Short Scion Explained

The Short S.16 Scion and Scion II were 1930s British two-engine, cantilever monoplanes built by Short Brothers and (under licence) by Pobjoy Airmotors and Aircraft Ltd. in Rochester, Kent between 1933 and 1937. Altogether 22 Scion/Scion II aircraft were built and they provided useful service to operators working from small airstrips/water courses in many parts of the globe, including Europe, the Near and Middle East, Sierra Leone, Papua New Guinea and Australia. Many were impressed into the Royal Air Force during the Second World War, providing pilot ferry services, anti-aircraft co-operation and radar calibration duties. Of the civilian Scions, at least two were still operating in Australia in 1966, one having been re-engined with de Havilland Gipsy Minor engines.[1]

Design

The Scion and the later Scion II version were high wing cantilever monoplanes with fabric-covered metal wings and fuselage, the latter providing an enclosed cabin for the pilot and 5–6 passengers. The tail unit comprised a cantilever tailplane with a single fin and rudder. The prototype aircraft was powered by two Pobjoy R radial engines; the production aircraft however were fitted with the Pobjoy Niagara III radial engines. The engines in the Scion were mounted with thrust-lines below the chord-line of the wings; in the Scion II they were raised so that the thrust-lines were aligned with the chord-line, to avoid trim changes in pitch with changes in power. Both the Scion and the Scion II were produced as either landplanes or floatplanes, the majority as landplanes (see the table below). On the landplanes the landing gear comprised a single wheel on each side of the fuselage, mounted on a vertical coil-spring and oleo leg inboard of the engine; there was a small castoring tailwheel mounted below the rear end of the fuselage.[2]

History

The Scion was developed as a light transport for 5–6 passengers. The first flight of the prototype aircraft (G-ACJI) took place on 18 August 1933, piloted by Shorts' Chief Test Pilot John Lankester Parker. The first production aircraft (G-ACUV) was flown at the SBAC's airshow at Hendon in 1934. In 1935 the fifth production model was built as the revised model Scion II; the major improvement was the repositioning of the two engines as noted above; other changes included the provision of 6 passenger seats as standard (on the original Scion there was a folding seat for a sixth passenger if needed), an improved windscreen and better cabin windows. During the production of the Scions the company had opened a new factory at Rochester Airport and all Scion IIs were manufactured there, initially by Shorts, later by Pobjoy, first under licence and later under Shorts' ownership.

G-ADDR, the fifth Scion II, was retained by Shorts as an experimental testbed aircraft, and it was on this aircraft (temporarily designated M.3) that a scale wooden model of the slender wings (with Gouge flaps) for the later Short Empire boats was tested, the first flight in this configuration being conducted by Lankester Parker on 6 August 1935. With these flaps fitted it was tested at the Royal Aircraft Establishment, which found that the Gouge flap decreased distance to take-off and stalling speed, among other improvements.[3] Further work with standard wings was carried out; one flight from Rochester Airport, with experimental full-span flaps incorporating retractable spoilers instead of ailerons, was made on 22 July 1936; this idea proved unworkable, Lankester Parker having to draw on his considerable experience to coax the aircraft around on a single circuit before landing safely. The standard wing was refitted and the aircraft continued with Shorts in this configuration until it was impressed into military service in 1940, an operational usage experienced by 14 of the 22 Scion/Scion II aircraft.

G-AEZF, built by Pobjoy and first flown in December 1937, was originally operated as a floatplane by Elders Colonial Airways in Sierra Leone, between Bathurst (Gambia) and Freetown, and was returned to Shorts in 1939 and converted into a landplane in 1941. After operating for the company for another six years it was eventually sold on to Air Couriers Ltd. in 1947,[4] after which it changed hands between private owners several times before finally ending up at Southend airport. The plane is now undergoing restoration by Medway Aircraft Preservation Society (MAPSL), funded in part by a grant from the Rochester Bridge Trust.

A larger 9-passenger enlarged version of Scion was produced as the Short S.22 Scion Senior.

Survivors

G-AEZF:After a long career, this aircraft stood derelict at Southend Airport. Its frame was rescued and is currently held for long-term restoration by the Medway Aircraft Preservation Society at Rochester Airport.[5]
G-ACUX: one of the 'Australian' Scions still flying in the 1960s, was later returned to the United Kingdom and is held in deep storage at the Ulster Folk and Transport Museum, Cultra, Holywood, Northern Ireland.[6] It is claimed that its condition has been allowed to deteriorate. It was not on public display in April 2012.
VH-UTV: another 'Australian' Scion. Under restoration at Luskintyre in New South Wales to return to operable condition. Privately owned.

Variants

Scion and Scion II production

+ List of aircraft
Aircraft Type First flight TypeManufacturer Built Notes
1G-ACJILandplane 18 August 1933Scion (prototype) Shorts Seaplane Worksto RAF in 1940
2G-ACUVLandplane18 August 1933Scion Shorts Seaplane Works
3G-ACUWLandplane18 August 1933Scion Shorts Seaplane Worksto RAF in 1940
4G-ACUXFloatplane18 August 1933Scion Shorts Seaplane Works
5G-ACUYLandplane10 December 1934ScionShorts Seaplane Worksto RAF in 1940
6G-ACUZLandplane13 February 1935Scion II Shorts Rochester Airport
7G-ADDNLandplane9 June 1935Scion II Shorts Rochester Airportto RAF in 1940
8G-ADDOLandplane10 July 1935Scion II Shorts Rochester Airportto RAF in 1940
9G-ADDPLandplaneScion II Shorts Rochester Airportto RAF in 1940
10G-ADDRLandplane6 August 1935Scion II Shorts Rochester Airportto RAF in 1940
11VH-UUTLandplane23 August 1935Scion II Shorts Rochester Airport
12G-ADDTLandplane–Scion II Shorts Rochester Airport
13VH-UVQLandplanealign="right" -Scion II Shorts Rochester Airport
14G-ADDVLandplane–Scion II Shorts Rochester Airportto RAF in 1940
15VH-UTVLandplane– Scion II Shorts Rochester Airport
16G-ADDXLandplane–Scion II Shorts Rochester Airportto RAF in 1940
17VQ-PAALandplane–Scion II PobjoyRochester Airportto RAF in 1941
18VQ-PABLandplane–Scion II PobjoyRochester Airportto RAF in 1941
19G-AEILLandplane1936Scion II PobjoyRochester Airportto RAF in 1940
20G-AEJNLandplaneSeptember 1936Scion II PobjoyRochester Airportto RAF in 1940
21G-AETTLandplaneApril 1937Scion II PobjoyRochester Airportto RAF in 1940
22G-AEZFFloatplane9 December 1937Scion II PobjoyRochester Airportpreserved

Operators

Floatplanes

Australia
Sierra Leone

Landplanes

Australia
Sierra Leone
United Kingdom

References

Bibliography

External links

Notes and References

  1. Barnes and James, p.294.
  2. Barnes and James, p.287.
  3. Cohen, 1936, R&M 1753, p.3.
  4. Barnes and James, p.293.
  5. Web site: Home . mapsl.co.uk.
  6. http://www.ibiblio.org/pub/academic/history/marshall/military/airforce/museum.txt ibiblio.org

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