The VC 10
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Well thats the date I have in my ancient passengers flight log book!! It was filled in somewhat retrospectively so may well be wrong, I lived in Kitwe and schooled in the UK so was going back and forth. Thank you anyway
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Returning to the UK once, on BOAC, we "went mechanical" and we in Business Class were told (reasonably politely) that we were having to divert to Belgrade as a precaution.
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Didnt I read somewhere on here that Roz Hanby was a school nurse now. I think it was here anyway. There were a lot of super girls around at the time as I remember!!!! She was just the one that got picked for the ads.
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BOAC only ever had 1st or Economy. Perhaps it was another airline masquerading as BOAC. ??
Every airline has its share of tech problems. If it doesnt then it must be flying on a wing and a prayer not to have to divert. Perhaps in BA we thought of the pax safety rather than just go on!!!!
This complaint by the person who diverted this thread off the VC10 is rather like the pax at Easyjet on the TV that blame the airline delays for the weather problems .
Every airline has its share of tech problems. If it doesnt then it must be flying on a wing and a prayer not to have to divert. Perhaps in BA we thought of the pax safety rather than just go on!!!!
This complaint by the person who diverted this thread off the VC10 is rather like the pax at Easyjet on the TV that blame the airline delays for the weather problems .
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Roz Hanby
Roz Hanby may have been a BOAC employee but she was picked for advertising British Airways, such a lovely smile!
I was lucky, I was in the local ATC. In my school holidays I was a regular at Brize for "Air Experience" flights. I think I accumulated over 100 hours as a passenger on the VC10 (plus many hours flying in Belfasts and Britannias).
As the flights I went on were training flights there were endless touch and gos, 2 engine overshoots, 2 engine take offs, with the third engine gradually powered up (I guess that was a practice for 2 or 3 engine ferries?)
Occasionally we flew to different airfields.
The VC10 is brick built, and was so demonstrated twice in one flight I had.
It was a miserable blustery winters day at Brize, The pilots consisted of a Captain on secondment from the US Air Force and a trainee Co-Pilot. (plus the Flight Engineer)
As we were coming in to land, just about to flare, a strong crosswnid gust caught us. The left wing lifted and we started to drift to the right (the trainee pilot was flying it at the time) The aircraft recovered to wings levelish (I was told the Captain put a "boot full" of left rudder). I can only assume that the Co-Pilot panicked slightly and pushed the control column forward. There was a thump and the whole airframe juddered as we landed nose wheel first.
That little incident has been the closest I've been to an aircraft accident and that is close enough thank you very much!
After that landing we flew to RAF St Mawgan, where the weather was more pleasant. But on a landing there, the nose went down just on flare out, thump, judder again!.
I think the VC 10 is a beautiful aircraft and will be sad when it finally stops flying (anyone for VC 10 to the sky?)
The unmistakeable whine of the Conway turbines, music to my (going deaf!) ears.
I did do a bit of work on the VC10, but that was only when we had no 707s in the hangar.
KB
As an Air Cadet on Summer camp at Brize in 1974I
As the flights I went on were training flights there were endless touch and gos, 2 engine overshoots, 2 engine take offs, with the third engine gradually powered up (I guess that was a practice for 2 or 3 engine ferries?)
Occasionally we flew to different airfields.
The VC10 is brick built, and was so demonstrated twice in one flight I had.
It was a miserable blustery winters day at Brize, The pilots consisted of a Captain on secondment from the US Air Force and a trainee Co-Pilot. (plus the Flight Engineer)
As we were coming in to land, just about to flare, a strong crosswnid gust caught us. The left wing lifted and we started to drift to the right (the trainee pilot was flying it at the time) The aircraft recovered to wings levelish (I was told the Captain put a "boot full" of left rudder). I can only assume that the Co-Pilot panicked slightly and pushed the control column forward. There was a thump and the whole airframe juddered as we landed nose wheel first.
That little incident has been the closest I've been to an aircraft accident and that is close enough thank you very much!
After that landing we flew to RAF St Mawgan, where the weather was more pleasant. But on a landing there, the nose went down just on flare out, thump, judder again!.
I think the VC 10 is a beautiful aircraft and will be sad when it finally stops flying (anyone for VC 10 to the sky?)
The unmistakeable whine of the Conway turbines, music to my (going deaf!) ears.
I did do a bit of work on the VC10, but that was only when we had no 707s in the hangar.
KB
Just another number
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superspotter
BOAC would often operate extra flights when expat children were returning to school. I suspect that your flight was one of these. The flight number would have been the same, BA048.
Dave
BOAC would often operate extra flights when expat children were returning to school. I suspect that your flight was one of these. The flight number would have been the same, BA048.
Dave
Didn't I read somewhere on here that Roz Hanby was a school nurse now.
http://www.leaden-hall.com/internati...ationalday.pdf
An erstwhile colleague of mine, who flew VC10s and Concorde for BOAC, confirmed that Roz was indeed a delightful, intelligent lady when she worked for the airline - and a perfect ambassador for the company in the pre-Ayling era.
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BEagle! re the Leadenhall article:
They (BA) let her keep her uniform!!!!!! They always wanted them back. She must have had a tailor made one. Probably got it made specially at Sams in Honkers!!!!!!
They (BA) let her keep her uniform!!!!!! They always wanted them back. She must have had a tailor made one. Probably got it made specially at Sams in Honkers!!!!!!
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FirstFiveEighth: You don't know just how wrong you are! When you find out, you will likely kick yourself.
As for the thread - great stuff! I was born just as BA were phasing the VC-10 out, but you can't deny what a gorgeous bird she is.
As for the thread - great stuff! I was born just as BA were phasing the VC-10 out, but you can't deny what a gorgeous bird she is.
I saw a photo the other day with the old BOAC colours but without the logo on it. What a mess. It was the worst thing BA ever did to the VC10 was to remove the gold BOAC and speedbird logo and replacing it with a blue 'British Airways' sticker. It spoilt the whole effect of the aircraft.
I only worked on it for a short time but I remember those days of sitting on bar boxes in the back galley listening to those Conways. In those days one of the flights it operated was the daylight Monarch from JFK - LHR. IMO it was the worst flight to operate because arriving back at night. Sometimes if the Capt was nice he would delay chocks by 5 mins so we could have an extra night!! A practice that still goes on today to enable premium payments.
I only worked on it for a short time but I remember those days of sitting on bar boxes in the back galley listening to those Conways. In those days one of the flights it operated was the daylight Monarch from JFK - LHR. IMO it was the worst flight to operate because arriving back at night. Sometimes if the Capt was nice he would delay chocks by 5 mins so we could have an extra night!! A practice that still goes on today to enable premium payments.
Last edited by crewmeal; 22nd Aug 2009 at 04:59.
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No Tercaley, it never had the dubious pleasure of wearing the "world tails" and thank you once again Captain Airclues for the info. You were correct about the expat kids, in fact the only thing I can remember about the actual flight was that I was sat near the rear of the plane amongst all these boarding school types
and they were throwing the pillows around the cabin at each other. I was getting fed up of receiving said pillows in me mush so after several of these pillows kept coming my way I retaliated and threw one back and promptly was the first person to be admonished by the cabin crew
I was about 14 at the time.....
and they were throwing the pillows around the cabin at each other. I was getting fed up of receiving said pillows in me mush so after several of these pillows kept coming my way I retaliated and threw one back and promptly was the first person to be admonished by the cabin crewI was about 14 at the time.....
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"Crewmeal",
That daylight VC10 flight from JFK to LHR was the last leg of a journey from the south Pacific; the aircraft would leave Los Angeles the previous evening for the five hour flight to New York.
I remember how quiet the newly-opened BOAC terminal at JFK was at that time of the day (Air Canada was the only other major resident, before it moved flights to La Guardia).
The sight of the VC10 through the angled terminal window was magnificent. Does anyone have a photo to hand of a VC10 at what is now Terminal 7?
That daylight VC10 flight from JFK to LHR was the last leg of a journey from the south Pacific; the aircraft would leave Los Angeles the previous evening for the five hour flight to New York.
I remember how quiet the newly-opened BOAC terminal at JFK was at that time of the day (Air Canada was the only other major resident, before it moved flights to La Guardia).
The sight of the VC10 through the angled terminal window was magnificent. Does anyone have a photo to hand of a VC10 at what is now Terminal 7?
BA Museum link
For a real trip down memory lane go to the BA Museum site. Plenty of nostalgia there, with a forward by Lord Marshall of Knightsbridge
Ref. the handling of the VC-10 (I never did )
As an F/O on the 707 - ex. Strats and Brits - I was appalled to fly with a Comet Captain converting to type, who had the temerity to actually criticise what I considered the World's most magnificent aeroplane (then ! )
He said that a public transport aeroplane should be capable of being flown by the Company's worst pilot on a day when he felt poorly - he reckoned that the Comet could, but that the 707 would turn around and bite you. True.
I guess the VC-10 would have filled his expectations.
I recall calling for taxy clearance at LHR one day, ATC made us wait for the passing of the first VC-10 scheduled service - flamboyantly martialled away with a salute from ? Guthrie ?. My Captain remarked that we were on the bum fleet now !
Happy days.
( except that I never forgave the VC-10 for taking over " our " Sydney postings !!! Had to wait until the 747 to get back. )
As an F/O on the 707 - ex. Strats and Brits - I was appalled to fly with a Comet Captain converting to type, who had the temerity to actually criticise what I considered the World's most magnificent aeroplane (then ! )
He said that a public transport aeroplane should be capable of being flown by the Company's worst pilot on a day when he felt poorly - he reckoned that the Comet could, but that the 707 would turn around and bite you. True.
I guess the VC-10 would have filled his expectations.
I recall calling for taxy clearance at LHR one day, ATC made us wait for the passing of the first VC-10 scheduled service - flamboyantly martialled away with a salute from ? Guthrie ?. My Captain remarked that we were on the bum fleet now !
Happy days.
( except that I never forgave the VC-10 for taking over " our " Sydney postings !!! Had to wait until the 747 to get back. )
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VC10 never had Sydney postings - if they had I would have been on one!!! Comets did though, I was on those as well. Perhaps you are mistaking one beautiful aeroplane for the other beautiful aeroplane.
I seem to remember flying on" round the world wests and easts" as we called them, a lot on the VC10, and they always went through Sydney and Melbourne. I cant believe there were postings there as well.
I went on the 1st Aussie posting in October 1976 on the 747 and they were the 1st postings to Oz since the 707 as I understood it.
I seem to remember flying on" round the world wests and easts" as we called them, a lot on the VC10, and they always went through Sydney and Melbourne. I cant believe there were postings there as well.
I went on the 1st Aussie posting in October 1976 on the 747 and they were the 1st postings to Oz since the 707 as I understood it.
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I agree with Tercarly. There were no Aussie postings on the VC10 fleet. The 747 posting in 1976 would have been Melbourne. The first of my many postings was in 1978 when they moved to Sydney. What fun!!!
Dave
Dave
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Ohhh Dear poor Pathe, bless em, and it was the death knell of the VC10 to boot.
British Pathe - (VC10)
BTW do a search there is some cracking films of them on there.
British Pathe - (VC10)
BTW do a search there is some cracking films of them on there.
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Bit off topic but
Ah yes, the Steyne Bar (always smelt dreadful) and the discos at the Manly National basement dancing place. BBQs on that little beach (where I got a bush tick in my chest and didnt know until I got to Perth on a trip later that week) Taffys on the Beach, the Royal Motor Yacht club, the RSL at the end of the Manly Beach.
I liked the 1st posting in Melbourne but the subsequent ones (3 more) in Sydney were better for socializing though. The last one was the best I think and I left BA after I got home off that. My reirement party was in Sydney.
Ah yes, the Steyne Bar (always smelt dreadful) and the discos at the Manly National basement dancing place. BBQs on that little beach (where I got a bush tick in my chest and didnt know until I got to Perth on a trip later that week) Taffys on the Beach, the Royal Motor Yacht club, the RSL at the end of the Manly Beach.
I liked the 1st posting in Melbourne but the subsequent ones (3 more) in Sydney were better for socializing though. The last one was the best I think and I left BA after I got home off that. My reirement party was in Sydney.
Last edited by Tercarley; 24th Aug 2009 at 18:17.
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Discussion of the VC10 and Sydney reminded me of a photograph I saw many years ago of a BUA VC10 in Sydney. I assume it was a charter flight but can anyone recall more detail (e.g., date, route etc.)?
Many thanks.
Many thanks.
