Aircraft wing

Known as the P10, this unique prototype aircraft built by Boulton and Paul Ltd of Norwich in 1919 was the first British plane to have a frame constructed entirely from metal. It was a light two seater plane with a thirty foot wing span. Described by the manufacturers as an exercise in constructional techniques, rather than as a commercial aircraft, the remaining wing and rudder section are the oldest surviving pieces of British metal aircraft in existence. The high tensile rolled steel used in the construction meant the frame was actually lighter, stronger and longer lasting than a wooden one of the same design. The plane also utilised Bakelite-Dilecto (plastic) fuselage, another first in British aviation. The aircraft was a star attraction at the 1919 Paris Air Show.