PHOTOGRAPH PROTOTYPE SAUNDERS ROE SR53 XD145 R. A. F. TEMPLE PRESS PHOTO
Item History & Price
GENUINE PHOTOGRAPH PROTOTYPE SAUNDERS ROE SR53 XD145 R.A.F. TEMPLE PRESS PHOTO
DIMENSIONS APPROXIMATELY
25.5CM BY 20.8CM
PH12Photo as bend crease wear see photos
The Saunders-Roe SR.53 was a British prototype interceptor aircraft of mixed jet and rocket propulsion developed for the Royal Air Force (RAF) by Saunders-Roe in the early 1950s.As envisaged, the SR.53 would have been used as an interceptor aircraft, using its rocket propulsion to rapidly c...limb and approach incoming hostile bombers at high speeds; following its attack run, the aircraft would be able to return to its base by making use of the secondary jet propulsion instead.
Although the SR.53 proved to have promising performance during test flights, the requirement for such an aircraft had been overtaken by rapid advances in surface-to-air missile technology, leading to reconsideration of the aircraft's purpose. In July 1960, the development programme was formally cancelled, by which time a total of 56 test flights had been performed. A pair of prototype SR.53 aircraft had been completed and used during flight tests. One of these was destroyed during one such test flight in June 1958. The other, the first prototype, survived and was preserved; it is currently on public display at the Royal Air Force Museum Cosford.
DIMENSIONS APPROXIMATELY
25.5CM BY 20.8CM
PH12Photo as bend crease wear see photos
The Saunders-Roe SR.53 was a British prototype interceptor aircraft of mixed jet and rocket propulsion developed for the Royal Air Force (RAF) by Saunders-Roe in the early 1950s.As envisaged, the SR.53 would have been used as an interceptor aircraft, using its rocket propulsion to rapidly c...limb and approach incoming hostile bombers at high speeds; following its attack run, the aircraft would be able to return to its base by making use of the secondary jet propulsion instead.
Although the SR.53 proved to have promising performance during test flights, the requirement for such an aircraft had been overtaken by rapid advances in surface-to-air missile technology, leading to reconsideration of the aircraft's purpose. In July 1960, the development programme was formally cancelled, by which time a total of 56 test flights had been performed. A pair of prototype SR.53 aircraft had been completed and used during flight tests. One of these was destroyed during one such test flight in June 1958. The other, the first prototype, survived and was preserved; it is currently on public display at the Royal Air Force Museum Cosford.
