cranfield, with the aim to provide specialist postgraduate aeronautical education in Britain. Initially the College had four departments covering the main aspects of aeronautics; Aerodynamics headed by Prof W J Duncan, Aircraft Design headed by Prof R L Lickley, Aircraft Propulsion headed by N S Muir and Flight headed by Group Captain R C Hockey. Between 1955 and 1969, the programme of education diversified to include the creation of new Departments of Aircraft Electrical Engineering and of Mathematics in 1955 and in October 1958 the creation of a Department of Aircraft Materials. New courses were planned and introduced covering subjects such as fluid mechanics, control engineering, and automotive engineering. In July 1967 the College presented the Privy Council with a Petition for the grant of a Royal Charter along with a draft charter for a new institution to be called Cranfield Institute of Technology. The Insititute has since expanded, most notably in 1975 when the National College of Agricultural Engineering at Silsoe became part of Cranfield Institute of Technology, and in 1984 where a third campus was founded at the Royal Military College of Science at Shrivenham.

A V Roe and Co Ltd, more commonly known as Avro, was an aircraft manufacturer based in Manchester. One of the first manufacturers of aircraft, the company operated from 1910 until 1963. Avro was founded by brothers Alliott and Humphrey Verdon Roe and was based originally in the basement of the Everards Elastic Webbing Company's factory at Brownsfield Mill in Ancoats, Manchester. Avro also rented a shed at Brooklands airfield, where the finished aircraft were sold. Alliott Verson Roe was the aircraft designer, having already constructed a successful aircraft, the Roe I Triplane, in 1909. The Roe I was the first aircraft completely built from British components. Previous aircraft designs had used parts imported from overseas. Humphrey Verdon Roe was the managing director of the company, bringing funding for the new enterprise from the family webbing company that he also ran. In 1911 Roy Chadwick joined the company as Alliott’s personal assistant, working as a draughtsman. Chadwick became the firm's Chief Designer in 1918. The Avro 500, or Avro E, was the company's first mass produced aircraft. It took its first flight in March 1912. Eighteen of these were built, with most of them entering service with the Royal Flying Corps. In the same year, Avro prototyped the Avro F and Avro G, which were the world's first aircraft with fully enclosed crew accommodation, but neither went into production. September 1913 saw the first flight of the Avro 504. This was a development of the Avro 500 and was purchased by the War Office. As a result, it would see front line service during the early years of the First World War, but was later used primarily for training pilots. The Avro 504 was manufactured for a period of 20 years, with 8,340 being produced in total. The success of the Avro 504 led the company to move to a factory in Miles Platting, Manchester, followed in 1914 by an extension to the company's new works at Newton Heath, which was completed in 1919. Following the end of the First World War the lack of new orders caused severe financial problems for Avro and in August 1920 68.5% of the company’s shares were acquired by Crossley Motors, who needed additional factory space to build automobile bodies. Avro continued to operate, building aircraft at the Newton Heath works, and testing them at Alexandra Park Aerodrome in South Manchester until 1924, when flight testing moved to Woodford Aerodrome in Cheshire. In 1928, Crossley Motors sold their stake in Avro to Armstrong Siddeley in order to pay off losses they had incurred on other projects. Avro became part of the Armstrong Siddeley Development Company, prompting Alliott Verdon Roe's resignation from the company. Chief Designer Roy Chadwick remained at Avro, overseeing the production of training aircraft. Chadwick designed the Avro Tutor in 1930, followed by the twin engine Avro 652, which was later developed into the multirole Avro Anson. The Tutor was bought in large quantities by the RAF. In 1935, Avro became a subsidiary of Hawker Siddeley. As tensions in Europe increased, resulting in the outbreak of the Second World War, Avro returned to the production of military aircraft, producing the Avro Manchester, Lancaster and Lincoln bombers. The twin engine Manchester was unsuccessful, partly due to its Vulture engines. Replacing the Vultures with four Rolls-Royce Merlin engines resulted in the more successful Lancaster. 7,377 of these were produced and saw active service during the war. In 1944, the Lancaster was further developed into the Lincoln, the last piston engine bomber in Royal Air Force service. In order to meet rising demand Avro opened a new factory at Greengate, Chadderton, in 1938, where almost half of all Avro Lancasters were produced, with final assembly at Woodford Aerodrome. The following year, Avro also established an experimental department at RAF Ringway, now known as Manchester Airport, and a shadow factory at Yeadon Aerodrome, now Leeds-Bradford Airport. The Yeadon factory produced 5,500 aircraft including Ansons, Lancasters, Yorks and Lincolns. Towards the end of the Second World War, Avro put into production a number of civil airliners, in order to make up for a drop in military orders. One of these designs was the Lancastrian, which was a conversion of the Lancaster bomber. The second was the Avro York, which was also based on the Lancaster but used a different fuselage. Production of this would be limited until 1944 due to the focus on military aircraft. The final design that the company produced was the Tudor. This used many components from the Lincoln but suffered from the fact that it wasn’t sufficiently advanced when compared to existing designs and as a result it did not achieve many orders. Despite this both the York and Tudor were used in the Berlin Airlift. On 23rd August 1947 Roy Chadwick was killed in a crash involving a prototype Tudor 2 that was undergoing testing. Despite this his impact on the company continued, as he had already begun design work on a number of aircraft that Avro went on to produce. In 1948 Avro produced the Tudor 8 which was powered by four Nene jet engines. This design retained the tail wheel undercarriage, which placed the engine exhausts close to the ground. As a result, the company replaced this with a tricycle undercarriage for the Tudor 9. The design became known as the Avro Ashton, which first flew in 1950. Although this was one of the first jet transport aircraft it was primarily used for research and it was not intended to enter service. On 30th August 1952 the Avro 698 made its first flight. This was a four engine jet bomber that had been developed to replace existing piston engine designs. Further development of the design resulted in the Avro 707 and the Avro 710. The 710 was not put into full production as it was considered too time consuming to develop. The 698 entered service in 1956 under the name Vulcan, with an improved B.2 version introduced in 1960. The Avro Vulcan was retired in 1984 after having only being using in combat once, during the 1982 Falklands War. During the late 1950s the company developed the 748 turbo-prop airliner. This successful design was sold around the world and was later developed into the Ashton transport by Hawker Siddeley. The same period also saw the company’s weapons research division begin development of the Blue Steel nuclear missile. During 1963, parent company Hawker Siddeley restructured its aviation subsidiaries. Each subsidiary had operated under its own brand name, but from July 1963 all subsidiaries were merged into Hawker Siddeley's Aviation Division, which was operated as a single brand. The missile division of the company would become part of the Dynamics Division. Avro as a company ceased to exist, but the Avro was later reused by British Aerospace for their 146 regional airliner, known as the Avro RJ.

Hawker Siddeley Group PLC was initially formed as the Hawker Siddeley Aircraft Company on 11th July 1935. The new company was established to acquire all of the shares of the Armstrong Siddeley Development Company and 50% of the shares of the Hawker Aircraft Company. This merged the two largest British aircraft manufacturers and included the subsidiaries of the two companies involved. These consisted of Armstrong Siddeley Motors, Sir W.G. Armstrong Whitworth Aircraft Ltd and A.V. Roe and Co, which were part of the Armstrong Siddeley Development Company, and the Gloster Aircraft Company, which was part of Hawker, all of which continued to produce aircraft under their own names. During the Second World War Hawker Siddeley was one of the most important aircraft manufacturers in Britain. During the course of the conflict it produced several important designs including the Hawker Hurricane and Avro Lancaster as well as working on Britain’s first jet aircraft, the Gloster E.28/39, and the first British jet fighter, the Gloster Meteor. In 1945 the company also purchased Victory Aircraft from the Canadian government and transferred to its subsidiary Avro. This then became A.V. Roe Canada but was most often know as Avro Canada. On 22nd June 1948 the company underwent a restricting when it was transformed from a private to a public limited company and underwent a name change. As such it went from being Hawker Siddeley Aircraft Company Limited to Hawker Siddeley Group Limited. In 1957 the Hawker Siddeley Group purchased the Brush Group, which included Brush Electrical Machines and Brush Traction. At the time it also acquired Mirrlees, Bickerton and Day. It also formed Hawker Siddeley John Brown Nuclear Construction as a joint venture to produce nuclear power equipment for marine propulsion, electrical generation and other industrial applications. In 1958 it formed another join company this time with Beyer Peacock, under the name Beyer Peacock (Hymek) Ltd, in order to manufacture diesel hydraulic locomotives. 1959 saw a further joint company, Primapax, which made, hired and sold vending machines. During the late 1950s the British government decided that the number of aircraft manufacturers should be decreased as the number of contracts being offered was being reduced. As a result of this Hawker Siddeley merged all of its aviation interests, Hawker, Avro, Gloster, Armstrong Whitworth and Armstrong Siddeley, into a single division, Hawker Siddeley Aviation during October 1958. In 1959 it also merged its aircraft engine business, Armstrong Siddeley, with Bristol Aero Engines to form Bristol Siddeley Engines. The group also acquired Folland Aircraft and in 1960 purchased both the de Havilland Aircraft Company and the Blackburn Group. By 1961 the Hawker Siddeley Group was made up of 3 major operational groups, Hawker Siddeley Aviation, Hawker Siddeley Industries and A.V. Roe Canada. Avro Canada would be dissolved in 1962 due to the cancellation of the Avro Arrow aircraft with its remaining assets being transferred to Hawker Siddeley Canada. The new company focused on the manufacture of railway vehicles, subway cars and trams. In 1963 the group underwent a further restructuring as the names of its constituent companies were dropped in favour of a single Hawker Siddeley branding. As a result, the company’s products were rebranded with a HS number in place of their previous number. During 1968 the group expanded further by acquiring Crompton Parkinson, which was later combined with Brook Motors, when they acquired this company in 1970, to form Brook Crompton. On 29th April 1977 the Hawker Siddeley Group underwent a major change when, as a result of the Aircraft and Shipbuilding Industries Act, its Aviation and Dynamics groups were nationalised and merged with the British Aircraft Corporation and Scottish Aviation to form British Aerospace. Despite this loss of its aviation interests, they only accounted for 25% of the group’s business and as such it was able reorganise its remaining interests in a holding company, Hawker Siddeley Group PLC. The decision was taken to focus this group on railway engineering, industrial electronics and signalling equipment. During the 1980s the Hawker Siddeley Group continued to expand, acquiring Carlton Industries between 1981 and 1984, and GEC Small Machines Company and GEC Alsthom Electromotes in 1989. This success made the group a target for a hostile takeover by the BTR conglomerate and in November 1991 they acquired it for £1.5 billion. The Hawker Siddeley name continued to be used in the group’s switchgear division which was later sold to FKI and later Melrose PLC.

Basil Derek Wragge Morley was born in Cambridge, and most noted for his work on the study of ants. From 1946-1949, he held the Macaulay Fellowship for Genetical Research at Edinburgh University. In 1948, he was an invitation lecturer at the Institute for Social Anthropology at Oxford. His research included Genetics, Social Behaviour of animals, and the behaviour of agricultural pests. During the Second World War he investigated insect pests for the Ministry of Agriculture. Derek Wragge-Morley wrote several books on Ants, including "The Ant World" (1953), and a film on the subject called "Ant Warfare". He also wrote a book about computing machines, entitled "Automatic Data Processing", which was published in 1961 by Her Majesty's Stationery Office for the Department of Scientific and Industrial Research, and acted as a scientific consultant to a film about the application of computers in industry and the pros and cons of installing such systems, entitled "This Automaton Age". He later became an independent scientific consultant, who served as Scientific Editor for both Picture Post Magazine and the Financial Times. He married Monica Strutt in 1952, and had four children.

Terence R.F. Nonweiler worked as a professor at Queen's University, Belfast and wrote the first conceptual paper on the Nonweiler Waverider, a British manned spaceplane, in 1951.

Established as a joint venture between the Bristol Aeroplane Co and Aerojet General of the US, based in Weston-Super-Mare. The company was sold to Vickers in 1979.

Worked for Bristol Aerojet Ltd. c.1959-1979

(fl 1930-2006), aviation engineer John Allen was educated at state schools in London, taking a BSc in aeronautical engineering at London University; he earned top prizes in his discipline. A student apprenticeship with Handley Page honed his practical skills. Allen was science officer with the Marine Experimental Research Establishment (MAEE) at Rhu, Scotland. When the unit returned to Felixstowe in 1945 he was appointed head of its technical office. John supervised the ballistics and aircraft integration of Blue Danube, Britain's first atomic bomb, at Farnborough from 1950 until 1954. From 1960 he was deputy director of Avro's new weapon research division, working on development of the hydrogen bomb. In 1969 John was appointed chief future projects engineer with Hawker Siddeley, involved particularly with development of Harrier and Hawk aircraft that for decades made an impact while training or giving displays with the Red Arrows formation team John married Peggy Heath in 1948 and they had two sons who became engineers, and four grandchildren. Peggy died in 1987.

Worked at Pye Limited, Cambridge

Worked for Hawker Siddley Nuclear Power Company Ltd.

Worked as Chief Aerodynamicist at Sir W.G. Armstrong Whitworth Aircraft Ltd.

Worked at A.V. Roe and Company (Avro).

Worked as the Head of the Aerophysics group at A.V. Roe and Company (Avro).

Worked at the College of Aeronautics, Cranford.

George Beardshall was an engineer who is known to have worked for AVRO during the Second World War. Bearshall later worked as a Chief Engineer in the Oxygen Division of Normalair Ltd., which manufactured life support equipment for the aerospace industry.

Worked for Normalair Ltd.

Geoffrey Keith Charles Pardoe attended and gained a BScEng from Loughborough of College of Technology and later gained a PhD in Astronautics from Loughborough University in 1984. From 1949-1951 he was Senior Aerodynamicist at Armstrong Whitworth Aircraft, then part of Hawker Siddeley. He worked on rocket design and the Sea Slug (missile) (Britain's first guided missile). From 1951-19566 he was Chief Aerodynamicist at the Guided Weapons division of de Havilland Propellers, working on the De Havilland Firestreak. He worked on aerodynamics and flight analysis. De Havilland was given the Blue Streak ballistic missile project, and he was the Chief Co-Ordinator from 1956 until its cancellation in 1960. De Havilland merged with Hawker Siddeley in 1960, and he was the Chief Engineer of Hawker Siddeley Dynamics Weapons and Space Research division from 1960-1963. From 1963-1969 he was Chief Project Engineer of the company's Space Division. He was Managing Director from 1985-7 and Deputy Chairman from 1987-93 of Surrey Satellite Technology. During the Apollo 11 mission to the Moon in 1969, he was part of the television commentary team with Reg Turnill. He was chosen for this role as he was a good communicator. In 1986 he became Chairman of the Watt Committee on Energy. From 1984-1985 he was President of the Royal Aeronautical Society. He was made OBE in 1988, a Fellow of the Royal Aeronautical Society in 1968, and of the Royal Academy of Engineering in 1988. From 1993 until his death in 1996 he was Director of the International Academy of Science.

Worked at Pye Limited, Cambridge

Worked at Pye Limited, Cambridge

Worked as Technical Director at Sir W.G. Armstrong Whitworth Aircraft Ltd.

Sir W.G. Armstrong, Whitworth Aircraft Ltd was initially formed as the aerial department of Sir W.G. Armstrong, Whitworth and Company Ltd. Upon creation it was focused on the production of Royal Aircraft Factory designed BE.2c aircraft for a government order. During the First World War this continued, along with the production of designs produced by Frederick Koolhoven. In 1920 Armstrong-Whitworth acquired Siddeley-Deasy and created the Armstrong Whitworth Development Company as a subsidiary. Also, at this time the aerial department was reorganised into a subsidiary of the new Development Company under the name Sir W.G. Armstrong Whitworth Aircraft Ltd. Initially this was based in Parkside, near Coventry, but construction later moved to the Whitley airfield, while the design office remained at the original site. The Development Company did not stay under the ownership of the parent Armstrong Whitworth Company, as in 1927 it was sold and became the Armstrong Siddeley Development Company. This sale included the aircraft subsidiary which also came under this ownership and was not sold with the rest of the defence holdings to Vickers. Following John Siddeley’s retirement from the company’s board Hawker Aircraft purchased the Armstrong Siddeley Development Company and then sold it to a new parent company, Hawker Siddeley Aircraft Co Ltd. Despite this new ownership the constituent companies continued to produce aircraft under their own names and as such Armstrong Whitworth Aircraft continued to produce its own designs. During the Second World War the company produced both its own designs and those of others and following the end of the conflict its parent company changed its name to the Hawker Siddeley Group. Also, during the 1950s, additional facilities where added to Armstrong Whitworth with production of jet aircraft being introduced at Baginton and Bitteswell. In 1963 Hawker Siddeley decided to merge all of its aviation division into one single entity, Hawker Siddeley Aviation. This was partly due to a government decision that there should be a reduction in the number of aircraft manufactures, as there were fewer contracts being offered. As such aircraft where no longer produced under the Armstrong Whitworth name.

Worked as the Head of the Assessment group at A.V. Roe and Company (Avro).

Originally known as The Heywood Compressor Co, founded in Glover Street, Redditch, Worcestershire, it was renamed The Hymatic Engineering Co. in 1946. The company designed and produced portable and stationary air compressors and valves supplying the Royal Air Force in the 1950s. Around 1952 it was acquired by Chloride and by 1957 was a subsidary of Chloride Electrical Storage Co. By 1973, the company was involved in cryogenics, systems engineering, aircraft and missile equipment, precision control valves, and other products and was taken over by Huntleigh Investments in 1974. Now owned by Honeywell, Honeywell Hymatic is a maker of high tech equipment for the defence and aerospace sectors.