hadley page herald and f27
I started my aviation career in 1966 flying the HS748. Now I am retired, however one of my original examples is still paying its way flying (albeit unpressurised) as a freighter in Northern Canada some 46 years later.
If it is of any useful comparison, the relative success of the types might be gauged by the statistics of number of examples still in civil use today
HP7 0/50 built
F27 33/758 (inc Fairchild production)
748 34/361
And the winner is .?
If it is of any useful comparison, the relative success of the types might be gauged by the statistics of number of examples still in civil use today
HP7 0/50 built
F27 33/758 (inc Fairchild production)
748 34/361
And the winner is .?
Last edited by Flightwatch; 15th Nov 2012 at 13:15.
"Mildly" Eccentric Stardriver
Pigboat. You used your hands to test the Maxarets? A swift flick with the toe of a shoe seemed to do the job perfectly.
As oxo says, Des knew the gear would probably collapse. Hence his holding that wing up as long as possible. Brilliant job, well executed.
As oxo says, Des knew the gear would probably collapse. Hence his holding that wing up as long as possible. Brilliant job, well executed.
As SLF I was much impressed by the approach in to Interlaken in a Globe Air Herald in September 1966. We arrived in the overhead then descended in what seemed to be quite a steep 360 degree turn on to finals. I guess the Swiss pilot flew Swiss Air Force Venoms at the weekend.
Not quite so impressed with a flight back from Frankfurt in 1986 in an Air UK F-27 which the pilot said had been dragged out of the jungle in Africa somewhere and put back in to service. Anyway aforesaid pilot came back and said he was opening the bar for free as there were strong headwinds and it was going to take longer than the usual 1hr 40 minutes. However this wasn't as generous as it might sound as there only 4 passengers on board but it did take 2hrs 15mins. My ears didn't stop ringing for some time after that. Things improved when the 146s arrived but that's another story.
Not quite so impressed with a flight back from Frankfurt in 1986 in an Air UK F-27 which the pilot said had been dragged out of the jungle in Africa somewhere and put back in to service. Anyway aforesaid pilot came back and said he was opening the bar for free as there were strong headwinds and it was going to take longer than the usual 1hr 40 minutes. However this wasn't as generous as it might sound as there only 4 passengers on board but it did take 2hrs 15mins. My ears didn't stop ringing for some time after that. Things improved when the 146s arrived but that's another story.
Herod, you're correct about the toe. I can't remember whether it was Bob D or Roy H at Norwich who exhausted the last of the air pressure and was left hanging onto the gear strut screaming for assistance as the aircraft rolled gently back towards the terminal windows!
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Good old Days
I remember the F27 well having amassed around 2000hrs on the old girl. A lot of firsts for me - 1st proper airplane, 1st command, 1st engine failure ( no fun at all on a 100 series), 1st electrical failure. I think to say I 'cut my teeth' on the old girl is probably a bit of an understatement but the experience has stood me in very good stead as my career progressed. I remember once I was tasked with taking one with a time-ex engine down to BM engineering at East Mids for an engine change. The deal was to stay with the aircraft and bring it back to base on completion. By day 2 I was a bit bored so I wandered over to the hangar to check progress and to have a look around as you do. I was in one of the maintenance rooms when I noticed a Dart engine on a stand. To say this thing had been through the wars was an understatement The (external) canular combustion chambers were so bad they had holes in them and the rest of the engine was no better - the whole thing looked to my eyes a complete mess. So with piqued curiosity I asked the guy in the workshop where they had found it. The answer was " we have just taken it off your airplane." The engine performed fine on the way in except the TGT was a bit higher than usual. Amazing engines. I must say I never really saw those engines in the same way after that, even though with 1 exception they never let me down.
"Mildly" Eccentric Stardriver
Michelangeloman. Battered they may have been, but they kept running, didn't they? One thing all three types benefitted from was the Dart. Tough as old boots, minimal maintenance (waits for replies from engineers), never let you down. Again I confess a bias, but I never felt unsafe in the F27.
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G-BEZB and G-AYMG
Air Uk Hangar at Norwich June 1984, at the rear is G-BEZB having a belly skin replacement following landing incident in Guernsey, at the front is Skyguard G-AYMG on rotine maintenance, operating from Birmingham carrying post and general freight
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G-JEAH March 1993
G-JEAH F27-500 shortly after landing at Lulsgate with a fractured drag strut, the engine, prop and drag strut replaced, temp repairs carried out and aircraft ferried to Exeter for repairs 3 days later.
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G-JEAP Coventry
G-JEAP at Coventry July 2000 after using the perimeter fence as an arrester hook, notice the forward part of the cockpit is on the road with double yellow lines under the foam
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G-JEAP Coventry
G-JEAP at Coventry, following the incident local plod attached a parking ticket as the aircraft was on double yellow lines.
Thats all for tonight, I hope this has brought back a few memories, pretty good fun times compared to the EASA nightmares these days
Thats all for tonight, I hope this has brought back a few memories, pretty good fun times compared to the EASA nightmares these days
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Herod, it was indeed Rocket Socks (RIP) who was seen trying, with his bare hands and screeching heels, to hold 12 tonnes of G-BLFJ rolling backwards - and, t7a, not towards the terminal, it was towards the hangar, but its rearwards travel was arrested by the catering van! Dick Holt (also RIP) was hanging out of the adjacent F27 DV window utterly helpless with mirth.
Poor old Rocket Socks ("mine's a double Glemorangie thanks old boy" "Gently gently old boy - look outside the window, see how fast you're going") had a somewhat unfortunate relationship with the pneumatic isolation bar - did a little 'gardening' at Stavanger one day, bless him.
I landed at NWI only a couple of months ago to take an aircraft to the paint shop and as I taxied past the very spot I described the incident to my colleague - how odd that it should be recalled again here.
Poor old Rocket Socks ("mine's a double Glemorangie thanks old boy" "Gently gently old boy - look outside the window, see how fast you're going") had a somewhat unfortunate relationship with the pneumatic isolation bar - did a little 'gardening' at Stavanger one day, bless him.
I landed at NWI only a couple of months ago to take an aircraft to the paint shop and as I taxied past the very spot I described the incident to my colleague - how odd that it should be recalled again here.
I started my aviation career in 1966 flying the HS748. Now I am retired, however one of my original examples is still paying its way flying (albeit unpressurised) as a freighter in Northern Canada some 46 years later.
Quebecair had three gear accidents with their Fairchilds over the years. In the first one the aircraft was taxiing in and ran into a hole in the gravel taxiway that had been dug for a soil sample. The gravel hadn't been tamped properly. I can't remember the results of that one, it was a couple of years before my time. In the second they undershot the runway at Havre St. Pierre and hit the lip of the gravel runway with the right main. It broke the gear scissors, but they managed a go around. With the scissors being broken, there was nothing to hold the gear sliding member and it slid out to the stops and the gear wouldn't enter the well. They flew the airplane back here where a gear up landing was carried out. There was surprisingly little damage. The airplane remained upright and it was simply jacked up and the right gear replaced, the belly taped up and it was ferried back to Montreal for permanent repair. In the third one, they had done an emergency gear extension. Upon arriving at the gate, after a brief discussion with the co-pilot who objected strenuously, the Captain place the emergency gear selector back to the normal position, with predictable results. The Captain was an older gentleman who'd instructed in the military during WW2, and possessed a lengthy vocabulary of profanity. I didn't hear the CVR tape, but I'm told he used all of it as the airplane sank to the ground. Apparently there was more damage to the airframe in that accident than there was with the gear up landing. The nosewheel was chocked, and as the mains collapsed they tried to force the nosewheel against the chock.
We suffered a collapsed nosewheel with our machine. The crew had returned from a flight and were turning around in front of the hangar when the nose wheel follow-up mechanism came unshipped and kicked the nose wheel down lock off. Oops! I ferried the airplane to Montreal for repairs with the nosewheel down and the mains retracted.
Last edited by pigboat; 16th Nov 2012 at 02:44.
My a/c was c/n 1576 delivered new in Feb 1965. It then went through a succession of airlines mainly in Asia and Africa before arriving in Canada in 1989. Its previous identities were:
G-ATAM, XA-SEI, PI-C1020, G-ATAM, 9G-ABV, G-ATAM, OY-DFS, G-ATAM, 9J-ABL, ZS-HAS, G-ATAM, TR-LQY
It is now C-GMAA operated by Wasaya Airways and based I believe in Pickle Lake and Red Lake.
C-FAGI is a relative newcomer having been built in 1971.
The 5th oldest 748 still flying I think she has done pretty well in her long career!
G-ATAM, XA-SEI, PI-C1020, G-ATAM, 9G-ABV, G-ATAM, OY-DFS, G-ATAM, 9J-ABL, ZS-HAS, G-ATAM, TR-LQY
It is now C-GMAA operated by Wasaya Airways and based I believe in Pickle Lake and Red Lake.
C-FAGI is a relative newcomer having been built in 1971.
The 5th oldest 748 still flying I think she has done pretty well in her long career!
Last edited by Flightwatch; 16th Nov 2012 at 07:13.