1/7-Scale Hawker Hind

A great-flying 63-inch-span RAF biplane.

- Richard Dery

Aderivative of the Hawker Hart, the Hind incorporated the newly developed Rolls-Royce Kestrel V engine along with a few other refinements. The most notable of these was the cut-down rear cockpit, which afforded the gunner more mobility. With a combination of extremely clean lines and the new Rolls-Royce engines, these rugged biplanes could fly 30mph faster than their contemporary front-line British fighters.

I chose to model this aircraft for its amazing history as well as its beauty. At 1/7 scale, the wingspan came out to 63 inches—a nice size to accommodate plenty of scale detail but small enough to fit in the back of my car with the wings removed and back seats folded down. While it is a modest size by today’s standards, this would be the largest biplane I’d have ever built. Knowing that it wouldn’t get much air time if it proved to be a hassle to transport and set up, I decided to keep the plug-in wing bays together with flying wires attached when separated from the fuselage. The end result is a biplane that is IMAA (Inter national Miniature Aircraft Association) legal and only requires four 4-40 screws to secure the wings, and it can be assembled at the field in about five minutes.

CONSTRUCTION

Traditional built-up balsa-and-ply construction techniques are used throughout. The power is provided by an E-flite Power 32 brushless motor on three cells. The plans were made from 3-view drawings, and I referenced many online photos of the full-scale example still being flown as part of the Shuttleworth Collection in England. Before we start construction, let the rumble of the Rolls-Royce engine linger in your ears. Catch a whiff of exhaust as it hangs in the air. Sit back, close your eyes, and feel the history… We are now ready to begin.