LUTON History and Nostalgia
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DIRECTOR
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I remember those Cargo B737's vividly as on night of the hurricane in Oct 87 was it I was on my third consecutive night flight out of EMA and was due to take this -9 Cargo to Malaga.
We did not have computerised flight plan in those days.As Captain I looked at the charts and had an inspired guess that the headwind all the way to AGP was around 80/100kts!!
Because of this there was no way I could make it without stopping and refuelling somewhere. Chose Gatwick as engineers there to do refuelling etc. There was horrible turbulence thanks to the hangars on left side on approach and a huge crosswind but nothing like what happened later on in the night.
Then to compound matters engineers put on 800kgs too much fuel and we were overweight for take off!!
Whilst trying to see if we could de fuel pressure dropped like a stone and temperature rose by a huge amount so only option was to take off the bars and catering which took time to arrange. All of this was eating up time and eventually we got airborne and the first 10000 ft were horrendous.
On the way back to EMA I listened to the actual at Gatwick and the wind was around 90kts.
My summer house in garden in E Sussex ended up in field next door.
That is my memory of NA and NB
We did not have computerised flight plan in those days.As Captain I looked at the charts and had an inspired guess that the headwind all the way to AGP was around 80/100kts!!
Because of this there was no way I could make it without stopping and refuelling somewhere. Chose Gatwick as engineers there to do refuelling etc. There was horrible turbulence thanks to the hangars on left side on approach and a huge crosswind but nothing like what happened later on in the night.
Then to compound matters engineers put on 800kgs too much fuel and we were overweight for take off!!
Whilst trying to see if we could de fuel pressure dropped like a stone and temperature rose by a huge amount so only option was to take off the bars and catering which took time to arrange. All of this was eating up time and eventually we got airborne and the first 10000 ft were horrendous.
On the way back to EMA I listened to the actual at Gatwick and the wind was around 90kts.
My summer house in garden in E Sussex ended up in field next door.
That is my memory of NA and NB
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18/7/84 N8417 B707 Global International, N15ST Hercules Transamerica dep 19/7
19/7/84 N707ZS B707 Jet Cargo
20/7/84 9XR-JA B707 Air Rwanda (twice)
23/7/84 F-BUOR DC8-55F SF Air and on 24/7
27/7/84 F-GFAR Hercules SF Air dep 28/7
Last edited by cj241101; 12th May 2016 at 19:30. Reason: photos added
Love the old photos from the 70's/80's. The Jet Cargo 707 seems to have been a Formosa/Taiwan craft beforehand and the Rwandan 707 perhaps an ex-Air France steed ?
SHJ
SHJ
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aceatco, retired
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We did!
I remember playing football on Powdrill's fields when we saw a Tri-Pacer landing, our first. We ran up to the airport in football boots to spot our first Irish Tri-Pacer.
I remember playing football on Powdrill's fields when we saw a Tri-Pacer landing, our first. We ran up to the airport in football boots to spot our first Irish Tri-Pacer.
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This beetle on 3 matchsticks was owned by the Luton Flying Club for some 15 years until August 1978. Sadly written off in a landing accident at a private strip near Aberdeen on 18/5/08.
The snow was what was left of the 14 inches that fell on 4/3/70 - I seem to remember the airport being closed for 3 days.
G-ARDT Luton 8/3/70
The snow was what was left of the 14 inches that fell on 4/3/70 - I seem to remember the airport being closed for 3 days.
G-ARDT Luton 8/3/70
Last edited by cj241101; 14th May 2016 at 15:36.
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Discorde's photo of Luton is great! I flew my qualifying cross country from White Waltham to Cambridge with an intermediate stop at Luton, back in 1955. It surely has changed since then!
Gnome de PPRuNe
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Funnily enough, saw a TriPoke heading down the coast at Worthing today. Haven't seen one for ages. My old man had a share in a Colt for a while in the early 1970s.
Thread Starter
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The stands are still there but are now at an angle in front of the hangar but both pointing in a different direction to each other. The hangar belongs to FBO Signature.
aceatco, retired
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Iraq 600, the first of 20 Jet Provost T.52s for the Iraq Air Force. F/F Luton (as G-23-1) 16.7.64, delivered via Dijon 31.8.64.
Wonderful clarity.
Credit: BAE Systems Heritage, Warton - Hunting Percival Archive
Wonderful clarity.
Credit: BAE Systems Heritage, Warton - Hunting Percival Archive
