Handley Page Herald Series 400

The Series 400 is the military derivative of the 200: side loading, a strengthened floor and capacity for freight, 50 troops or 24 casualty stretchers with medical attendants. Eight were built for the Royal Malaysian Air Force, the only military Heralds.

Behind it lies a lost opportunity. The RAF needed 45 tactical transports to replace its piston-engined Vickers Valettas, and from 1960 Handley Page was working on the HP.124, with a new rear fuselage and a loading ramp under a raised tail; it was considered the favourite against the Avro 780, and short-field trials of the Herald 200 prototype at RAF Martlesham Heath in 1961 showed its ability to work from unprepared strips. But the Minister of Aviation, Peter Thorneycroft, refused to sign the contract unless Handley Page agreed to merge with British Aircraft Corporation or Hawker Siddeley under the government's consolidation policy. Hawker Siddeley offered less than half of what Frederick Handley Page valued his company at, the merger never happened and the RAF order went to the Avro 780, which became the Andover. The Series 400 was the consolation: a simpler tactical transport without a rear ramp.

A Series 401 — G-BEYF of Channel Express — was the last Herald in service: it was retired at Bournemouth after its final flight on 9 April 1999.