Blackburn Aircraft Factory

Aerial view 2007
� Thomas Nugent

Blackburn Aircraft Factory was located on the north shore of the Firth of Clyde at Dumbarton, northeast of Dumbarton Rock and Dumbarton Castle on Castle Road. The factory had been set up as part of the war effort during World War II, and was described then as a shadow factory for the Blackburn Aeroplane Co Ltd.

Although the factory belonged to the Blackburn Aircraft Company, it became better known for the construction of the Shorts Sunderland flying boat, of which it produced some 260 examples during World War II. The last Sunderland was completed at Dumbarton in October 1945, and flew off on November 8, 1945.

The original date of construction of the factory is not known, but it was in production by 1938. On February 1, 1939, Hansard records a question by Mr. Kirkwood, "Is the Minister aware that we have had two complete stoppages of work within the last six months in the Blackburn aircraft factory in Dumbarton, and that on another occasion the factory was absolutely closed down instantaneously by the management?"^[1]

Blackburn B.20 on hydraulic float

The factory was also involved in the building of experimental aircraft such as the Blackburn B.20, which had a hydraulically operated retractable float, and wing floats that folded up to form part of the wings.^[2] The Blackburn factory is now known to have been involved with the Marine Aircraft Experimental Establishment located at Helensburgh, which was involved in the flight testing of maritime patrol aircraft during World War II, which included the all-important Sunderland.

Postwar

After the war, the aircraft factory switched from producing flying boats for the war effort, to making parts for the construction of aluminium houses, better known as prefabs to most, but remembered in the area as The Aluminiums. The building was later used to house a whisky bottling plant and distribution site. The distillery to the west was mothballed in 2002, and demolished by 2005, to be followed by the closure of the bottling works by 2007, and clearance of the ground in 2008 for housing.

Records from 1998 indicated that the workshops, office buildings, and some hard standing remained, together with one slipway.

Site visit

A site visit during 2008 found only one building, probably a boiler house, remaining on the site, together with the slipway and some small ground detail.