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H.P.71 Halifax IX

The final production model of the Halifax.



As the Mk.VIII was only produced as a transport model, the MK.IX was only produced as an airborne forces model.
The standard port-side entrance door was deleted, and to provide a better cabin the paradrop exit was enlarged and strengthened, and extra windows and an extra upper escape hatch were added. The B-P D turret which had been fitted to some previous aircraft was now fitted as standard. First flying in December 1945, the Mk.IX arrived too late and the aircraft produced were flown until 1948.
Egypt bought 9 A.IX aircraft in 1950, but by 1951 the remaining military surplus aircraft had been broken up.

H.P.71 Halifax Mk.X

An upgrade to the Mk.IX with Hercules 100 engines was planned as the A.X.



With victory in the Pacific production of both the A.IX and follow-on A.X was halted, with the A.X not leaving the design board.

Civil Halifaxes

With the end of the war, war surplus de-mobbed Halifaxes became available to civil users. By this time the Merlin engined Halifaxes had already been withdrawn from service and only Hercules engined aircraft were civilianised.



The first Halifax To be privately owned was a B.III that departed for Australia in 1946. As the aircraft had been not so much civilianised as de-militarised, the Australian authorities would not grant the aircraft the ability to fly commercially. The aircraft managed to pick up a contract to bring goods from Singapore to Australia as a "private" flight, but due to aborted take-offs with mechanical problems in Singapore, too much attention was attracted and the business folded.
Other aircraft were correctly modified to become civilian freighters, losing their turrets and mostly being fitted with panniers. Halifax freighters were the perfect aircraft to supply Berlin during the Airlift, and many aircraft were given a reprieve from the breakers torch to ferry suppliers to Berlin. But also thirty three Mk.VI aircraft were broken up for spares to keep the operational Halifaxes flying for the Airlift.
Only A.IX aircraft underwent freighter conversion for Berlin, and curiously they both retained their rear turrets.

H.P.70 Halton

In addition to civilianising the Halifax, HP also produced an airliner version of the C.VIII as the Halton.



BOAC operated twelve Haltons on international routes from 1946. They were differentiated from the Halifax by the solid nose and passenger windows. With the requirements of the Berlin Airlift, the aircraft were sold to the smaller contractors.

Excellent!

Modified Halifaxes

The Halifax did not enjoy the test use of Avro's Lancaster and Lancastrian, and few being used for anything other than HP upgrade testing.



Several aircraft were used post war with varying degrees of modification as trainers and flying classrooms. "Mercury" of the Empire Radio School made a 25,000 mile radio and radar demonstration flight through the Middle East to New Zealand and back.
One significant test use was for the development of the Universal Freight Container, an air drop system for delivering jeeps and small artillery pieces. An A.VII with its bomb bay removed was retained by HP for testing. Underwing cameras were used to record the behaviour of the container before its eight parachutes deployed. The system was tested quite successfully, and was further developed for use with the HP Hastings.

I have a question that you might know the answer too.
I noticed that the porthole arrangement on the rear fuselage varies even between Halifaxes of the same Mark. Was this due to production differences on each production line? Is it a reliable indicator of where a Halifax was built?

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Would love to dazzle you with trivia ... but can't.
The Merlin models were built with 3 small portholes, and a gun window for models without a dorsal turret. With the turret the spot was not glazed - but in some aircraft it was.
Only with the Mk.VIII was a new window arrangement adopted, and increased again for the Mk.IX and X - as transports these marques were more likely to have people in the fuselage who might appreciate a bit more light so quite understandable.
I think the windowing was blanked over in service in individual aircraft as windows became damaged, and perhaps new windows punched through at the obvious spots by crews keen for a bit more illumination.

H.P.65 Super Halifax

In June 1943 HP proposed a significant upgrade to the Halifax, offering greater bomb load, longer range, greater speed and higher operational altitudes.



Using the extended bomb bay of the Mk.IV, new twin-wheeled landing gear completely enclosed by gear doors, new turbo-supercharged Hercules engines, and a completely new wing. The wing was to be a single spar laminar flow wing, requiring sophisticated production techniques.
By October it appeared that the engine would not reach production status, and the complexity of the wing construction would be problematic. HP instead suggested a less advanced Halifax upgrade.

H.P.66 Hastings B.1

As the H.P.65 Super Halifax seemed too difficult to produce, a less complex version was presented as the H.P.66.



Changing the design to use a two-spar centre section with standard Halifax outer wing sections gave a slightly lower efficiency, but virtually no performance degradation. The new design was called the "Hastings", and three prototypes ordered. The first two prototypes would be fitted with Hercules 100 engines, and were to be designated as Hastings B.1. As an insurance against engine delays, the engine mountings were able to accommodate the Merlin 65 engines - which had already been tested in the Halifax.

Production of the Hastings was planned to start in May 1945, but in April 1944 a need for the Halifax A.IX for the invasion of Europe led to production being delayed, although the prototypes remained on order. However with V-J day the need for the Hastings bomber disappeared, and the design was cancelled.