Originally Posted by
pax britanica
I flew on number of VC10s and 707 fanjet and straight jet versions
The VC10 was i think a little wider internally much much much quieter and with a more stable ride than the 707 , the DC in my opinion was better ride than the 70.
With stable fares and not much competition back then I am not surprised people chose the VC 10 , but t didnt have the legs of the 707C series and often had to offload baggage or pax on LHR -Caribbean routes or the other longer trans ats. Going east was very different as no non stop SIn in those days more like 3 stops. I did alot of VC 10 trips JFK-BGI , LHR-BGI (Barbados) LHR-Bahrein Nicosia-LHR, Rome LHR , LHR-HKG with three or four stops. HKG back to LHR. LHR-Seychelles via Nicosia Addis Khartoum (a real Empire Route) and a few more and I always found it extremely comfortable and relaxing to fly on . Having to walk out across the ramp at 2300 local time to board a VC10 possibly on its own in the garish sodium lighting and walking up the steps gave you a real sense of travelling. On the ground living near LHR noise was a different matter and probably contributed in part for my need for hearing aids today.
I wasn't aware that the VC10 had so much range. When I flew in it, it went LHR-BEY-KHI-DEL, I did know it could do transatlantic, but my parents were never posted to diplomatic missions on the other side of the Atlantic so I never got to try it.
My parents loved Beirut, in those days (very early 70s) it really was the Paris of the Orient, so we always used to stop off for a day or two there on our way back to England. I still have fond memories of the Club St Georges, of which my parents were members, where the fishermen on the rocks below the Club would bring their catch directly to the kitchens, I've never had fresher fish.
Are your hearing aids only for hearing loss or for tinnitus as well? I had hearing aids from my local Specsavers, these cost the NHS a lot of money and really weren't much use at all. I got an appointment with an audiologist in Lincoln Hospital (the waiting list was 99 weeks) who gave me hearing aids specifically for tinnitus sufferers, after a four-hour hearing and balance test, and these are vastly better. It's worthwhile putting yourself on the waiting list for an NHS audiologist, they do much better hearing aids, at a price that makes the taxpayer weep.