Heyworth Harvey - Men of Power: The Lives of Rolls-Royce Chief Test Pilots Harvey & Jim Heyworth

I t isnt often that a fascinating project drops unbidden into a writers in-tray; but this one did, and the man who started it all was Air Vice-Marshal Sandy Hunter AFC. I had not seen Sandy since 1995, when he organised a Royal Air Force Historical Society seminar called Defending Northern Skies at Newcastle University, in which I played a small part, so it was a bit of a surprise when, nearly ten years later, he wrote to me saying that he had viewed a set of log books belonging to one Wing Commander Harvey Heyworth, who had flown with both the RAF and Rolls-Royce and who had died in 1959. Sandy thought that there might be material for a book here, and asked me if I might be interested in taking it on. He had already compiled a lengthy precis of the log books content, and a glimpse of it told me that here was some fascinating material.

The log books had been loaned to Sandy by a former neighbour, Corinne Moore, who was Harvey Heyworths eldest daughter. The younger daughter, Wendy Clark, was also keen on the idea of perpetuating her fathers name. The immediate result was that the four of us met for lunch at the RAF Club in London to see if the matter was worth progressing, and it was there that I discovered that Harvey had a brother, Jim, who not only had enjoyed a distinguished wartime career in the RAF, but who also had been a test pilot with Rolls-Royce. Both men, in fact, had risen to be Chief Test Pilots with the company.

Here, I thought, was a tale worth telling. I at once wrote to Jim Heyworth, who lives in Devon, and he readily agreed to help. I found to my delight that he had compiled his memoirs, which were unpublished and intended for family eyes only, but he agreed to give me access to the parts dealing with his flying career, and to other material which was to prove invaluable. He also put me in touch with Sir Frank Whittles son, Ian, who spent a lot of time and effort in ensuring that the content dealing with his fathers jet engine developments was accurate. I am deeply grateful to him.

I contacted Richard Haig of the Rolls-Royce Heritage Trust, who also agreed to help; in the event, my link man with the trust became John Gregory, who carried out the necessary research at Hucknall and acquired some necesary permissions for me. I owe him a big debt. Through John, in turn, I got in touch with Walter Codd, who has many personal recollections of the Heyworth brothers and who, during his service as a wartime engineer at Hucknall, flew as an air gunner in the test-bed Lancaster.

Through Corinne Moore I acquired another valuable contact, Sir Robin Maxwell-Hyslop, whose enormous knowledge of Rolls-Royce aero-engine development set me back on the right track more than once. And finally, much family background was provided by Mrs Rae Hollis, the daughter of Dorothy Heyworth, sister of Harvey and Jim. To them all, and to others who have helped in smaller ways, I extend my most grateful thanks.

Throughout this work I have tried to set the careers of Harvey and Jim Heyworth against the ongoing march of aviation over the years. I hope I have succeeded. And I hope, too, that I have succeeded in filling a niche in aviation history that has been vacant for too long.