Vickers Valetta

The Vickers Valetta was a twin-engine military transport aircraft developed and produced by Vickers-Armstrongs from the Viking civil airliner, an all-metal mid-wing monoplane with a tailwheel undercarriage. The Royal Air Force wanted a military Viking that could quickly change roles between troop transport, air ambulance, freighter, glider tug and paratroop carrier, so the cabin furnishings were made easy to remove and replace. Other changes were more powerful Bristol Hercules 230 radial engines, a reinforced cabin floor and a strengthened airframe. The prototype, a converted Viking, made its maiden flight from Brooklands on 30 June 1947, piloted by Mutt Summers, and the Valetta C.1 entered RAF service in 1948, rapidly replacing the wartime Dakotas of Transport Command. It served in the Suez Crisis, Aden and the Malayan Emergency. Variants included the C.2 VIP transport and T.3 and T.4 navigation trainers, and the Valetta was the basis of the Varsity trainer.