Avro 504 propeller

[blackers57]

Hi there - completely new to this forum, so please excuse any breaches of etiquette!
I am a member of staff at an Air Cadet squadron from Wells, Somerset in England.
We have a wooden propeller which we intend to exhibit at the centre.
Around the hub is written:-
'AVRO Y80 80HP TYPE 504 GNOME' at the top and:-
'COURTNEY POPE LTD LONDON' at the bottom.
to the right of the hub is the number 339.
As this is the centenary of the First World War we would like to have an information sheet next to the propeller.

Any details on it would be most appreciated.
Regards

John Bl.

[Bob Gardner]

Good Afternoon John,

Your data translates as;
Avro the maker of the aircraft, the Avro 504, and the designer of the prop.
Y80 The prop drawing number where Y is the designation letter for Avro
Type 504 The aircraft type, the Avro 504
80 hp Gnome The horsepower of the French rotary engine made by Gnome
Courtney Pope The maker of the propeller

The Avro 504 was a front line machine until mid-1915 when it was relegated to training duties.

With kind regards,

Bob

[blackers57]

Timeframe of the propeller?

Bob,
Many thanks for the reply.
We are mounting the prop in our Air Cadet building, so wanted to put some details alongside.

Looking at other sources for the Avro 504, it seems later aircraft had more powerful engines.
Could we assume that this prop was used during WW1?
I know it's a bit of a stretch maybe!
It has in the past been 'restored' so we are not bothered about value etc., but knowing it was used between 1914 - 1918 would be nice to know.

Best regards

John Bl.

[Bob Gardner]

John,

This is an early prop from 1914 or 1915, so it is particularly rare. It is perfectly possible that it was used on the Western Front but equally likely that it remained in Britain.

The Avro 504 was the best operational aircraft the RFC possessed at this time. When better operational aircraft appeared during 1915 it came to be used as a training aircraft, a role it retained in the RAF as the 504K until 1933 with a much more powerful engine and other updates. Over 8000 were made. Production ceased in 1932. It was exported to 38 countries. It can be described from several perspectives as the best training aircraft ever made.

Its value at auction, bearing in mind that it has been stripped of its original finish and its Avro decals is about £500.00 GBP.

With kind regards,

Bob

[blackers57]

Many thanks for the additional info.

We have mounted the prop on the wall of the cadet centre, and it looks pretty good. We are n the process of having a metal centre plate made to tidy it up a little. Hopefully we will incorporate a RFC badge somehow.

Thanks again.

Best regards

John Bl.