BOAC Comet 1s and Constellations

[tiny fireburn]

Seeking photos of BOAC Comet 1s (rpt 1s) and Constellations with which to illustrate magazine article I have written on Peter Fotherby, who retired from BOAC as a captain in 1978. If anyone can help with personal photos (rather than agency shots) please contact me at: [email protected].

[l.garey]

Tony: I have a couple of Comet 1s taken at London Airport in 1953. One at least is identifiable as G-ALYP, that crashed near Elba in 1954. The other may be the same aircraft. The photos were taken by me as a young schoolboy, so the quality is rather poor. I can send them if you can't find anything better.

Laurence

[chevvron]

Seeking photos of BOAC Comet 1s (rpt 1s) and Constellations with which to illustrate magazine article I have written on Peter Fotherby, who retired from BOAC as a captain in 1978. If anyone can help with personal photos (rather than agency shots) please contact me at: [email protected].

Take a look at Blackbushe Proboards; it has many photos of Comets at Blackbushe in the '50s as they used to go there for crew training.
I'd like to post a link but the Mods keep deleting all my previous postings and you can't post links until you've scored 10 successful postings.

[Old Photo.Fanatic]

Hi Tony
I have a slide I scanned awhile back, it was red tinted, so I had to work on it quite a lot to produce a best as possible colour rendition.
Its not perfect but for what it is I think its quite good
Is mainly of BOAC Connie G-ANTF plus other prop. a/c. at Hong Kong in 1957

Message me with your e-mail and I can send it as an attachment if you would like to consider it.

OPF
OOPS, E-mail noted in your first post.
Still message me if you would like a copy to check it out.

[tiny fireburn]

Laurence: Would be glad to look at your Comet 1, if that's OK.

Chevron: TY for the steer towards Blackbushe Proboard. I've already had a quick peek - will try again!

Terry: I'd certainly be pleased to look at yr Connie pic

All: Just a reminder that my email is [email protected]

[l.garey]

Tony: email with two photos on its way.

Laurence

[Mike6567]

Bahrain 1952, but not very good quality (from very old negatives lost somewhere in the loft!)
3860
3861
3862
3863


Also see post 12 below - location Colombo

[l.garey]

Just in case they are of interest to others, here are the two pictures I took of the Comet in 1953, mentioned in my post number 2, above. First is G-ALYP on 4.4.1953. Second, I think, is the same the same day, but my record keeping as an 11-year-old was poor, as was the quality of the pictures.

I can't recall precisely, but I think the second one was after they started towing it, which would explain that I saw both sides.

They are at London Airport, before it changed its name to Heathrow. I think the building you can see in the second picture must be the beginnings of the terminals in the central area. I still have my log for that day and it was a big spotting day. Lots of Argonauts, Hermes, Yorks etc etc. That makes me think I was in the North Side area. But I can't think why a Comet was parked there.

I think I can see a couple of Ambassadors' tails under the nose in the second photo.

Laurence

[Allan Lupton]

A friend and I were at LAP at about the same time as Laurence, and if I could find them I could show some very similar photos.
As a 15-year-old I should have kept better records, but I can say that the two of us went on to have careers in aviation - I with the manufacturer of those Comets and Colin with the RAF and later in civilian flying training.

ETA I found three photos from that day, and the two prints showing Comets are not up to much so won't include them here. That day a DH Dragon Rapide, G-AGUF, was flying joy-rides from next to the spectators' enclosure.

[l.garey]

Interesting Allan. I saw 4 Dragon Rapides at LAP, G-AGUF in 1952, but also G-AFFB, GJG and LBB over the period 1952 to 1954. Sorry to let the thread creep, tiny fairburn, but I'm sure you won't mind. There aren't so many of us left who spotted at LAP in 1952.

Laurence

[l.garey]

Those are nice pictures Mike. But I wonder if the last two are really Bahrain. Not only does the vegetation look odd, but the presence of Sokol CY-AAG makes me think more of Colombo. Also, is that a DH Dragon (or maybe Rapide) in the hangar? The Sokol is mentioned in http://lungtaworld.tripod.com/Some%20Aircraft.htm

Laurence

[Mike6567]

Thank you l.garey. I had no captions to the photos and from Log Book entries with aircraft registration decided it was Bahrain - duff gen I'm afraid!
I have had another look through the Log Book and have found it could/must have been September 1952 Colombo.

Mike

[l.garey]

So we agree Mike! But does that mean all four photos are at Colombo? That must have been one of the very early flights to Colombo, then, as they started in August 1952.

Do you know the names of the crew in the first two?

Laurence

[Mike6567]

Laurence, pm sent.

Also on checking I see an earlier flight was Singapore Rangoon Colombo Bombay Karachi With a note Bombay 30 Aug 1952 "Publicity Flights" (two flights Bombay - Bombay)
The route for the photo was Karachi Bombay Colombo with the Colombo bit 17 September 1952

Mike