Two charter companies are mentioned that at one time or another carried passengers from London to Paris and return on behalf of Mercury Airways. Blue- Line Airways Ltd of Tollerton (Notttingham) was one. To quote Tony Merton Jones: 'Between September 27th and November 21st 1948 Blue-Line operated a series of charter flights (with Avro Ansons) from Croydon to Le Bourget, the passengers then boarded the Mercury Airways aircraft at Le Bourget to continue their journey to South Africa. These services were arranged by Ackroyds Air Travel, who were later fined for operating these services and Blue-Line Airways thus lost a valuable source of income during the winter months.'
In January 1949 Blue-Line purchased a single DC3. I wonder perhaps whether they had these Mercury charters in mind when they did this. In the event the DC3 didn't enter service until the end of February 1949 and in August 1949 the company ceased operations. In the meantime there being little work for the DC3 out of Tollerton it became a familiar sight at Bovingdon and Blackbushe and ranged as far afield as East Africa and The Persian Gulf.
Blue-Line Airways Avro Anson at Tollerton.
Blue-Line's DC3 at Tollerton. Photo: Dave Welch with thanks.
Trans-World Charter who were based at Bovingdon was the other company. However the extent of their involvement is unknown. Mr Fillery mentions that he is going to use them to operate flights for Mercury out of Bovingdon to Le Bourget . They operated Vickers Vikings.
Bovingdon 1950. Photo: Arthur Huswitt via NA3T.
Unfortunately Mercury Airways had a very poor safety record.
15th May 1948. Photo: Ken Fuller.
The thirteen occupants were killed - the majority were Mercury employees some with their family members. Link follows:
https://aviation-safety.net/database/operators/5688
A couple more South African Irregulars who used Bovingdon from time to time. Suidair International were up to the same sort of tricks as Mercury.
Photo and text Source: Ed Coates aircraft photos with thanks.
Photo and text Source: Ed Coates aircraft photos with thanks.
The above aircraft is now preserved at the Metheringham Airfield Visitor Centre in Lincolnshire. For a tiny bit of social history I have borrowed the following Pan African tit-bits from the Metheringham Airfield Facebook Page:
Photo: Chris Bill.
Photo:Chris Bill.
Air Hostess account of Mercury Airways Dakota ZS-BWX Accident near Orly 20th November 1948 below:
Liverpool Echo 16 December 1958 (BNA). Apologies for poor quality of text !
A bit of a dry read here but not without a dash of humour in places:
https://hansard.parliament.uk/Common.../CivilAviation
June Lupino Glen who survived the prang in the desert but was later stranded at Bovingdon when Mr Fillery sold out.