Avro 548

The Avro 548 was a civil trainer aircraft built in Britain after World War I. Its design was based extensively on Avro's 504 military aircraft, but it had an inline engine and a third seat. The prototype, designated 545, first flew with a Curtiss OX-5 V-8 engine, but this proved impractical for the civil market on account of the engine's weight and the complexity of its cooling system. An air-cooled Renault engine was used instead, and the designation 548 applied to this configuration. In practice, these aircraft were usually customised for their buyers and most differed from each other in equipment and detail; some were actually retrofitted war-surplus 504s. Many were used as civil trainers, others for joyriding, personal transport, or racing.

Avro 548
Avro 548, 1922
Role Civil utility aircraft
Manufacturer Avro
First flight October 1919
Produced 1920–25
Number built 38

A revised version, the 548A resulted when fitted with an ADC Airdisco engine, a development of the Renault which gave 120 hp (90 kW). This engine greatly improved performance.[1]

Plans for a version with an enclosed cabin, designated 553 were never brought to fruition.

Operators
 Latvia
 Portugal

Specifications (548)

Data from Avro Aircraft since 1908 [4]

General characteristics

  • Crew: one pilot
  • Capacity: two passengers
  • Length: 29 ft 5 in (8.97 m)
  • Wingspan: 36 ft 0 in (10.97 m)
  • Height: 10 ft 5 in (3.18 m)
  • Wing area: 330 sq ft (30.7 m2)
  • Empty weight: 1,338 lb (607 kg)
  • Gross weight: 1,943 lb (881 kg)
  • Powerplant: 1 × Renault 80 hp air-cooled V-8 engine , 80 hp (60 kW)

Performance

  • Maximum speed: 80 mph (129 km/h, 70 kn)
  • Cruise speed: 65 mph (105 km/h, 56 kn)
  • Range: 175 mi (282 km, 152 nmi)
  • Rate of climb: 350 ft/min (1.8 m/s)

References

Citations
  1. Jackson 1990, p.189.
  2. http://www.aeroflight.co.uk/user/every/latvia-af1-all-time-aircraft-used-listing-pre-ww2.htm
  3. Niccoli 1998, pp. 22–23.
  4. Jackson 1990, p.191.

Bibliography
  • Jackson, A.J. (1990). Avro Aircraft since 1908. London: Putnam Aeronautical Books. ISBN 0-85177-834-8.
  • Lopes, Mario C. (November 1999). "Les avions Avro au Portugal: des inconnu aux plus célèbres" [Portuguese Avro Aircraft: From the Unknown to the Most Famous] (in French) (80): 36–41. ISSN 1243-8650. Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  • Niccoli, Riccardo (January–February 1998). "Atlantic Sentinels: The Portuguese Air Force Since 1912". Air Enthusiast. No. 73. pp. 20–35. ISSN 0143-5450.
  • Taylor, Michael J. H. (1989). Jane's Encyclopedia of Aviation. London: Studio Editions. p. 93.
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