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Desmond Norman, co-founder of Britten-Norman, died last week of a heart attack at the age of 73. Norman and John Britten joined forces in the late 1940s and their partnership led to the development of the ubiquitous BN-2 Islander and Trislander utility aircraft series and later the Defender military/paramilitary variant. More than 1,250 of the aircraft have been sold, with over 800 still in service. The company, now called the B-N Group, continues to manufacture the types with airframes produced by Romaero of Romania and assembled at the B-N plant in Bembridge, Isle of Wight. John Britten died in 1979.