BOAC Mosquito Flights

[ShotOne]

BOAC did a sterling job throughout WWII in maintaining civil air services with neutral countries, bringing in important high value materials, maintaining diplomatic relations, transporting key personnel, probably including spies. Many of these were operated by regular BOAC civilian pilots. What I've been unable to find out is, who flew BOAC's Mosquitos? While they would all legally have had to be civilian employees, were they in practice seconded from the RAF or were they trained from BOAC's original workforce?

[Skeleton]

Not my subject field but...

BOAC Mosquitoes [Archive] - PPRuNe Forums (http://www.pprune.org/archive/index.php/t-383856.html)

may help you :)

[54Phan]

Sharp and Bowyer's "Mosquito" devotes a chapter to these operations, along with some photos. Obviously there is a lot more information available now, both electronic and wood fibre based, but the sense I got was that they were BOAC crews. IIRC, there was at least one T III transferred to BOAC for training purposes.

[Finningley Boy]

They used to fly regularly from Leuchars to Sweden and back, I've a couple of photos onloan to my publisher at present. Not only Mosquitos, but Lodestars and B-24s among others were also gainfully employed flying the same routes.

FB:)

[ShotOne]

Thanks for the helpful answers. I'd had a suspicion these were just BOAC badged RAF aircraft but it seems that absolutely wasn't the case. What's also become apparent is that the "ball bearing run" flights were a most hazardous enterprise; the Germans knew exactly when they were leaving and the approximate route and many brave crews were lost.

[NutLoose]

There was a cracking article in a flypast magazine about them quite a while back, one they believe was taken out by a German spy, there was an incident in a hotel and during it they believe the pilots flask was swopped with one containing a bomb that detonated on the way to the UK killing the crew, another incident referred to the carriage of VIP passengers who were simply perched in a hammock strung along the bomb bay, the doors being then shut... one passenger had the misfortune of the bomb doors drop open enroute, so was left lying there on his hammock looking at nothing below him but the sea!

[NutLoose]

Further to the above see

http://www.pprune.org/aviation-history-nostalgia/383856-boac-mosquitoes.html