Book excerpt: The Avro Anson was born from the germ of an idea in 1933, when G. Woods Humphrey, managing director of Imperial Airways, met Sir John Siddeley, chief executive of the Armstrong Siddeley Development Company, to discuss his ideas for a new aircraft. Sir John passed the specification to A.V. Roe & Co. Ltd, where chief designer Roy Chadwick began work on the first of many Avro designs.That first design, approved by Imperial Airways and brought into production in 1934, was for a four-passenger, mail-carrying aircraft, powered by two Armstrong Siddeley Cheetah V engines. As the Avro 652 it was one of the first British aeroplanes to feature a retractable undercarriage.An Air Ministry requirement for a coastal patrol aircraft almost matched the specification of the mailplane and, with the addition of a gun turret and other military equipment, the Avro Anson was born. The Anson played an important role in Britain's coastal defences during the early part of the war, before it was withdrawn from the front line and used for aircrew training.The Anson's reliability and low accident rate earned it the nickname 'Faithful Annie' among servicemen, and it had been in continuous production for seventeen years when the last one was built in 1952. Ansons continued to serve in the RAF until they were officially retired in 1968.Carefully compiled by Harry Holmes, this book features more than 200 photographs, many previously unpublished, which tell the story of the Anson. It will provoke interest and nostalgia among aviation enthusiasts, historians and servicemen who flew in the Anson, as well as providing a fascinating insight for those unfamiliar with this distinctive British aircraft.