The Wellesley entered service with the Royal Air Force in April 1937 and was the first aircraft to be built using the geodetic construction method devised by Barnes Wallis. During its career with the RAF it would set the
world long distance record, but by the time the Second World War began, the Vickers Wellesley was already being replaced.
Looking to replace the multi-role Westland Wapiti the Air Ministry issued Specification G.4/31. Responding to this, Vickers took the unusual route of building both a biplane, which the specification called for, and a monoplane,
the Wellesley, version to the specification requirements. The biplane version, known as the Vickers Type 253 made its maiden flight on the 16th August 1934, this was followed by the monoplane version
which made its first flight on the 19th June 1935 with Captain Joseph Summers at the controls. Despite wanting a multi-role biplane, the monoplane Wellesley was ordered as a bomber to meet Specification 22/35, written
specifically for the aircraft.
The Wellesley Mk I was powered by the 925-hp Bristol Pegasus XX engine, this gave the aircraft a top speed of 222 mph, range of 1,100 miles with a service ceiling of 26,100 ft. Armament consisted of one 0.303-in machine-gun and
one Vickers gun, bomb load was 2,000lb bombs or depth charges. The first production version flew from Brooklands on the 30th January 1937. It would be the Wellesley that would introduce Barnes Wallis geodetic construction
method, enabling an aircraft to be strong but without the associated weight.
The 18th March 1937 saw the Wellesley sent to the Aeroplane and Armament Experimental Establishment based at Martlesham Heath so they could conduct its customary trials on the new aircraft. The
Wellesley entered service with the RAF on the 12th April 1937 when No. 76 Squadron was reformed at RAF Finningley. Further squadrons began to receive the aircraft, including No. 148 Squadron based at RAF Scampton, who had their
Hawker Audax replaced with the type in June 1937, and No. 35 Squadron based at RAF Worthy Down in July 1937.
Stationed in both the United Kingdom and abroad, where the majority of Wellesleys would serve, by the time the Second World War (1939 - 1945) started Wellesleys serving with Bomber Command had began to be replaced. Some would
remain in operational use overseas until 1943, with No. 47 Squadron the last to give up their Wellesleys in March 1943 for Bristol Beauforts. The Wellesley operated in a number of roles besides that of a bomber, including
anti-submarine and reconnaissance.
It would be with the Royal Air Force's Long Range Development Flight that the Wellesley recorded a major achievement, when during November 1938 two aircraft broke the long distance flight record. Taking-off from Ismailia,
Egypt on the 5th November 1938 the route would see three aircraft fly non-stop for 7,162 miles to Darwin, Australia. Only two of the three would make the full distance as one had to land in Kupang, Indonesia due to low
fuel. Despite this it still broke the previous record by around 450 miles. When the other two Wellesleys arrived in Australia on the 7th November 1938, just over 48 hours after taking-off, they had set a new record some 950
miles further than the previous record.
May 1938 saw the last of the 177 Wellesleys ordered delivered. Although most aircraft featured a distinctive double canopy some had been changed into one long canopy.
