English Electric Ayr

The English Electric M.3 Ayr was a British three-seat coastal patrol flying boat designed and built by the English Electric Company. The aircraft refused to become airborne and the project was abandoned.

Development
While the company were working on the Kingston they decided to experiment with a design for a small flying boat. The aircraft was a single-engined biplane flying-boat named the Ayr and was built in 1924. The hull was designed by Linton Hope who had designed the Kingston hulls. An unusual feature was the lower wing, or stub wing mounted low down on the hull. It was designed to carry bombs underneath the stub-wings, these would have been underwater when the aircraft was afloat. During trials the aircraft rolled to the right and refused to become airborne.