CoolPix: The Rather Amazing 1930 Handley Page H.P.42/H.P.45 (+ Video)
Thursday, February 16, 2012 at 12:15PM 
The huge 4-engine, 130' wingspan Handley Page H.P.42 airliner introduced in 1931
(click pic for hi-res)
My self-directed aviation education as a kid was built around books that my dad had, and while I learned about airliners of the late 20's and very early 30's like the Ford Trimotor and the Boeing 80A, I never knew anything about the Handley Page H.P.42 and H.P.45. I suppose the fact that it was operated by Imperial Airways on European, Indian, and South African routes might have had something to do with that. While I learned about lots of foreign military aircraft, my early airliner exposure was mostly United States oriented.
So, the H.P.42, what an amazing beast! With four Bristol Jupiter engines making 490hp (550hp on the H.P.45) and wingspan on the top wing of 130 feet, this was one big airplane! Big enough to actually have two passenger cabins, one forward of the wings and one aft... with the ability, depending on configuration, of carrying 38 passengers and a crew of 4. Pretty amazing given the time period, and the relatively low overall horsepower.
The one big trade-off that these airplanes had was that they were darn slow. With a cruise speed of just 95 to 100 mph, you'd better hope you didn't have a very strong headwind! Eight of the big birds were built, (four H.P.42 and four H.P.45), and while none survive today, they served in an airliner capacity for about 9 years, during which time no lives were lost - quite an impressive record for the 1930's.
Aviation history is full of fascinating aircraft that represent a tremendous accomplish for their day, and the Handley Page H.P.42 and H.P.45 were pretty amazing flying machines. Interestingly, there was a project seeking to build an authentic replica of the aircraft, tho it's hard to tell if it's still in the works these days or not.
Be sure to watch the video below that shows this big bipe in the air!
Reader Comments (9)
If you examine the hi-res picture, it's clear they put a bunch of thought into how to build the thing. You can clearly see the section breaks in the fuselage and the wings. Too bad only 8 were ever built, and the economies of scale were never realized. However, just a few short years later, those kinds of smart ideas about how to build the pieces were vital to the UK & US effort to produce as many aircraft as possible in a very short period of time. For those out there just waiting to pounce, don't get me wrong - I'm not implying HP was the first, or only, firm to give thought to manufacturing!
How big was it? Think of of a 9/10 size B-29 biplane (since we had a recent B-29 entry. Of course its empty weight was only about 1/4 of the B-29.
I think it's just amazing how much progress was made in the 25 years after the Wright brothers first flight in 1903. To go from no people flying at all to an aircraft capable of carrying over 40 people in relative comfort is astonishing.
Hi,
Just a short message to say that our project to build a replica of the HP42 is still ongoing. Our PR campaign will be next year along with the opening of our new Imperial Airways museum. Please go to our team website at www.team-merlin.com for details and visit our facebook page (search for 'Team Merlin - Aviation and Film') and like the page for more details too.
"....rather amazing...." not so "amazing"
berxavy e3d3fd1842 http://www.kuaixin.net/orimbotca
berxavy e3d3fd1842 http://www.kuaixin.net/orimbotca
berxavy e3d3fd1842 http://www.kuaixin.net/orimbotca
berxavy e3d3fd1842 http://www.kuaixin.net/orimbotca