Aircraft

A selection of pictures of aircraft seen at Croydon throughout it's history

The Gloster Aircraft Company

The Gloster Aircraft Company was a British aircraft manufacturer from 1917 to 1963. Founded as the Gloucestershire Aircraft Company Limited during the First World War, with the aircraft construction activities of H H Martyn & Co Ltd of Cheltenham, England it produced fighters during the war. It was renamed later as foreigners found 'Gloucestershire' difficult to pronounce. It later became part of the Hawker Siddeley group and the Gloster name disappeared in 1963. Gloster designed and built several fighters that equipped the British Royal Air Force (RAF) during the interwar years including the Gladiator, the RAF's last biplane fighter. The company built most of the wartime production of Hawker Hurricanes and Hawker Typhoons for their parent company Hawker Siddeley while its design office was working on the first British jet aircraft, the E.28/39 experimental aircraft. This was followed by the Meteor, the RAF's first jet-powered fighter and the only Allied jet fighter to be put into service during Second World War.

(above) Douglas Bader with his Gloster Gamecock at Croydon. 1930

(above) Airman of 615 Squadron cooked, ate and slept near their aircraft. Here Aircraftsman Lloyd gives a haircut alongside a Gloster Gladiator. It was March 1940 before modern Hurricanes and Spitfires arrived at Croydon.