Parnall evolved from a weights and measures manufacturer, to experts in shop fitting, to an aircraft production company, as well as establishing ourselves as a legal firm in the 1920s, our roots are firmly planted in the early years of military aviation history.

In 1820, William Parnall opened a business in Narrow Wine Street, Bristol, trading as a weight and measures manufacturer which expanded over the years to cover shop fittings. By the 1880s, Parnall & Sons was the largest shop fitting company in England. In 1889, it was established as a limited company known as Parnall & Sons Ltd and had gained itself a reputation for quality. In 1913, this attracted the attention of W&T Avery Ltd of Birmingham – another well-known weights and measures manufacturer – who took over the company but retained the Parnall & Sons Ltd brand.

At the start of WW1, John Parnall’s son George was Managing Director as the company began manufacturing aeroplanes and seaplanes, producing over 600 by 1918. This included aircraft for the Admiralty, namely Avro 504, Sopwith Hamble Baby and Shorts types. Two company aircraft designed were the ‘Zepp’ Chaser and the Parnall Panther. George was widely described as a determined visionary who would go on to establish his own aviation company against incredibly stiff competition (using his workforce’s expertise in woodwork to his advantage). George was a founder member of the Society of British Aircraft Constructors and his factory was visited by a number of high-profile personalities of the period. During WWI, a young designer, Harold Bolas, joined the company. He quickly became Chief Aircraft Designer and a leading figure in the company’s experimental aircraft designs. During his times with the Admiralty Bolas had designed the AD Nayvplane in a joint venture with a certain R J Mitchell who went on to design the Schneider Trophy Seaplanes and later the Supermarine Spitfire. Harold Bolas was chief aircraft designer for both Parnall & Sons and George Parnall & Sons, from 1917 to 1929.  His first design for Parnall was the Panther, a 2 seat reconnaissance bi-plane of which a non-flying example is being re-created at Trelonk. The last design he produced before leaving for America in 1929 was the Parnall Elf, an example of which is part of the Shuttleworth Collection at Old Warden.

By 1918, Parnall & Sons were manufacturing various types of aircraft for the Admiralty, including Short 827 seaplanes and Avro 504Ks and Hamble Baby Converts.

During the Second World War, the company once again turned to aircraft manufacturing and the factory in Yate produced components and fuselage sections in metal and wood for a range of Royal Air Force and Fleet Air Arm aircraft in service, including Tiger Moths, Shorts Stirling, Handley Page Halifax, Bristol Beaufighters and de Havilland Mosquito. Many fuselages of the Airspeed Horsa (a wooden troop carrying glider) were produced. These were used in the D Day landings and later at Arnhem. Unfortunately, the Yate factory site was a strategic target for the Luftwaffe bombing and during 1941 over fifty people were killed during raids which damaged the buildings. But, even after a factory bombing in World War II, Parnall & Sons continued in full production, building nose and tail turrets for, amongst others, aircraft of Bomber Command including Lancasters along with Spitfire wing assemblies and other components. Over 22,000 gun turrets for the aircraft of Bomber and Coastal Command were produced Parnalls.

After the war, component work continued for Royal Air Force types such as the de Havilland Venom jet fighter. Now peace had returned to Europe, attention turned to the production of components for civilian types such as the de Havilland Dove and Heron and the Bristol Britannia. The interior details for the mock-up and prototype of Concorde were also produced.

These days, our heritage extends to the restoration of two MkVb Supermarine Spitfires and building a full-size replica of a Parnall Panther.