LUTON History and Nostalgia
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This photograph was taken 42 years ago today. We've just passed the latest anniversary of the Court Line collapse. The detention paperwork can be seen attached to the aeroplanes. I never believed the airport would recover from the events of that year but look at it now.
Photographer not known but sure not me at that height.
Photographer not known but sure not me at that height.
[QUOTE=LTNman;9479350]What a great photo. When Court went bust the Tristars were stored in the north west corner so I wonder where they are in this photo?[/QUOTE
Good point! I seem to remember the 1-111's being packed into the NW corner to take up minimum apron space with, (I think), the Tristars at the very back. The parking looks very neat and also as if the aircraft had mainly been taxyed on to stand.
The Court line bankrupcy had an indirect effect on some of us who worked in the tower as ATCAs at the time as our ATC licence courses were cancelled due to the financial impact on the Airport. It didn't stop any of us getting there in the end though!
Good point! I seem to remember the 1-111's being packed into the NW corner to take up minimum apron space with, (I think), the Tristars at the very back. The parking looks very neat and also as if the aircraft had mainly been taxyed on to stand.
The Court line bankrupcy had an indirect effect on some of us who worked in the tower as ATCAs at the time as our ATC licence courses were cancelled due to the financial impact on the Airport. It didn't stop any of us getting there in the end though!
When Court Line went bust the 1-11s were re-possessed by BAC pretty quickly.
My Father (a BAC Senior Inspector) flew to Luton from Hurn in the company HS125 with 4 BAC pilots and cleared the aircraft for the ferry flight to Hurn two at a time. I think the Liens on the aircraft were sorted by the commercial people.
Within about 2 or 3 days 10 of the aircraft were at Hurn with the word Court painted out so nobody would know where the aircraft were from!!!!!! (remember the colours)
The last of the 1-11s was stuck at Nicosia in Cyprus due to the war going on at the time. It was about 6 months later that my father was involved in recovering that aircraft.
This info is IIRC.
My Father (a BAC Senior Inspector) flew to Luton from Hurn in the company HS125 with 4 BAC pilots and cleared the aircraft for the ferry flight to Hurn two at a time. I think the Liens on the aircraft were sorted by the commercial people.
Within about 2 or 3 days 10 of the aircraft were at Hurn with the word Court painted out so nobody would know where the aircraft were from!!!!!! (remember the colours)
The last of the 1-11s was stuck at Nicosia in Cyprus due to the war going on at the time. It was about 6 months later that my father was involved in recovering that aircraft.
This info is IIRC.
When Court Line went bust the 1-11s were re-possessed by BAC pretty quickly.
My Father (a BAC Senior Inspector) flew to Luton from Hurn in the company HS125 with 4 BAC pilots and cleared the aircraft for the ferry flight to Hurn two at a time. I think the Liens on the aircraft were sorted by the commercial people.
Within about 2 or 3 days 10 of the aircraft were at Hurn with the word Court painted out so nobody would know where the aircraft were from!!!!!! (remember the colours)
The last of the 1-11s was stuck at Nicosia in Cyprus due to the war going on at the time. It was about 6 months later that my father was involved in recovering that aircraft.
This info is IIRC.
My Father (a BAC Senior Inspector) flew to Luton from Hurn in the company HS125 with 4 BAC pilots and cleared the aircraft for the ferry flight to Hurn two at a time. I think the Liens on the aircraft were sorted by the commercial people.
Within about 2 or 3 days 10 of the aircraft were at Hurn with the word Court painted out so nobody would know where the aircraft were from!!!!!! (remember the colours)
The last of the 1-11s was stuck at Nicosia in Cyprus due to the war going on at the time. It was about 6 months later that my father was involved in recovering that aircraft.
This info is IIRC.
aceatco, retired
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One BAC1-11 ended up at Bristol (I think). The night Court Line went bust a message was passed to the captain of the aircraft to fly to Luton but apparently he said 'Sod it, these passengers have paid to go to Bristol' so landed there. Whether it was recovered to Luton later I cannot remember.
The TriStars were parked up in the corner for a long time.
The TriStars were parked up in the corner for a long time.
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The Tristars are on the left out of shot. Like the rest of the airport I turned out the morning after to see the pink one return home from Halifax (?) I recall.
I have a (possibly faulty) memory that the aircraft stuck in Nicosia had actually been the recipient of some small arms fire and required some repairs to the pressure hull before it could be flown out?
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Here is my shot on 16th August 1974 as AB taxied in - apologies for such poor quality but at least I was there.
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I remember flying out of Luton in 1975 must have been may or June and seeing this huge pink aircraft sitting alone next to my Britannia 737 which I flew to Ibiza on I was only a young lad and remember my father saying it was court line which went bust a year before also some family friends lost there holiday the previous year I think the tristar ended up with Cathy Pacific
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Court Line Tristars
Only pictures I ever managed of the Court Line Tristars. Both sat around the northwest corner of the airport for over a year after Court folded on 15/8/74. G-BAAB below - minus titles and logo - was returning following an air test on 7/10/75. It did another air test a couple of days later. I don't have the dates when the 2 aircraft were ferried back to Lockheed. Anyone help with that one?
G-BAAA 16/9/74
G-BAAA 1/10/75
G-BAAB 7/10/75
G-BAAA 16/9/74
G-BAAA 1/10/75
G-BAAB 7/10/75
Last edited by cj241101; 22nd Aug 2016 at 16:32.
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Court Line Tristars
Both aircraft indeed went to Cathay in 1977 having been reported stored at Palmdale after leaving LTN late 1975. "AA" then went to Aer Turas as EI-CNN in January 1997, appearing at the airport as such - I think minus any titles - on 24/6/98. My anorak log has it back and carrying Air Scandic colours on 12/5/99 and 16/5/99. Its active life ended when it was ferried to Abu Dhabi on 31/10/99. getting broken up there around Nov 2006.
"AB" went from Cathay to Caribbean Wind Airways as V2-LEM in March 1996, arriving at LTN as such at 0009 on 17/3/96, again as I recall with no titles. It was still there on 28/3/96. Air Transat then acquired it as C-FTSI in May 1998, but they only had it for a year or so, with the aircraft getting broken up in December 2000.
"AB" went from Cathay to Caribbean Wind Airways as V2-LEM in March 1996, arriving at LTN as such at 0009 on 17/3/96, again as I recall with no titles. It was still there on 28/3/96. Air Transat then acquired it as C-FTSI in May 1998, but they only had it for a year or so, with the aircraft getting broken up in December 2000.
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Thanks Luton Anorak for filling in a couple of gaps. Didn't realise they went as late in the year as that, so I hadn't scrutinised my notes that far. Found G-BAAA's dep date eventually but not G-BAAB.
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The view from the spectators car park when Luton had a 4ft fence that could be leaned on. What a great collection of cars! I think all of them are UK built apart from one Citroen and a VW Beetle.
Where the two women are standing is where the tunnel starts today under the taxiway.
Luton News
Where the two women are standing is where the tunnel starts today under the taxiway.
Luton News
Last edited by LTNman; 6th Feb 2017 at 05:04.
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Anyone able to date the above photo? I'll try but I stand to be corrected as usual. The nearest Brit looks like one of the ex-Eagle machines that sat around during 1969/1970. I have G-AOVK present from March 1969 until Feb 1970 when it was scrapped and G-ARXA from March 1970 until getting scrapped Nov 1970. The length of the shadows indicates it's probably summer (in spite of the lady in what looks like a winter coat). The right edge of the picture has hangar 89 just visible which probably indicates 1970 rather than 1969 when the initial construction began. I remember the hangar was structurally complete by the summer of 1970, although not in use until October that year.
aceatco, retired
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I think you are probably right in all your surmising. I did wonder if the 105E Anglia was mine but I see that one has hubcaps, mine didn't! 
