Hawarden Aircraft Factory

Description

Aerial view of Hawarden aircraft factory.
Hawarden aircraft factory developed as a result of a late-1930s government-funded programme of 'shadow' factories which could begin to produce the aircraft that might be needed in event of war. Work started on the factory in November 1937 with the adjoining land being requisitioned as an airfield. The factory, run by Vickers-Armstrongs for the Ministry of Aircraft Production, covered some 141 million square feet (about 13.1 million m2); a contract was placed in May 1939 for 750 Wellington bombers, the first of which was completed in August that year. At its peak of production, 6,000 people working 12-hour shifts turned out 28 Wellingtons a week. The factory was famous as the location for an attempt in summer 1943 to assemble Wellington bomber LN514 from scratch and against the clock; this was duly carried out in 23 hours and 50 minutes thus setting a new world record. Wellington assembly continued until October 1945, with 5,540 being completed.
Vickers-Armstrongs, who had started building Lancasters in June 1944, ceased production in September 1945 and the factory was turned over to the manufacture of aluminium kit-built domestic housing. Aircraft construction returned in 1948 when de Havilland took over the factory as a production facility for their aircraft design office in Hatfield. Under re-organisation of the British aircraft industry, the works became part of Hawker-Siddeley and later British Aerospace who currently use the site for aircraft component manufacture, notably the wings of the Airbus 380.
Sources:
Defence of Britain Project Phillips, Alan, 2006,
Military Airfields Wales, pg 96-107
Smith, David J, 1982, Action Stations 3: Military Airfields of Wales and the North West, pg 85-90.