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The British and Colonial Aeroplane
Company, Ltd was founded in February 1910 by Sir George White,
chairman of the Bristol Tramway and Carriage Company, along with
his son Stanley and his brother Samuel, to commercially exploit
the fast-growing aviation sector. Unlike most aviation companies
at the time, which were started by enthusiasts with little financial
backing or business ability, British and Colonial was from its
outset well funded and run by experienced businessmen. Sir George
established the business as a separate company from the Bristol
Tramway Company because he considered that such a venture would
be seen as too risky by many shareholders, and the new company's
working capital of £25,000 was subscribed entirely by Sir
George, his brother, and his son. Nevertheless, as might be expected,
the affairs of the two companies were closely connected, and
the company's first premises were two former tram sheds suitable
for aircraft manufacture at Filton, leased from the Bristol Tramway
Company. Additionally, key personnel for the new business were
recruited from the employees of the Tramway Company, including
George Challenger as chief engineer and works manager. It was
both one of the first and one of the most important British aviation
companies, designing and manufacturing both airframes and aero
engines. Flying schools were established at Brooklands, Surrey,
then the centre of activity for British aviation, where Bristol
rented a hangar; and at Larkhill on Salisbury Plain where, in
June 1910, a school was established on 2,248 acres (9.10 km2)
of land leased from the War Office. These flying schools came
to be regarded as some of the best in the world, and by 1914,
308 of the 664 Royal Aero Club certificates which had been issued
had been gained at the company's schools. Notable aircraft produced
by the company include the 'Boxkite', the Bristol Fighter, the
Bulldog, the Blenheim, the Beaufighter, and the Britannia, and
much of the preliminary work which led to the Concorde was carried
out by the company. In 1956 its major operations were split into
Bristol Aircraft and Bristol Aero Engines. In 1959, Bristol Aircraft
merged with several major British aircraft companies to form
the British Aircraft Corporation (BAC) and Bristol Aero Engines
merged with Armstrong Siddeley to form Bristol Siddeley. BAC
went on to become a founding component of the nationalised British
Aerospace, now BAE Systems. Bristol Siddeley was purchased by
Rolls-Royce in 1966, who continued to develop and market Bristol-designed
engines. The BAC works were in Filton, about 4 miles (6 km) north
of Bristol city centre. BAE Systems, Airbus, Rolls Royce, MBDA
and GKN still have a presence at the Filton site where the Bristol
Aeroplane Company was located. |
