Originally Posted by
Ken Borough
AP,
My memory says that these were operated by RR powered -238s. And weren't they an operational headache ex MEL with the 'cooking fire' forecasts for BOM?
They sure were... I remember the fuel capacity of 164,500kg on the 743 and remember looking at loadsheets on just about every flight with 164,500kg - also a pain with oversales at the beginning as they were very popular and always full.
My memory is that it took until the 743 to have the range to do the flight... the 743s were RR powered (VH-EBT, U, V, W, X and Y) but I do remember the 742s operating via BOM from PER.
You may be right however, but I thought they started when the 743s arrived. Remember well the cooking fires at BOM. Also remember one QF10 having a birdstrike or engine out on take-off before V1 at BOM and bursting a large number of tyres coming to a stop... heard about it on a QF23 to PER from the Crew a week later. Come to think if it that might have been a 742.