From the Rolls-Royce experimental archive: a quarter of a million communications from Rolls-Royce, 1906 to 1960's. Documents from the Sir Henry Royce Memorial Foundation (SHRMF).
Copy of a letter sent to the press clarifying the use of their aero engines by a German firm.
| Identifier | ExFiles\Box 43\1\ Scan044 | |
| Date | 10th November 1923 | |
| COPY OF LETTER SENT TO THE PRESS. 10th November 1923. To the Editor. Dear Sir, With reference to the following announcement which has recently appeared in the Press:- "In order to evade Allied control, which restricts Germany's aeroplane output, the German aeroplane-building firm known as Hofawerke will open a new factory near Copenhagen on December 1st. It is intended at first to build only seaplanes of a medium type, each machine to have two 360 h.p. Rolls-Royce engines. Afterwards, large land machines will be built with 4 engines." We should be obliged if you would make it clear to your readers that we are not supplying engines to the Hofawerke firm, nor have we had any communication with them. It seems probable, therefore, that if the Hofawerke firm are fitting Rolls-Royce aero engines to aircraft intended for German use, the engines are the old type of engine (known as "Eagle VIII") which were designed and built many years ago, and are now completely out-of-date. We are now producing a later and considerably improved design known as the "Eagle IX". It is known that the British Government had a large number of the now obsolete "Eagle VIII" engines on hand at the time of the Armistice, and we believe that these redundant engines are still being disposed of directly or indirectly, to foreign governments and others. Yours faithfully, For ROLLS-ROYCE, LIMITED, (Signed) B. Johnson. General Manager. | ||