There were many at Woodford who felt that the demise of the Herald came about as a result of the trials at Martlesham Heath between the 748 and the Herald, at which the Herald failed to become airborne
I always thought that the demise of the Herald was partly due to Sir Frederic refusing to let Handley Page merge into a larger organisation, this leading to the liquidation of the Company and the termination of the Herald projected derivatives. One of my colleagues at Channel Express was an RAF pilot conducting trials with the Herald and believed that the Herald was considered by the RAF to be the more suitable aircraft for the role but political pressure meant the 748 was chosen. I spent around 20 years as a LAME type rated on the Herald, F27 and 748 and each had their own good points and weaknesses, the Herald is long gone, does anyone know if there are any F27s still flying? if not then the 748 has ticked the box for longevity.