Dowty Propellersis a British engineering company based inBrockworth, Gloucestershirethat specialises in the manufacture, repair and overhaul ofpropellersand propeller components for customers around the world. It is owned byGE Aerospace.
 | |
| Company type | Subsidiary |
|---|---|
| Industry | Aerospace |
| Founded | 1937as Rotol Airscrews |
| Founders | Rolls-Royce Limited Bristol Aeroplane Company |
| Headquarters | , |
| Parent | GE Aerospace |
| Website | dowty |
History
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The company was formed asRotol Airscrewsin 1937 byRolls-RoyceandBristol Enginesto take over both companies' propeller development,[1]the market being too small to support more than one company. The name is a contraction of "Rolls-Royce" and "Bristol".[1]Rotol's propellers were always considered leading edge, its models equipping theHawker Hurricane,Supermarine Spitfire,and many otherSecond World War-era aircraft.[1]By the end of the war it had introduced the first five-bladed propeller to see widespread use, used on late-model Spitfires. In 1943 the company changed its name from Rotol Airscrews Limited toRotol Limited,and in 1952 it acquired British Messier Limited, a specialist in landing gear and hydraulics.
In 1958, Bristol Aeroplane and Rolls-Royce agreed to sell Rotol and British Messier to theDowty Group.[2]By 1959 Rotol and British Messier along with Dowty Equipment and Dowty Fuel Systems became part of the new Dowty Aviation Division based at Cheltenham.
In 1968, the company introduced the firstfibreglasspropellers, which went on to see widespread use.[1]Since then it has migrated tocarbon fibre,and remains a leader in propeller design.
Following a series of changes of ownership, the original Dowty Rotol facility at Staverton is now owned by theSafranGroup, operating as part of itsMessier-Bugatti-Dowtylanding gear subsidiary (now known as Safran Landing Systems). Propeller design and manufacture was moved a few hundred metres down the road when the company was split into business units under its Dowty ownership in the early 1990s. On 16 January 2007,Dowty Propellersbecame part ofGE Aviation SystemsthroughGEbuyingSmiths Group’s aerospace division.[3][4]
On 5 February 2015, a fire at Dowty's Staverton facility caused severe damage to 80% of the factory building, destroying the main production line.[5]A facility at Vantage Point Business Village in Mitcheldean, Gloucestershire, was selected for the company's interim propeller blade manufacturing.[6]In late 2019, the company began moving its operations to an all-new purpose-built facility at Gloucester Business Park in Brockworth, on part of the site of the former aerodrome used by the Gloster Aircraft Company.[7]
Operations
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Dowty propellers are used on manyturbopropfeederliners,including theBombardier Dash 8Q400,Saab 340andSaab 2000,and on turboproptransport aircraftsuch as later models of theC-130JandAlenia C-27J.Dowty propellers can also be found onLCACsused by the militaries of several countries. The USNational Air and Space Museum's Udvar Hazy Center,Virginia,has a Dowty propeller on display.
See also
editReferences
edit- ^abcdGloucester Transport History
- ^ "Airscrew Firm Sold To Dowty Group". News.The Times.No. 54338. London. col C, p. 10.
- ^"agreeing to dispose of its aerospace division to the giant US conglomerate General Electric for £2.45bn;
from google (ge buy smith group aerospace) result 5 ". - ^"2007 – Dowty Propellers becomes part of GE through the company's acquisition of Smiths Group's aerospace division;
from google (ge buy dowty rotol) result 1 ". - ^"Dowty fire: Gloucestershire factory 'severely damaged'".BBC News.5 February 2015.Retrieved16 July2017.
- ^"Dowty Propellers selects new interim production facility location and advances its recovery plan".Dowty Propellers.9 April 2015.Retrieved16 July2017.
- ^"Dowty Propellers inaugurates new facility in Brockworth".Gloucestershire Live.4 December 2019.Retrieved4 December2019.
External links
edit- Dowty Propellers official site
- Information and pictures: Dowty Propellersplant inGloucester,UK, from Smiths Aerospace web site.
- Grace's Guide"Dowty Rotol ofStaverton,Churchdown"