Short SC.1

SC.1
Short SC.1 XG900 at Farnborough SBAC Show September 1958
Role	Experimental aircraft
Manufacturer	Short Brothers
First flight	2 April 1957 (CTOL) 26 May 1958 (VTOL)
Retired	1971
Status	Retired and preserved
Primary user	Royal Aircraft Establishment
Number built	2

The Short SC.1 was the first British fixed-wing vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) aircraft developed by Short Brothers. It was powered by an arrangement of five Rolls-Royce RB108 jet engines, four of which were used for vertical flight and one for conventional horizontal flight. The SC.1 had the distinction of being the first British fixed-wing VTOL aircraft and the first one to transition between vertical and horizontal flight modes; it was also the first VTOL-capable aircraft that was furnished with a fly-by-wire control system.

The SC.1 was designed and produced in response to a Ministry of Supply (MoS) requirement for a suitable aircraft for conducting in-depth flight studies into VTOL flight, as well as specifically into the transition between vertical and horizontal flight. A total of two prototypes were used in test flights between 1957 and 1971. Research data from the SC.1 test programme contributed to the development of the Hawker Siddeley P.1127 and the subsequent Hawker Siddeley Harrier, the first operational VTOL aircraft.

In October 2012, the Short SC.1 received Northern Ireland's first Engineering Heritage Award as a recognition of its significant achievement in the engineering field.

During the 1940s, various nations became interested in developing viable aircraft capable of conducting vertical take-offs and landings (VTOL). During the 1950s, Britain had developed and flight tested the purpose-built Rolls-Royce Thrust Measuring Rig, a crude but pioneering VTOL aircraft that successfully flew as envisioned, demonstrating the viability of the concept as well as providing useful date to build upon. However, while the Thrust Measuring Rig had provided valued insight into the design specifics of VTOL aircraft, such as the requirement for a capable auto-stabilisation system, it suffered from some deficiencies that undermined its value as a platform for further detailed research, such as control lag and a lack of aerodynamic surfaces. There was a need present for an aircraft that would exploit the experienced gained from the Thrust Measuring Rig, and to explore areas that the earlier aircraft was not capable of.

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