In 1919, John Kenworthy, chief designer of the motor manufacturer Austin Motor Company, (who had built large numbers of aircraft under license during the First World War) designed a small single-seater light aircraft in order to cash in on an expected boom in private flying.
The first prototype, powered by a two-cylinder horizontally opposed engine,[REF] flew in 1919, receiving its Airworthiness Certificate in December that year [REF].