Frederick George Miles
| Frederick George Miles | |
|---|---|
F.G. Miles
|
|
| Born |
22 March 1903 Portslade, Sussex, England |
| Died | 15 August 1976 (aged 73) |
| Nationality | British |
| Other names | "Miles" |
| Occupation | Aircraft engineer,company director |
| Known for | Aircraft designs |
| Spouse(s) | Maxine (Blossom) Thomas married 1932 |
| Parent(s) | Esther Miles & Frederick Gaston Miles |
| Relatives |
George Herbert Miles (Brother / Aircraft Designer), |
George Herbert Miles (Brother / Aircraft Designer),
Reginald Howard Miles (Brother)
Dennis William Miles (Brother)
Frederick George Miles (22 March 1903 – 15 August 1976) was a British aircraft designer and manufacturer who designed numerous light civil and military aircraft and a range of prototypes. The name "Miles" is associated with two distinct companies that Miles was involved in and is also attached to many non-aviation products such as the Biro pen, photocopiers and book binding machinery. Throughout his life, he was known as "Miles" and never by his first name, even to his own family.
Miles was born on 22 March 1903 in Worthing Sussex, the oldest of four sons of Frederick Gaston Miles, a laundry proprietor (Star Model Laundry, Portslade), and his wife Esther. Miles's father is noted in the 1901 census as being a 25-year-old laundry warehouseman but by the time of the next census in 1911, he is described as being the proprietor of the laundry, a business which continued into the 1970s. Miles's father was an astute businessman who was able to support Miles's early interest in aviation.
Miles left school early in 1916 and started a motorcycle rental business. He soon became interested in aircraft and in 1922, at the back of his father's laundry in Portslade, with some friends and his brother George, Miles designed, then built a small biplane called the Gnat The aircraft was not flown.
Local pilot Cecil Pashley, who was persuaded to become a partner in a budding aviation business, taught Miles to fly in Pashley's Avro 504K at Shoreham Airport. The Pashley and Miles partnership led to a flying school and joyriding business known as the Gnat Aeroplane Co. In May 1927, the company was formally incorporated as the Gnat Aero Company, Ltd. with a share capital of £1,500. The first directors were F.G. Miles, C.L. Pashley and F. Gaston Miles. The company soon expanded into aircraft repairs and then split into two separate operations: the Southern Aero Club and Southern Aircraft. One of the aircraft Miles acquired was an Avro Baby, which he modified to turn it into an aerobatic sports aircraft he called the Southern Martlet. Miles was later joined as a director in both companies by Magnus Herman Volk, the eldest son of Magnus Volk, who from an early age, had a keen interest in aviation.
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