The Boulton Paul Balliol was the last British aircraft powered by
the iconic Rolls-Royce Merlin engine, and the last piston-powered
advanced trainer in both the Royal Air Force and the Fleet Air Arm.
Yet it began life as the world's first turbo-trainer, conceived in
the last days of the Second World War, and became the first
aircraft with a single prop-jet, beating the rival Avro Athena into
the air by two weeks. However, policy changed and it was with the
trusty Merlin that the Balliol ultimately went into production.
Boulton Paul Aircraft hoped for huge orders-opening a second
production line at Blackburn Aircraft in anticipation-but the RAF
decided to switch to all-jet training; even though a dozen were
sold to the Royal Ceylon Air Force, total Balliol production only
ever amounted to just over 200 examples. Consigned to another
footnote in aviation history, this was the last aircraft Boulton
Paul-already world-leaders in the manufacture of power controls-
would ever build. The Boulton Paul Balliol: The Last Merlin-Powered
Aircraft is a detailed account of the journey of this aeroplane and
its creators, and the shifting sands within the highly competitive
post-war aeronautics industry. This is a beautifully illustrated
insight into how a small, pioneering British manufacturer dealt
with the fluctuating demands of its era, enhanced by the author's
own story as a Boulton Paul enthusiast and restorer.
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