The General Service Requirement for the ideal Air O.P. aircraft to succeed the Auster 6 was written by condensing wartime know-how into the A2/45 specifications. Three manufacturers – Auster, Hestons and Miles, built widely different prototypes in attempts to improve the performance of the Auster 6 – they all failed.
The specification called for an aeroplane that could clear an 50ft obstacle in 200 yards from a standing start, with full load and armour. The service ceiling required was 11000 feet. It also had to have armour proof against .303 ammunition at 200 yards below and behind the pilot as well as the engine.
It was also required that the aircraft could be dismantled within 30 minutes by the pilot and four soldiers into small enough components to enable its transportation on an Army three ton truck.
The first Auster design, the Model M, was originally modelled around the 160hp Gipsy Major engine. But as the specification made many changes to the build, it became a far larger aircraft with a Gipsy Queen 34 of 240hp, thus becoming the Model N.
Two Auster A2/45s were built at Rearsby; the first VL522 making its first flight on April 28 1948. Towards the end of 1948 Ranald Porteous, who had just joined the company and who was later to become the Chief Test Pilot, made a short solo flight in the aircraft. He was not very impressed with it. Asked to recall the A2/45’s handling characteristics he had this to say:
The A2/45 was a most uninspiring aircraft to fly. The controls were heavy, soggy and ill-harmonised, the ailerons particularly unresponsive and caused much adverse yaw. The Auster’s take off performance was quite brisk, although as I recall not quite short as the requirement.
When the trials commenced nothing was seen of the Miles product at Middle Wallop (it remained a paper project), where in May and June 1949 trials of the Heston (a low wing, twin boom pusher monoplane) had proved that this otherwise delightful little aircraft had a totally inadequate take-off performance. Two Auster A2/45s were delivered to Middle Wallop in June 1950. In the meantime, the home of Army Aviation had changed its name from 227 (Air O.P.) O.C.U. to the Air O.P. School.
Trials quickly showed that Auster’s contender for the A2/45 specifications had some very pecuilar habits. It was a tandem seater in which the rear observer faced aft. The overall silhouette was a distinct breakaway from the traditional Auster and owed a lot, to the wartime Fi.156 Storch.
Apart from a 300 yard take-off, the flap handling was most odd. Outsized flaps were wound down by a handwheel at the pilot’s left hand. These flaps, when down, produced a very high drag coupled with a strong downwash on the tailplane.
These combined affects brought the aircraft’s nose up sharply as flap was applied and during the subsequent approach to land, the stick had to be held fully forward against the instrument panel. A three point landing was made by releasing the forward pressure on the stick. The climax of the trials came when, with a rear observer providing maximum aft C of G, the luckless pilot found that a flapped landing was impossible and in the attempt neatly removed the starboard undercarriage leg.
During subsequent investigation it was disclosed that Boscombe Down had forgotten to tell anyone that they considered the aircraft unsafe in this configuration. None of the A2/45 series were accepted.
In September 1948 VL522 appeared at the SBAC Show at Farnborough. Its performance was disappointing for, after taking off in company with the Auster Avis, it returned to land and was not seen again.
The second prototype VL523 was flown a year later than the first and by December 1949 was undergoing preliminary trials at Rearsby, Leicestershire. Both aircraft were still at Rearsby in April 1950, neither the Heston or the Auster A2/45 being ordered into production. A month later both airframes were flown down to Middle Wallop, where they were soon allocated to Maintenance Command. Whatever happened to VL522 we don’t know, but VL523 was seen in a scrapyard in Liverpool in 1957.
This project couldn’t have created without the wonderful help from Peter Stoddart of the Leicester Council Records Office (who hold all of the Auster archives – nearly all documents for the A2/45 were quickly destroyed when the project was cancelled) who helped with reference material and Mike Preston of the Auster Heritage Group. Without their assistance, this model would have extremely hard to create and I must say that myself, Dave and Brian have to have seen all that there is on this forgotten aeroplane as to tell the truth not much exists. What does exist has made us create a realistic replica of Auster’s White Elephant.
One thing for sure, is that the instrument panel is rather unique to the flight sim world as it incorporates the test gauges that were used during the preliminary trials of the project – I don’t this has been seen before. And a word of advice, please, please read the readme files before you take to the skies, they contain vital information, that even myself after some 50 hours of testing failed to notice upon a later flight. My actions (or lack of them) to say the least were rather embarrassing!
If it had lived up to it s expectations than it has said that she would have been the Westland Lysander all over again. It’s a wonderful aeroplane to fly and will give the Storch a run for its money. I’ve tested various models over the last few weeks and am always looking for somewhere small to put her down into and 9/10 have succeeded. She’s a lot different than the other major Auster models and a delight to fly, so I hope you enjoy flying her as much as we the creators and the beta team have done in producing her for you.
Best wishes,
Martin
-so don't worry about any hard landings !