20 RAF CENTENARY CELEBRATION BOMBERS
HANDLEY PAGE
1925 TO 1935
HANDLEY PAGE HYDERABAD AND HINAIDI
HYDERABAD AND HINAIDIHYDERABAD AND HINAIDIHYDERABAD AND HINAIDI
1918 2018W
hen 99 Squadron received
its first Hyderabad at
Bircham Newton in
December 1925, there was some
relief the unit was once again
operating a twin. For 16 months
prior to that, 99 had been flying
the huge, single-engined Avro
Aldershot. Prior to the Avro, 99
Squadron flew the reliable and well-
liked Vickers Vimy – the biplanes
that had conquered the Atlantic
non-stop.
It is reasonable to conclude that
the Vimy, first flown in 1917, was
well outclassed by the Hyderabad.
Not so, only in speed did the
Handley Page bomber win out,
with a maximum speed of 109mph
(175km/h) is was 9mph faster.
The Vimy had a range of 900
miles (1,448km) and a bomb load
of 2,500lb (1,134kg); eclipsing
the Hyderabad by 400 miles and
1,400lb respectively.
What sort of progress was this?
Alongside the Vimy, Handley Page
had been developing the O/
bomber, and both were intended to
take the war to the cities of Germany- ideally all the way to Berlin. This
was to bring the German population
into the front line in the same way
that Zeppelin airships and Gotha
bombers had for the people of
Britain. The Admiralty had told
Handley Page “a bloody paralyser of
an aeroplane” was needed.
By 1925 things had changed and
the technological advances brought
on by the extreme needs of war had
receded. The Great War had become
known as the ‘War to end all wars’
and its ferocity and carnage had
left Europe in a state of shock. The
Versailles Treaty of 1919 had inflictedswingeing sanctions on Germany,
and great faith was being placed in
the League of Nations which came
into being in January 1920 to police
disputes between countries.
British foreign policy assumed
there would not be a major war
involving Britain or its empire for
all of the 1920s and well into the
1930s. The Hyderabad did not needlong range, or high performance; it
was there to present a deterrent and
keep aircrew proficient in the art of
bombing. None of the nations across
the English Channel or the North
Sea had an aircraft that rivalled it.
The most action the Hyderabad
was expected to face would be against
dissident tribes in the Middle East or
Afghan warlords in the North-West
Frontier of India. The section on
the Hawker Horsley, explains a little
about how the RAF named its aircraftType: Four-crew heavy bomber
First fl ight: October 1923, entered service December 1925
Powerplant: Two 500hp (373kW) Napier Lion V W-format, 12-cylinder
Dimensions: Span 75ft 0in (22.8m), Length 59ft 2in (18.0m)
Weights: Empty 8,910lb (4,041kg), All-up 13,590lb (6,164kg)
Range: 500 miles (804km)
Max speed: 109mph (175km/h) at sea level
Armament: Three machine guns, in nose, dorsal and ventral positions. Up to
1,100lb (498kg) of bombs
Replaced: Avro Aldershot, Vickers Vimy
Taken on charge: 44 with conversions to Hinaidi
Replaced by: Handley Page HeyfordHANDLEY PAGE HYDERABAD
1925 TO 1935
HYDERABAD AND HINAIDIHYDERABAD AND HINAIDI
swingeing sanctions on Germany,
and great faith was being placed inAbove
Hinaidi I J9031 of
99 Squadron, based
at Upper Heyford,
late 1930. Built as a
Hyderabad, in October
1928, it joined 99
Squadron. On February
15, 1929 it force-landed
on the playing fi elds
of Harrow School and
was taken away to be
rebuilt as a Hinaidi.
© ANDY HAY
http://www.fl yingart.co.ukAbove right
Head-on view of a
Hyderabad, readily
recognised by its
Napier Lion W-format
engines. Note the fuel
‘cells’ underneath the
centre section of the
upper wing, and the
bomb racks under the
lower wing.