Hants and Sussex Aviation

Hants and Sussex Aviation Ltd was an aircraft manufacturer based at Portsmouth Airport, Hampshire, England. It is still in business in the aircraft components industry.

Formation
Hants and Sussex Aviation (HSA) was formed in the early 1940s and initially worked on component manufacture and repair for military aircraft.

Aircraft construction
In 1949, HSA designed its first aircraft. This was the H&S Herald. The Herald was a single-seat ultra-light aircraft with a fixed tricycle undercarriage and powered by a 40 h.p. Aeronca-JAP J-99 piston engine. The Herald made flight tests at Portsmouth Airport in 1953, but these revealed that it had a poor performance and the aircraft was grounded and dismantled in 1955.

HSA were contracted in 1964 to build one of the pre-World One flying replica aircraft for the film Those Magnificent Men in their Flying Machines. HSAs aircraft was the Antoinette IV which they powered by a de Havilland Gypsy I engine.

Aircraft sub-contract work
HSA thereafter concentrated on work on the overhaul, modification and repair of aircraft engines and components. In late 1976 the firm advertised its work on the overhaul and repair of Continental piston engines for aircraft. By September 1986 HSA were overhauling and modifying Rolls-Royce Dart and Pratt and Whitney PT-6 turboprop engines. HSA still carry on trading within the aviation support industry in 2008.

On 16 January 1950 HSA purchased six Lancastrian Mk. CII as surplus airframes from the RAF (Serial Numbers VL980, VM702, VM725, VM726, VM727, VM735), their post service histories are unknown as are the civilian call signs.