The ANEC III was a 1920s

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. * British national identity, the characteristics of British people and culture ...

six-seat passenger and mail carrier aircraft built by Air Navigation and Engineering Company Limited at

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Surrey Surrey () is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Greater London to the northeast, Kent to the east, East Sussex, East and West Sussex to the south, and Hampshire and Berkshire to the wes ...

History

Following a requirement for a passenger and mail carrier for the

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

n company Larkin Aircraft Supply Company Limited an order was placed for a monoplane airliner designed by George H. Handasyde known as the Handasyde H.2. Handasyde, having no factory of their own, contracted Air Navigation and Engineering to build the aircraft on their behalf. Larkin had decided that the H.2 monoplane could not operate in the heat of Australia, and transferred the contract to supply a new airliner to A.N.E.C. Three ANEC III aircraft were built. The new design was an unequal-span biplane with a Rolls-Royce Eagle IX engine. The pilot sat in the open above the mail compartment, with space for six passengers or cargo inside the fuselage. The first aircraft flew at

Brooklands Brooklands was a motor racing circuit and aerodrome built near Weybridge in Surrey, England, United Kingdom. It opened in 1907 and was the world's first purpose-built 'banked' motor racing circuit as well as one of Britain's first airfields, ...

on 23 March 1926 with the Australian registration G-AUEZ. All three aircraft were crated and shipped to Australia and were operated by Larkin's operating subsidiary

Australian Aerial Services Australian(s) may refer to: Australia * Australia, a country * Australians, citizens of the Commonwealth of Australia ** European Australians ** Anglo-Celtic Australians, Australians descended principally from British colonists ** Aboriginal Aus ...

. The aircraft were named ''Diamond Bird'', ''Satin Bird'' and ''Love Bird''. The three aircraft gave sterling service for a number of years and made a number of important flights in the Australian outback. First registered on 21 May 1927, ''Satin Bird'' was used by the wealthy sheepowner William Oliver and his party to tour central Australia that same year, stopping at

Oodnadatta Oodnadatta is a small, remote outback town and locality in the Australian state of South Australia, located north-north-west of the state capital of Adelaide city centre, Adelaide by road or direct, at an altitude of . The unsealed Oodnadatta ...

Alice Springs Alice Springs () is a town in the Northern Territory, Australia; it is the third-largest settlement after Darwin, Northern Territory, Darwin and Palmerston, Northern Territory, Palmerston. The name Alice Springs was given by surveyor William ...

Farina Farina may refer to: Places * Farina, South Australia, a former town in outback South Australia * Farina, Illinois, a village in the United States * Farina railway station, a former railway station on the Central Australian Railway, South Australi ...

, Maree,

Charlotte Waters Charlotte Waters was a tiny settlement in the Northern Territory of Australia located close to the South Australian border, not far from Aputula. It was known for its telegraph station, the Charlotte Waters Telegraph Station, which became a hub ...

, and Simpsons Gap. ''Satin Bird'' crashed at Hay on 27 December 1927 and remained inactive until 1929, when it was officially struck from the aircraft registry. In 1928 the two remaining aircraft were withdrawn from service. Both aircraft were rebuilt as 11-seaters (two pilots plus nine passengers, or the equivalent weight of fuel and cargo) with a lengthened fuselage and a more powerful

Armstrong Siddeley Jaguar The Armstrong Siddeley Jaguar is an aircraft engine developed by Armstrong Siddeley. The Jaguar was a petrol-fuelled air-cooled 14-cylinder two-row radial engine design. The Jaguar III was first used in 1923, followed in 1925 by the Jaguar IV ...

14-cylinder engine. The re-engined aircraft had an operating range of about 700 kilometres at 140 km/hour.Corke, David, ''Aviation: The Adventures of Love Bird and Diamond Bird'', 22 March 2010 The converted aircraft were known as the Lasco Lascowl. Both aircraft, still retaining their original names ''Diamond Bird'' and ''Love Bird'', were chartered by an aerial survey expedition led by Australian explorer Donald Mackay. The expedition set off on 23 May 1930 to carry out a survey of central Australia. Both aircraft returned to Melbourne in July 1930 without a mishap, each having flown more than 300 hours. The two aircraft were then used on a service between Melbourne and Sydney. ''Love Bird'' crashed on 14 July 1931 at Temora and was destroyed in the fire which resulted. The last aircraft ''Diamond Bird'' was retired in June 1932 and later scrapped.

Variants

* ANEC III - three built * Lasco Lascowl - lengthened and re-engined version, two conversions

Operators

;: Australian Aerial Services

Specifications

References

External links

{{ANEC aircraft 1920s British airliners Single-engined tractor aircraft 3 Biplanes Aircraft first flown in 1926