Airspeed: Ambassador
Note: This is a sub-section of Airspeed Aircraft.
The Airspeed AS.57 Ambassador was a British twin piston-engined airliner that first flew on 10 July 1947 and served in small numbers through the 1950s and 1960s.
The popularity of this aircraft, with its pressurised cabin and good soundproofing, was soon eclipsed by the arrival of turboprop-powered aircraft such as the Vickers: Viscount and, some years later, the Lockheed Electra, which featured more reliable engines and faster speeds. The coming of turboprops and the dawning of the jet age caused the Ambassador to fall out of favour, along with negative publicity arising from two fatal crashes.
Variants
AS.57 Ambassador 1
- Prototype aircraft with Bristol Centaurus engines, two built.
AS.57 Ambassador 2
- Production aircraft, 21 built.
Projects
- AS.59 Ambassador II
Project for either a twin-engined variant with Bristol Proteus or Bristol Theseus engines or a four-engined variant with Napier Naiads or Rolls-Royce Darts. From the first prototypes, the Ambassador's wing had been stressed for four engine points, but no four-engined variant flew.
- AS.60 Ayrshire C.1
Proposed variant to meet Air Ministry Specification C.13/45 for a medium-range military transport. Ten were ordered in October 1946 but were not built, after a review of the design's projected performance produced figures lower than the Air Ministry's requirements.
- AS.64
Proposed military transport variant for the Royal Air Force to meet Air Ministry Specification C.26/43, not built.
- AS.66
Proposed civil freighter variant.
- AS.67
Proposed civil freighter variant.
See Also
Sources of Information