BAe 125 / HS.125
Hawker Siddeley / British Aerospace · United Kingdom · first flew 1962 · transport aircraft
The HS.125 was Britain's most successful bizjet, produced from 1962 through decades of re-engining and updates that eventually led to the Hawker 700, 800 and 1000 series.
Recognition (WEFT)
| W — Wings | Low-mounted, swept |
|---|---|
| E — Engines | 2 × turbofan, tail-mounted |
| F — Fuselage | Square-section fuselage with flat sides and a distinctive rectangular cabin window arrangement — unlike the oval-section Gulfstream or Learjet |
| T — Tail | T-tail |
WEFT is AircraftIQ's four-point recognition method — how it works.
Spot it by:
- Square-section fuselage with flat sides and a distinctive rectangular cabin window arrangement — unlike the oval-section Gulfstream or Learjet
- Relatively deep fuselage cross-section for its era; original variants used Rolls-Royce Viper turbojets with very slim nacelles
- Pronounced anhedral on the tailplane is distinctive; narrow chord T-tail fin compared with contemporary American bizjets
The distinctively square-section fuselage and rectangular windows separate the original 125 from contemporary American designs; later 700/800 series visually converge with other clean-wing T-tail bizjets but retain the flat-sided fuselage cross-section.
Specifications
- The BAe 125 / HS.125 has a length of 15.46 m (51 ft).
- It has a wingspan of 14.33 m (47 ft).
- Its maximum speed is 800 km/h (497 mph).
- Typical crew: 2 flight crew.
Figures are for the representative variant described above; marks differ. See how AircraftIQ sources figures.
History
The de Havilland DH.125 first flew in August 1962, becoming the HS.125 after the Hawker Siddeley merger and then the BAe 125 after the British Aerospace nationalisation in 1977. Early versions used Rolls-Royce Viper turbojets; later Garrett TFE731-powered variants gained substantially better range and economics. The series was enormously successful and formed the backbone of the global bizjet charter fleet in the 1970s–1980s.
Variants
The 125 series ran from the Series 1 through to the 800 and ultimately the Hawker 1000, spanning turbojets to turbofans. The defining transition was the Series 700 (1976) with Garrett TFE731 engines replacing the Vipers.
Where you'll see it
Early HS.125s are essentially retired from UK operations but the Hawker 700/800 descendants are ubiquitous at Farnborough, Luton and Biggin Hill; the type founded what is now the world's largest bizjet charter base at Luton.
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