Richard Milroy Clarkson OBE FCGI FRAeS (14 July 1904 – 7 October 1996) was a British aeronautical engineer with de Havilland, then Hawker Siddeley. He led the design of the HS121 Trident wing, certain features of which were subsequently used for the Airbus A300 wing in the late 1960s.
Early life He attended Clayesmore School in Dorset.
Career de Havilland He joined de Havilland at Edgware in 1925.
He was responsible for the aerodynamics of the de Havilland Mosquito.Flight International May 1943 The first Mosquito W4050 flew in November 1940. He became Head of Aerodynamics in 1935, and Assistant Chief Engineer in 1941.Flight International April 1952
Hawker Siddeley Aviation He was responsible for the aerodynamics of the DH.121 Trident and his team later designed the wing for the Airbus A300.
He retired in February 1969.Flight International February 1969
Personal life He lived at Whitwell, Hertfordshire in the 1930s.Bucks Advertiser Friday 12 May 1933, page 10
He married Sylvia Paice in 1940, and they had one daughter. He received the OBE in the 1950 New Year Honours. He lived at Kinsbourne Green near Harpenden in the 1950s.Birmingham Daily Post Thursday 11 June 1953, page 9
In April 1964 he became a Fellow of City and Guilds.Flight International April 1964 He received the Gold Medal of the Royal Aeronautical Society in 1966. From the Royal Society he received the Mullard Award in 1969 for his work on the Trident.Flight International 1969
He died in Somerset in 1996.Independent obituary
See also A. H. Tiltman, another de Havilland designer Tim Wilkins OBE, Chief Designer for de Havilland
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