Claude Lipscomb
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Claude Percival Thomas Lipscomb (1887– 11 April 1974) FRAeS was a British engineer and aircraft designer, who designed the
RAF Bomber Command RAF Bomber Command controlled the Royal Air Force's bomber forces from 1936 to 1968. Along with the United States Army Air Forces, it played the central role in the Strategic bombing during World War II#Europe, strategic bombing of Germany in W ...
's first four-engined
heavy bomber Heavy bombers are bomber Fixed-wing aircraft, aircraft capable of delivering the largest payload of air-to-ground weaponry (usually Aerial bomb, bombs) and longest range (aeronautics), range (takeoff to landing) of their era. Archetypal heavy ...
, the
Short Stirling The Short Stirling was a British four-engined heavy bomber of the Second World War. It has the distinction of being the first four-engined bomber to be introduced into service with the Royal Air Force (RAF) during the war (the earlier Handley ...
(S.29).


Early life

C.P.T. Lipscomb was born on
Portsea Island Portsea Island is a flat and low-lying natural island in area, just off the southern coast of Hampshire in England. The island contains the majority of the city of Portsmouth. Portsea Island has the third-largest population of all the i ...
. He attended Woolwich Polytechnic, whilst completing an apprenticeship.


Career


Shorts

He joined Short Brothers in 1914 in Kent, then he later designed airships at Bedford from 1916 to 1921. He set up the airship sheds at
RAF Cardington The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the air and space force of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, on the merger of the Royal Flying Corps ( ...
. By the late 1930s he was assistant chief designer. He became chief designer in 1943. He was the chief designer until 31 December 1948, when became technical director, until 1 August 1951.


Short Stirling

The Short Stirling, which he designed with Arthur Gouge, first flew, as ''L7600'', on 14 May 1939 at RAF Rochester in Kent with
John Lankester Parker John Lankester Parker OBE FRAeS Hon. MSLAE (1896 – 22 August 1965) was Chief test pilot, Test Pilot for Short Brothers from 1918 until his retirement in 1945. He joined Shorts in 1916 in aviation, 1916 as a part-time test pilot and assistant ...
, the Short Chief Test Pilot. The aircraft suffered a brake seizure on landing and the undercarriage collapsed. The aircraft was designed in response to the Air Ministry Directive B.12/36, issued on 9 July 1936. It had
Bristol Hercules The Bristol Hercules is a 14-cylinder two-row radial aircraft engine designed by Sir Roy Fedden and produced by the Bristol Engine Company starting in 1939. It was the most numerous of their single sleeve valve ( Burt-McCollum, or Argyll, ty ...
I radial engines. The second prototype, ''L7605'', flew on 3 December 1939. Production of the Stirling also took place in Belfast from June 1940. The first production Stirling ''N3635'' flew on 7 May 1940, with Hercules II engines. The Stirling Mk 1 entered service in August 1940 with 7 Squadron, with 756 being made. 1,047 were made of the Stirling Mk III, which entered service in 1942. 2383 Stirlings were made. The Stirling's first operation raid was on 10 February 1941 from
RAF Oakington Royal Air Force Oakington or more simply RAF Oakington was a Royal Air Force station located north of Oakington, Cambridgeshire, England and northwest of Cambridge. History Second World War Construction was started in 1939, but was affected ...
, and its first raid to Germany was on 17 March 1941. He later designed a possible transatlantic four-engine airliner, the Short 14/38.


Personal life

He lived in
Gillingham, Kent Gillingham ( ) is a town in Kent, England, which forms a conurbation with neighbouring Chatham, Kent, Chatham, Rochester, Kent, Rochester, Strood and Rainham, Kent, Rainham. It is the largest town in the borough of Medway and in 2020 had a populat ...
. He married Nora Guest. He had one son, Dennis, with a grand-daughter Claire born in November 1950. He moved to Northern Ireland and lived at 28 Shandon Park East in
Bangor, County Down Bangor ( ; ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city in County Down, Northern Ireland, on the southern side of Belfast Lough. It is within the Belfast metropolitan area and is 13 miles (22 km) east of Belfast city centre, to whic ...
. He died in April 1974 in Northern Ireland aged 86. The funeral was at St Comgalls church on Saturday 13 April 1974.''Belfast News Letter'' Friday 12 April 1974, page 2 His wife died on 4 May 1978, aged 90.


See also

* Stuart Davies (engineer), co-designer of the
Avro Lancaster The Avro Lancaster, commonly known as the Lancaster Bomber, is a British World War II, Second World War heavy bomber. It was designed and manufactured by Avro as a contemporary of the Handley Page Halifax, both bombers having been developed to ...
, which first flew on 9 January 1941 * Sir
Arthur Gouge Sir Arthur Gouge (3 July 1890 – 14 October 1962) was a British engineer and aircraft designer from Kent, who worked notably for Short Brothers where he designed the "C-class" Empire and Sunderland flying boats. Early life Gouge was born in No ...
, designer of the
Short Sunderland The Short S.25 Sunderland is a British flying boat Maritime patrol aircraft, patrol bomber, developed and constructed by Short Brothers for the Royal Air Force (RAF). The aircraft took its service name from the town (latterly, city) and port of ...
, important in the
Battle of the Atlantic The Battle of the Atlantic, the longest continuous military campaign in World War II, ran from 1939 to the defeat of Nazi Germany in 1945, covering a major part of the naval history of World War II. At its core was the Allies of World War II, ...
*
George Volkert George Rudolph Volkert CBE FRAeS (4 July 1891 – 16 May 1978) was a British aircraft designer. Working for Handley Page.he became its chief designer. Early life George was born in Fulham to Charles Fredrick Karl Volkert and Caecilie Volkert ...
, designer of the
Handley Page Halifax The Handley Page Halifax is a British Royal Air Force (RAF) four-engined heavy bomber of the Second World War. It was developed by Handley Page to the same specification as the contemporary twin-engine Avro Manchester. The Halifax has its or ...


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lipscomb, Claude 1887 births 1974 deaths Engineers from County Down Fellows of the Royal Aeronautical Society People from Bangor, County Down People from Gillingham, Kent People from Portsea, Portsmouth