Flying Colours Airlines

[OntimeexceptACARS]

Doing some research for a book, and was interested in a couple of things about FCL.

1. They had some MAN-GLA-BGR-MCO flights in summer 1997, their first year of operations. Were these classed as ETOPS flights, or 'limited' ETOPS as they may have taken a longer route?

2. Airbus A320 G-BXAT was based at Glasgow and had a Scottish flag within the tail logo. Anyone have any background to this?

OTEA

[WHBM]

It's quite possible to do transatlantic flights stopping at Bangor without them being EROPS, taking a somewhat northerly track to keep within range of Keflavik, Gander etc along the way. Sterling Airways of Scandinavia used to do Caravelle charter flights across the Atlantic in the 1970s. The ICAO requirements at the time I believe were 90 minutes, as opposed to the US FAA requirement of 60 minutes, so non-US registered aircraft would run to this level.

Once ETOPS requirements came along, they were quite onerous and expensive for a carrier to get and maintain, with significant requirements for engineering and crew standards, extra MELs, etc. Even nowadays, ETOPS operators with a deferred item can take a non-ETOPS track when necessary.

[staircase]

I remember picking a 757 up in Bangor with a pack u/s therefore non ETOPS.

The logic of a route over Greenland and towards Iceland, for over an hour with a safety height akin to lord knows what, praying that the other pack did not fail, when I could have been over the North Atlantic at a cruise level just below the Nat tracks was lost on me.

Not Flying Colours but another UK carrier.

[Starbear]

Yes they were ETOPS 138 minutes.

[It's only Me]

There was one 757; G FCLD, 138 mins. It was planned to stop in both directions, but often went direct.

The 320 was a last minute addition to the plan and was replaced by a 757 after the first season.

Me