This a truly magic thread as it brings back all the happy memories of operating my first airline aircraft.
After a short service military career, I was working as an Instructor at one of the airline training schools. It didn’t take long to realise that my studes were taking up jobs that were paying a good bit more than I was earning !
After a bit of negotiation, I managed to avoid having to start on a Herald or an F27 and was put on a Viscount. As it carried more passengers, it paid better than the others !
I ended up with a few thousand hours on the aeroplane and it was the best training I could ever have had for my future career. My first command on it came after a mere four years.
In my opinion, the Viscount was one of the most reliable, easy to operate aeroplanes one could have chosen. There was stacks of power even at MTOW. If it was hot, just preselect the water meth.
The cockpit was indeed a bit cramped, dark and an ergonomic nightmare of analogue instruments. For night flying these were illuminated by red floods, not the backlit convenience of even an Apache or a Twin Comm.
However I still regard this as character-building stuff though ; not the fancy glass expectations of the current bunch of computer whizz-kids ! Nah, I don’t really mean that. Just jealous that that was all coming in as I approached retirement !
Another perspective was the attitude that, if conditions were getting a bit tedious, then you were expected to hand-fly the aeroplane; much smoother than using the auto pilot and indeed more responsive in the event of a bilious crosswind on a wet night into JER.
Hand flown approaches were also 'de rigeur' for places like IOM on a wet winter’s night in a SW gale onto 21, which was a bit short. Even then we would be stopped by the intersection. Outboard power was needed to turn onto the taxiway and then getting to the lee side of the piers was difficult ; this was a necessity in that you weren’t allowed to open the pax doors if the wind was in excess of 40 knots.
Oh, and I’ve just remembered from those wet nights how you could tell who was the Captain on a VC8 !
The two windscreen wiper motors were hydraulic and used to leak right onto your legs ! - the Captain’s right trouser leg and the FO’s left leg !
Yep, I think I learned a bit about flying from that old girl.
Last edited by Sleeve Wing; 22nd Feb 2018 at 17:15.
Reason: another anecdote .....