Miles Martinet

The Miles M.25 Martinet was a target tug aircraft of the Royal Air Force and Fleet Air Arm that was in service during the Second World War. It was the first British aircraft to be designed specifically for the role of towing targets.

Design and development
Based upon the Miles Master II, the Martinet featured a strengthened airframe to handle the stresses of towing a target drogue. Other differences from the Master included a longer nose, higher cockpit and greater wing span but otherwise the two aircraft shared many common components. The targets and towing gear were contained in a fairing beneath the fuselage and were retracted by an external, wind-powered winch.

The first prototype Martinet was first flown on 24 April 1942 by Chief Test Pilot F/Lt Thomas Rose from Woodley Aerodrome. In total, 1,724 Martinets were produced by Miles Aircraft Ltd for the RAF and FAA to meet Air Ministry Specification 12/41.

There were two other variants of the Martinet. The M.50 Queen Martinet was a radio-controlled target drone of which 69 were built and a further 17 produced through conversion of production Martinets. The M.37 Martinet Trainer was developed during the war but only two were ever produced. All Martinets and their variants were manufactured at Woodley.

Variants

 * M.25 Martinet: Two-seat target tug aircraft. The M.25 Martinet was used by both the RAF and the Royal Navy, under the designation Martinet TT.Mk I.
 * M.50 Queen Martinet: Unmanned radio-controlled target drone.
 * M.37 Martinet Trainer: Two-seat training aircraft. Only two were built.

Operators

 * Belgian Air Force (11 operated from 1947 to 1953 as target tugs)
 * French Air Force
 * Irish Air Corps
 * Portuguese Navy
 * Portuguese Air Force
 * Turkish Air Force
 * Royal Air Force
 * Portuguese Navy
 * Portuguese Air Force
 * Turkish Air Force
 * Royal Air Force
 * Royal Air Force
 * Royal Air Force


 * No. 5 Squadron RAF
 * No. 20 Squadron RAF
 * No. 34 Squadron RAF
 * No. 269 Squadron RAF
 * No. 285 Squadron RAF
 * No. 286 Squadron RAF
 * No. 287 Squadron RAF
 * No. 289 Squadron RAF
 * No. 290 Squadron RAF
 * No. 291 Squadron RAF
 * No. 520 Squadron RAF


 * No. 567 Squadron RAF
 * No. 577 Squadron RAF
 * No. 587 Squadron RAF
 * No. 595 Squadron RAF
 * No. 598 Squadron RAF
 * No. 631 Squadron RAF
 * No. 639 Squadron RAF
 * No. 650 Squadron RAF
 * No. 679 Squadron RAF
 * No. 691 Squadron RAF
 * No. 695 Squadron RAF


 * Royal Navy Fleet Air Arm
 * 723 Naval Air Squadron
 * 728 Naval Air Squadron
 * 736 Naval Air Squadron
 * 771 Naval Air Squadron
 * 772 Naval Air Squadron
 * 776 Naval Air Squadron
 * 794 Naval Air Squadron

Surviving aircraft
A single Martinet survives; it is owned by the Museum of Berkshire Aviation in the United Kingdom. The aircraft (RAF serial number MS902) was built in 1943, and spent its operational life in Iceland at RAF Reykjavik. In 1949, MS902 was sold to the Akureyri Flying Club and given the Icelandic civil registration TF-SHC. The club flew it until it crashed in 1951 near Kopasker in northeast Iceland. The wreckage remained at the crash site until 1977, when it was recovered and placed in storage by the Icelandic Aviation Historical Society.

The aircraft was returned to the United Kingdom in 1996 by the Museum of Berkshire Aviation and has since been the subject of a lengthy restoration project.