Aimed at the same market for a robust, reliable and affordable light aircraft engine, it retained many proven design features of the originals while making many improvements.

Direct drive to the propeller, without reduction gearing, helped to keep engine revs low and reliability high.

[5][6] The Blackburn Cirrus Midget was a smaller version developed in 1938 but it failed to enter production.

[7] During and after WWII Blackburn produced uprated versions of the Cirrus Minor and Major.

In 1948 it introduced the Blackburn Cirrus Bombardier with fuel injection and a higher compression ratio, giving increased output.