Heathrow - Your first flight
TeCarley
Yes the old staff travel centre was stressful place thats for sure.As I rememeb3r it was only fr BOAC /BA Long haul. BEA /Short haul had a different arrangement - just went to the gate i think which I suppose made sense as in one case it was often a case of three flights a week and the other 6 lights a day.
You are quite right about it being useful to know people in load control, as I recall my late father was friendly with someone in staff travel and more than once my ticket had a staff travel code rather than a staff familly member code. Mind you people perhaps never looked too closely because the all important date of joining which priority was based on would have been before I was born if the staff member code was used. Anyway I was always pretty lucky I must say and have happy memories of it-made air travel even more of an adventure.
Ramp tramp
if you go back to the days of the rapide at Heathrow then your memories of Vikings ad Daks at Northolt I quite correct- I am not sure when BEA leftNortholt but I am guessing around 1956 because we moved house in porder for my father to get to Heathrow.
A wonderful time for a kid interested in planes witha huge variety of types and airlines at LHR plus all sorts f oddities like ccasional military flights.light aircraft , blind landing test flights and the unforgetably noisy and bizarre looking fairy Rotodyne giant helicopter thingy a sort of cross between an ATR42 and a Chinook in todays terms. Another example of incredibly complex British engineering with no marketing backing
PB
Yes the old staff travel centre was stressful place thats for sure.As I rememeb3r it was only fr BOAC /BA Long haul. BEA /Short haul had a different arrangement - just went to the gate i think which I suppose made sense as in one case it was often a case of three flights a week and the other 6 lights a day.
You are quite right about it being useful to know people in load control, as I recall my late father was friendly with someone in staff travel and more than once my ticket had a staff travel code rather than a staff familly member code. Mind you people perhaps never looked too closely because the all important date of joining which priority was based on would have been before I was born if the staff member code was used. Anyway I was always pretty lucky I must say and have happy memories of it-made air travel even more of an adventure.
Ramp tramp
if you go back to the days of the rapide at Heathrow then your memories of Vikings ad Daks at Northolt I quite correct- I am not sure when BEA leftNortholt but I am guessing around 1956 because we moved house in porder for my father to get to Heathrow.
A wonderful time for a kid interested in planes witha huge variety of types and airlines at LHR plus all sorts f oddities like ccasional military flights.light aircraft , blind landing test flights and the unforgetably noisy and bizarre looking fairy Rotodyne giant helicopter thingy a sort of cross between an ATR42 and a Chinook in todays terms. Another example of incredibly complex British engineering with no marketing backing
PB
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Northolt move
Thread drift!! pax britanica asked when the last BEA service operated from Northolt.
According to my Best Ever Airline book the last BEA service from Northolt was on 30th October 1954 when G-AHCZ "Charles Samson"a DC3 Pionair left for Jersey in the late evening.
According to my Best Ever Airline book the last BEA service from Northolt was on 30th October 1954 when G-AHCZ "Charles Samson"a DC3 Pionair left for Jersey in the late evening.
Ok yes a bit of thread drift but not really irrelevant as Northolt and LHR histories intertwined in those days. Thanks for the info .
Cool nick too, nice plane the 1011-500 lots of time on them back and forth to Bermuda in the 1980s
PB
Cool nick too, nice plane the 1011-500 lots of time on them back and forth to Bermuda in the 1980s
PB
I remember a Sunday School outing from Eastcote to Northolt in the early fifties - I recall there was even a redundant aircraft, from dim memory I think it may have been a Rapide, in the kids playpark. Eastcote was roughly under the Northolt circuit so spent many happy days watchig Rapides, DC3s, Devons, and French Flamants and Noratlas, with US R4D8s, Beech 18s etc overhead.
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Sometime in 1963, BEA Vanguard to from MAN, for a pre-delivery group visit to the then Ferranti Computer factory in West Gorton. The beast was about the size of a small house with a steel frame that could have been designed by Brunel......the computer that is, not the Vanguard ...........but on second thoughts!
Still Trampin' the Ramp
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Thanks to both pax britanica & tristar 500. At least it proves some of the grey cells are still working.
Ah, LAP, standing on top of the Queens building watching all sorts of interesting types and doing the coach tour around the airfield including the maintenance hangars. Such a shame air minded lads & lasses of today can never experience things like that, all in the name of 'security'.
OK, maudlin moment over.
RT
Ah, LAP, standing on top of the Queens building watching all sorts of interesting types and doing the coach tour around the airfield including the maintenance hangars. Such a shame air minded lads & lasses of today can never experience things like that, all in the name of 'security'.
OK, maudlin moment over.
RT
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March 15th 1958 British Isle terminal [end of now T2] 1800hrs Elizabethen flight to Jersey, return 22nd March 1958 Pionair.[Mission Honeymoon] load 21 honeymoon couples 1 embarrased business man and a mother with a young baby.
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June 1960, Heathrow to Idlewild (as it then was) in a KLM SuperConstellation via Shannon and Gander. We were all weighed as we checked in. Return in September was non-stop in a DC7C, also KLM.
This was a student charter. In those distant days we were surprised to find that beer was available on board, and even more surprised to find that it was free!
Someone had brought a guitar along, and most of the 70 or so of us congegrated in the aft cabin for a singsong. After a while we got a request from the captain for some of us to move forward as we were making the plane tail-heavy.
The cost was £70 each, including a Greyhound from New York to Toronto.
This was a student charter. In those distant days we were surprised to find that beer was available on board, and even more surprised to find that it was free!
Someone had brought a guitar along, and most of the 70 or so of us congegrated in the aft cabin for a singsong. After a while we got a request from the captain for some of us to move forward as we were making the plane tail-heavy.
The cost was £70 each, including a Greyhound from New York to Toronto.
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Mine was on British Midland Boeing 737-400 LHR-CDG back in the early 90's, dont remember the Year or the Registration of the plane as I was a toddler.
Although I do remember looking out the window waiting to take off and see Concorde skip the queues and have a beautiful take-offf.
Malaysian28.
Although I do remember looking out the window waiting to take off and see Concorde skip the queues and have a beautiful take-offf.
Malaysian28.
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Even given this is an aviation site I am amazed how many of us took our first flights out of Heathrow in a Dragon Rapide.
I had my fifth birthday party in the restaurant at the airport, (it was a Nissen hut), that would be Nov. 1949. Actually my birthday is in December but my grandfather, who put it on, was ill and organised the party for about thirty kids (and all their parents,) in November so we could have massive bonfires on the edge of the airport. (He was working on the airport at the time.) I just wouldn't be that surprised to hear about half of you lot were there!
I had my fifth birthday party in the restaurant at the airport, (it was a Nissen hut), that would be Nov. 1949. Actually my birthday is in December but my grandfather, who put it on, was ill and organised the party for about thirty kids (and all their parents,) in November so we could have massive bonfires on the edge of the airport. (He was working on the airport at the time.) I just wouldn't be that surprised to hear about half of you lot were there!
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First flight on BOAC DC4 Argonaut - June 1956 from Heathrow's North-side "terminal" routeing LHR -Tripoli (bullet-ridden terminal) - Kano -Lagos.
6 months later, returned to LHR on DC4, then after 6 weeks in UK, returned to Lagos on BOAC Stratocruiser (I think my father spent most of the flights LHR-BCN-KANO-LOS in the downstairs bar!). Returned to LHR after 18 months on BOAC Britannia.
6 months later, returned to LHR on DC4, then after 6 weeks in UK, returned to Lagos on BOAC Stratocruiser (I think my father spent most of the flights LHR-BCN-KANO-LOS in the downstairs bar!). Returned to LHR after 18 months on BOAC Britannia.
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First flight was a BEA Viscount, LHR - Leeds. Would have been early 70s. I remember that they had only just started this "shuttle" service and the signage at LHR woefully lacked any useful information as to where us shuttle pax had to go.
LBA -LHR
BKS Avro 748 in 1965 for the FA Cup Final. Too much excitement in one day for a little boy, but thanks Dad!
Gone off footie big time since then, but developed an expensive aviation habit....
Gone off footie big time since then, but developed an expensive aviation habit....
Last edited by skua; 25th Sep 2009 at 12:41.
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Not my first flight ex LHR, but one of my first in..and it coincided with my first sight of a 747 ..PanAm..with #4 exciting people ..at the end of the runway..flames shooting..fire engines etc..and knowing we were lining up to get this newfangled piece of equipment.
Interesting...and WHAT an aeroplane it turned out to be! ( this was prob early 70s or late 60s?)
Interesting...and WHAT an aeroplane it turned out to be! ( this was prob early 70s or late 60s?)
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It was the night of September 5th/6th 1964 when I boarded an Air France "special" flight to Perpignan by Caravelle "Lorraine". This was a Fourways Travel charter flight leaving the Queen's building at around 2am. I was 20 years of age and on my honeymoon. The flying time was 1 hour 40 minutes.
The return 2 weeks later left Perpignan for Heathrow at around 5am. I remember hearing loud bangs from the engines when the Air-Links Argonaut charter to Manston failed to start and became the subject of a "regret to advise an indefinite delay" announcement. I felt very superior strolling out to board my jet { wow a jet -- just imagine that }.
Dawn had recently broken when we began the approach to runway 28 left at Heathrow. During the flight the Air France Captain had clearly decided to "play with" we British passengers as he had had made several annoucements consisting solely of the words " Dumpy, dumpy, doo " { in an Eccles type voice for those of you who remember The Goons }. Then about 30 seconds before the touch down he called out " Oh No " and gave a jolly laugh ! All we passengers seemed to enjoy the joke and no one screamed or shouted ! I can't imagine such antics would be allowed today --- even when it is a matter of a French crew transporting solely British passengers ! 45 years later the memories are still vivid !
The return 2 weeks later left Perpignan for Heathrow at around 5am. I remember hearing loud bangs from the engines when the Air-Links Argonaut charter to Manston failed to start and became the subject of a "regret to advise an indefinite delay" announcement. I felt very superior strolling out to board my jet { wow a jet -- just imagine that }.
Dawn had recently broken when we began the approach to runway 28 left at Heathrow. During the flight the Air France Captain had clearly decided to "play with" we British passengers as he had had made several annoucements consisting solely of the words " Dumpy, dumpy, doo " { in an Eccles type voice for those of you who remember The Goons }. Then about 30 seconds before the touch down he called out " Oh No " and gave a jolly laugh ! All we passengers seemed to enjoy the joke and no one screamed or shouted ! I can't imagine such antics would be allowed today --- even when it is a matter of a French crew transporting solely British passengers ! 45 years later the memories are still vivid !
Last edited by Euravia First; 6th Oct 2009 at 20:21. Reason: correction
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Early flight at Heathrow.
Likewise, Dragon Rapide G-AGJG & G-AGUF Island Air Services 1949-50 with Monique Agazarian piloting, Paul H.