Planes and Choppers Photos

John Britten and Desmond Norman started developing crop-spraying equipment in the middle 1950s and used de Havilland Tiger Moth aircraft, modified at their factory near Ventnor, Isle of Wight, for a contract in Sudan. After that, they turned to aircraft design, with a failed attempt to sell the BN-1 ultralight. Their next project was the BN-2 Islander, and formed the Britten-Norman company to market it. This led to a number of derivative aircraft, but financial problems appeared and there was a takeover by the Fairey Group in 1972. Fairey went into receivership in 1977, and in 1979 Oerlikon-Bührle, owners of Pilatus of Switzerland, purchased all the assets, including the factory on the Isle of Wight. Oerlikon-Bührle sold Britten-Norman to Litchfield Continental in 1998, and later that year Biofarm Inc. (BIOF) announced its acquisition of 100% of the capital stock of Britten – Norman Limited (BN) from Litchfield Continental Limited. Desmond Norman died in 2002. BN Aviation Limited was formed in 2008.