Reginald Stafford

Reginald Spencer Stafford CBE FRAeS (21 April 1903 – September 1980) was an aeronautical engineer, and the designer of the Handley Page Victor.

Early life

Reggie Stafford attended Kilburn Grammar School.

RAF HP Victor in 1993

Career

He worked for Handley Page, joining in 1926. In 1934 he became chief aerodynamicist, and chief designer in 1945, in charge of the design team. He became Technical Director in 1953. He retired from the company in 1968, after 42 years.

Handley Page Victor

He designed the HP.80 aircraft with Godfrey Henry Lee. The Victor was known for its crescent wing.

The first HP Victor, WB771, was first flown by Sqn Ldr Hedley Hazelden on 24 December 1952 at Radlett. On 2 January 1953, the aircraft was named Victor by the Air Ministry. The first production Victor XA917 first flew on 1 February 1956.

Personal life

He lived at 'Pax' on Sherwood Avenue in Ruislip, with daughter Kay and son David, in the 1950s. In the 1956 New Year Honours he received the CBE.

He died in Aylesbury Vale in Buckinghamshire in 1980 aged 77. His funeral was in Princes Risborough, where he had lived, on Friday 22 August 1980.

References

• The Handley Page Victor: The History & Development of a Classic Jet, Roger Brooks
• Victor Units of the Cold War, Andrew Brookes

See also

• Stuart Davies (engineer), designer of the Avro Vulcan