Heathrow - Your first flight
My first flight out of Heathrow was in 1967, almost certainly in February ... my father, my elder brother and I went to Paris for a few days. I can rememebr that we flew in a Trident, and we took-off on runway 23.
Next trip was in summer of '67 (July or August) when we went by BEA Vanguard to Malta. I remember it was a night flight, and was quite pleased to be able to 'stay up late'! I also remember stepping out onto the air-stairs at Luqa at about 3am in the morning and the heat felt like I was being slapped across the face by a wet flannel! A family of 5, staff travel to Malta, all for under £30. Luvverly-jubbly.
Next trip was in summer of '67 (July or August) when we went by BEA Vanguard to Malta. I remember it was a night flight, and was quite pleased to be able to 'stay up late'! I also remember stepping out onto the air-stairs at Luqa at about 3am in the morning and the heat felt like I was being slapped across the face by a wet flannel! A family of 5, staff travel to Malta, all for under £30. Luvverly-jubbly.
Feb '62 Berne for a skiing holiday, DC6, can't remember which holiday charter carrier. The whole holiday package was about £45 I seem to recall.
I did have a lot of ATC hours before then in Anson, Chippie, Provost, Hastings, Beverley and Lincolns (main holiday occupation was hitching to any RAF base and badgering the Cadet Liaison Officer - "Oh, it's you again").
I did have a lot of ATC hours before then in Anson, Chippie, Provost, Hastings, Beverley and Lincolns (main holiday occupation was hitching to any RAF base and badgering the Cadet Liaison Officer - "Oh, it's you again").
Last edited by Fitter2; 12th Jan 2008 at 14:35.
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I was amazed to see this thread resurface to the front page again, so I wondered when my father first flew into Heathrow. Mind you, I don't actually know the date of Heathrow's inauguration....okay, I'm lazy, Google would no doubt inform me.
So I guessed this must have been his first flight there and back in '53. But now that I have re-checked, this was indeed '55.
So I guessed this must have been his first flight there and back in '53. But now that I have re-checked, this was indeed '55.
Last edited by GK430; 13th Jan 2008 at 18:26.
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What a brilliant log book page! Sept 17th interests me, in the Avro Ashton, marked "B of B". Battle of Britain? It might have been a fly-past rehearsal because Sept 17th 1953 was a Thursday and RAF Biggin Hill's display (were there any others, then?) would have been on Saturday the 19th. Could this in fact be Saturday 17th September 1955, and not 1953? Because Britannia G-ANBA was not registered until 7 January 1954...
Heathrow was well established by 1953 - the London to New Zealand Air Race started from there that year, and the RAF even managed to lose a Vulcan there in the fog, IIRC.
What a brilliant log book page! Sept 17th interests me, in the Avro Ashton, marked "B of B". Battle of Britain? It might have been a fly-past rehearsal because Sept 17th 1953 was a Thursday and RAF Biggin Hill's display (were there any others, then?) would have been on Saturday the 19th. Could this in fact be Saturday 17th September 1955, and not 1953? Because Britannia G-ANBA was not registered until 7 January 1954...
Heathrow was well established by 1953 - the London to New Zealand Air Race started from there that year, and the RAF even managed to lose a Vulcan there in the fog, IIRC.
Last edited by D120A; 13th Jan 2008 at 14:31. Reason: Question about date
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D120A,
Apologies, you are so correct - it was indeed '55.
You must be extremely knowledgeable. I presume B of B was a Battle of Britain display somewhere - Bristol area? Neither flight that day was very long and I recall my father stating that the Ashton's endurance was limited and could catch the unwary out.
How do you know when the Britannia was first registered? G-INFO certainly does not hold that data.
A worthwhile digression
If the thread continues, perhaps I'll post one or two of his other EGLL visits!
Apologies, you are so correct - it was indeed '55.
You must be extremely knowledgeable. I presume B of B was a Battle of Britain display somewhere - Bristol area? Neither flight that day was very long and I recall my father stating that the Ashton's endurance was limited and could catch the unwary out.
How do you know when the Britannia was first registered? G-INFO certainly does not hold that data.
A worthwhile digression
If the thread continues, perhaps I'll post one or two of his other EGLL visits!
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As you say, a worthwhile digression. I got G-ANBA's details from a treasured old book The Civil Aircraft Registers of Great Britain 1919-1985 published by The Aviation Hobby Shop ('tahs'), which is a mine of information. I think you can still find it on the bookstalls at big fly-ins such as that at Popham. It says for G-ANBA:
B.175 Britannia 102 c/n 12902 Reg'd 7.1.54 Canx 10.3.70 Scrapped at Luton 6.70
- you can see it is very useful in answering the occasional question.
I was at the RAF Biggin Hill display that day in 1955 - I was 10. Thanks to a Christmas clear-out of the loft (which I am now seriously reconsidering), I have the programme from that day in front of me. The Ashton is not specifically listed in the flying programme, although it does say 'Numerous other aircraft will fly past either singly or in formation during the afternoon'. And they did - and, in one year out of the five or six I went, I do remember seeing the Ashton fly past. I'll see if I can find it in another programme.
To give you an idea of just how good those early B of B displays were, here is one item from 1955:
'Demonstration low level ejection from a Meteor'
It was Martin-Baker's aircraft, of course, and there was a dummy in the seat, but it didn't half impress. Why don't they (we?) do that any more?
A bit off-thread, sorry, but it's 100% History and Nostalgia I hope everyone will agree.
B.175 Britannia 102 c/n 12902 Reg'd 7.1.54 Canx 10.3.70 Scrapped at Luton 6.70
- you can see it is very useful in answering the occasional question.
I was at the RAF Biggin Hill display that day in 1955 - I was 10. Thanks to a Christmas clear-out of the loft (which I am now seriously reconsidering), I have the programme from that day in front of me. The Ashton is not specifically listed in the flying programme, although it does say 'Numerous other aircraft will fly past either singly or in formation during the afternoon'. And they did - and, in one year out of the five or six I went, I do remember seeing the Ashton fly past. I'll see if I can find it in another programme.
To give you an idea of just how good those early B of B displays were, here is one item from 1955:
'Demonstration low level ejection from a Meteor'
It was Martin-Baker's aircraft, of course, and there was a dummy in the seat, but it didn't half impress. Why don't they (we?) do that any more?
A bit off-thread, sorry, but it's 100% History and Nostalgia I hope everyone will agree.
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D120A
Trying to maintain a Heathrow theme, was G-APNA based there with Hunting Clan?
On one day (March 8th) they did HKG-SIN and SIN-Calcutta 10hrs 55 mins wheels off to wheels on.
Then on 9th and 10th all in one hit, Calcutta - Bombay - Istanbul - LHR - Filton in 20 hrs 20 mins airborne (taxiing not included.) I think there was another thread running recently - perhaps in Mil Forum trying to estimate how long troopers used to take to the U.K. from Changi
20hrs 20.....tell that to the kids of today
Digressing back to Martin-Baker and exciting ejector seat demos, my mother knew Doddy Hay (quite well) in her teenage years many years ago in Bonnie Scotland.
Trying to maintain a Heathrow theme, was G-APNA based there with Hunting Clan?
On one day (March 8th) they did HKG-SIN and SIN-Calcutta 10hrs 55 mins wheels off to wheels on.
Then on 9th and 10th all in one hit, Calcutta - Bombay - Istanbul - LHR - Filton in 20 hrs 20 mins airborne (taxiing not included.) I think there was another thread running recently - perhaps in Mil Forum trying to estimate how long troopers used to take to the U.K. from Changi
20hrs 20.....tell that to the kids of today
Digressing back to Martin-Baker and exciting ejector seat demos, my mother knew Doddy Hay (quite well) in her teenage years many years ago in Bonnie Scotland.
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Quite possibly, because I 'spotted' G-APNB and that was almost certainly at Heathrow. Both aircraft were Britannia 317s, both registered 9.5.58. 'NA was withdrawn from use at Baginton on 31.5.72 and scrapped in July '73. 'NB was w.f.u. at Luton in March '71 and broken up the following November.
In the 1960 edition of Civil Aircraft Markings, both aircraft are shown as belonging to British and Commonwealth Shipping Co. (Aviation) Ltd. Would that mean a Heathrow base? By the 1971 edition, both aircraft are owned by Donaldson International Airways, presumably at Luton.
Hope that helps. Please see your PMs for a little more.
Quite possibly, because I 'spotted' G-APNB and that was almost certainly at Heathrow. Both aircraft were Britannia 317s, both registered 9.5.58. 'NA was withdrawn from use at Baginton on 31.5.72 and scrapped in July '73. 'NB was w.f.u. at Luton in March '71 and broken up the following November.
In the 1960 edition of Civil Aircraft Markings, both aircraft are shown as belonging to British and Commonwealth Shipping Co. (Aviation) Ltd. Would that mean a Heathrow base? By the 1971 edition, both aircraft are owned by Donaldson International Airways, presumably at Luton.
Hope that helps. Please see your PMs for a little more.
The "independent" Britannias were delivered to Hunting-Clan and to Air Charter in 1958-9, Hunting based at Heathrow and Air Charter at Stansted. Both were principally used on UK to Far East military charters, including to Christmas Island in the Pacific; some of the latter trips found it more efficient to route out over Asia and home over America, doing a round-the-world journey.
In 1960 these two companies merged (with others) to form British United, which was owned principally by British & Commonwealth Shipping, hence the ownership listed above. BUA consolidated their operations at Gatwick. The Britannias then got transferred onto the BUA Gatwick to Central and East Africa schedules which had been run for many years by these same two founder airlines, starting with Vikings and progressing up through Viscounts. Fuel stops galore and extraordinary aircraft to use on long-haul routes, the Britannia made the transition to more mainstream aircraft. BUA replaced them after a few years with the VC-10 and sold the Brits off to people like Donaldson (who operated out of Gatwick and Glasgow).
To the fore in both the Britannia and the VC-10 purchase decisions was, of course, Freddie Laker, MD of Air Charter and then of BUA.
Charter Britannia operators out of Heathrow may seem surprising nowadays, but British Eagle persevered substantially with them until they went out of business in 1968, holiday charters to the Med, military to various points, freight loads, etc, as well as using them on a couple of their schedules.
In 1960 these two companies merged (with others) to form British United, which was owned principally by British & Commonwealth Shipping, hence the ownership listed above. BUA consolidated their operations at Gatwick. The Britannias then got transferred onto the BUA Gatwick to Central and East Africa schedules which had been run for many years by these same two founder airlines, starting with Vikings and progressing up through Viscounts. Fuel stops galore and extraordinary aircraft to use on long-haul routes, the Britannia made the transition to more mainstream aircraft. BUA replaced them after a few years with the VC-10 and sold the Brits off to people like Donaldson (who operated out of Gatwick and Glasgow).
To the fore in both the Britannia and the VC-10 purchase decisions was, of course, Freddie Laker, MD of Air Charter and then of BUA.
Charter Britannia operators out of Heathrow may seem surprising nowadays, but British Eagle persevered substantially with them until they went out of business in 1968, holiday charters to the Med, military to various points, freight loads, etc, as well as using them on a couple of their schedules.
Last edited by WHBM; 16th Jan 2008 at 14:30. Reason: Bit about British Eagle
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I went into there for the first time only last week, 11/01/2008. I haven't even been in there as a passenger. It was a medical flight to pick up a blood sample. But its certainly interesting going in there in a seneca with B747's and Airbus' all around.
"Speedbird ???, expect late landing clearance due to light twin on final".
Too F***ing right!!!!!
"Speedbird ???, expect late landing clearance due to light twin on final".
Too F***ing right!!!!!
Just out of brief interest another Log Book clip
Aged 8 with Dad - Heathrow to Filton.
The date must be 17th or 18th August 1951
I see his next flight to New York 17h 39m Total Flying (totals out of range of my scanner)
Aged 8 with Dad - Heathrow to Filton.
The date must be 17th or 18th August 1951
I see his next flight to New York 17h 39m Total Flying (totals out of range of my scanner)
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Late 1949 or early 50, BOAC Avro York London (after overnight delay due to "weather/fog over France")- Tripoli ( 8 hour delay awaiting midnight to enable astro navigation across the Sahara AND a daylight landing into Kano)- Kano ( 24 hour delay with cracked fuel pipe awaiting spare on next flight)- Lagos. I've been addicted to and involved with aviation ever since.
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WOW, skylion, hope you are not moaning ? I would have loved to have been there and then ! My favourite aircraft ! strange though it may be ! Would love to have to overnight somewhere in the world just because the poor old york was a little under par ! Love it Keith.
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WHBM - Thanks - just needed confirmation. Now tempted to post log book page with, amongst others, Brits and VC.10 flights - but none from LHR.
It was a relief to do LGW to Entebbe on a 10 in 7+ hrs instead of holidaying down there in the Britannia in around 12 hrs.
I reckoned the only way I would get into Heathrow in L/H seat would be doing a Medevac - 'pricemic' thanks for keeping that dream alive!
Spacegrand has gone on to bigger & better things, but you must hold some sort of record in a 172. The only single I recall seeing there over the years was Sheila Scott's Comanche - at least I think it was, but I stand to be corrected.
Daresay Heathrow Director could list many.
I'm afraid Yorks were slightly ahead of my time, so I shouldn't complain about Britannia speeds!
It was a relief to do LGW to Entebbe on a 10 in 7+ hrs instead of holidaying down there in the Britannia in around 12 hrs.
I reckoned the only way I would get into Heathrow in L/H seat would be doing a Medevac - 'pricemic' thanks for keeping that dream alive!
Spacegrand has gone on to bigger & better things, but you must hold some sort of record in a 172. The only single I recall seeing there over the years was Sheila Scott's Comanche - at least I think it was, but I stand to be corrected.
Daresay Heathrow Director could list many.
I'm afraid Yorks were slightly ahead of my time, so I shouldn't complain about Britannia speeds!
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Flights out of Heathrow
1st flight out of Heathrow.
As an Engineer,
Sept 1965,MEA Comet to Beirut, in company with 5 pilots (one named Roy Bartrum,Comet Captain), to bring back 3 Doves and 2 Herons for Riley conversion from Amman to Luton.
Although not first flight out, repeated the same journey 4 weeks later outbound with BOAC in VC10(what a climbout,horizontal curtains and flying blankets), direct to Amman to bring one Dove back via the same route home,pilot on this trip was Eddie Wild. What memories .
Merv
As an Engineer,
Sept 1965,MEA Comet to Beirut, in company with 5 pilots (one named Roy Bartrum,Comet Captain), to bring back 3 Doves and 2 Herons for Riley conversion from Amman to Luton.
Although not first flight out, repeated the same journey 4 weeks later outbound with BOAC in VC10(what a climbout,horizontal curtains and flying blankets), direct to Amman to bring one Dove back via the same route home,pilot on this trip was Eddie Wild. What memories .
Merv