LUTON History and Nostalgia

[Vampiredave]

Ceylon Jet Provosts at Luton

I am aware that this excellent forum focuses on the civilian operations at Luton Airport but I wonder if anyone can provide me with help regarding Jet Provost deliveries from Hunting/Percival to the Ceylon Air Force. I am aware that 12 Jet Provost T Mk.51s, CJ701-CJ712 from Luton - probably by company or Airwork pilots - from December 1959?
It is suggested that the first aircraft, CJ701, was the former company Mk.2 demonstrator, G-AOHD/'XN117' which was returned and modified to Mk.3 standard. Another suggestion was that this aircraft was scrapped at Luton in 1960 and that CJ 701 was anew-build airframe? Any help will be gratefully received?

[vintage ATCO]

I think we discuss anything and everything here!

CJ701 c/n PAC/W/5754 FF Luton 1959 as G-23-1. To Ceylon AF (no date given) WFU 1971
CJ702 c/n PAC/W/5760 FF Luton 1959 poss as G-23-5. To Ceylon AF 2.60. WFU 1971
CJ703 c/n PAC/W/5763? FF Luton 1959 poss as G-23-6. To Ceylon AF 2.60. WFU 1971
CJ704 c/n PAC/W/6192 FF Luton 1959. To Ceylon AF 2.60. WFU 1971. By 1994 in play area in Sri Lanka AF Museum Ratmalana Sri Lanka
CJ705 FF Luton 1959 poss as G-23-5. To Ceylon AF 2.60. WFU 1971. By 1994 in play area in Sri Lanka AF Museum Ratmalana Sri Lanka
CJ706 c/n PAC/W/6322? FF Luton 1959. To Ceylon AF 2.60. WFU 1971
CJ707 FF Luton 1959/60. To Ceylon AF 1962?. WFU 1971 and preserved
CJ708 FF Luton 1959/60. To Ceylon AF 1962?. WFU 1971
CJ709 FF Luton 1959/60. To Ceylon AF 1962?. WFU 1971
CJ710 FF Luton 1959/60. To Ceylon AF 1962?. WFU 1971
CJ711 FF Luton 1960. To Ceylon AF 1962?. WFU 1971. Preserved at Sri Lanka AF Museum Ratmalana Sri Lanka.
CJ712 FF Luton 1959/60. To Ceylon AF 1962. WFU 1971

G-AOHD was c/n PAC/84/012 FF Luton 1956 and did an overseas sales tour in Latin America and then was shipped out to Oz. It's preserved and stored at RAAF Museum, Point Cook.

Info from On the Wings of a Gull by David Gearing, published by Air Britain. It does contain errors.

[Vampiredave]

Ceylon Jet Provosts at Luton

I would agree that the Gearing book is full of errors. Anyway, thanks to several enthusiasts I have found out that XN117 did not go to Ceylon AF as 'CJ701' but was placed into open store at Luton following weapons trials and overseas evaluations and scrapped in early 1962. The deliveries of the Jet Provosts to Ceylon have never been confirmed and I am sure that there must an accurate list somewhere?

[LTNman]

1955 T1 Jet Provost

Peter Worby

[diddy1234]

When did Hunting / Percival aircraft cease to be based at Luton airport ?
was it just a case of amalgamation into BAC and then the Luton site shut down ?
Where did the Jet Provost manufacturing move to after Luton ?

[Vampiredave]

Hunting merged / acquired by BAC on 1 January 1964

Luton factory closed 31 July 1966

Production of Jet Provost Mk.5 and Strikemaster transferred to Warton; ten Strikemaster fuselages finally assembled at Hurn between 1979 / 1980 following increased production of Jaguar airframes at Warton

[diddy1234]

Thank you VampireDave.
does this mean the majority of production for the Jet Provost was at Luton ?

[Vampiredave]

All Jet Provost Mk.1 to Mk.4 airframes, including T.Mk.51 and T.Mk.52 armed versions of the Mk.3 and Mk.4, respectively, were built at Luton. Wings built at Hurn

[gatman]

Luton ATC logbooks

Good afternoon
I've been pointed to this forum and hopefully someone will be able to help.
I am trying to find which specific aircraft I flew in and out of Luton on back in 1973, 1974 and 1975!
I know it's a long shot but a colleague said someone on the forum had access to the tower logbooks for the time.
I'd appreciate any help you could give, I have more info but it would probably be easier by PM if needed.

Regards

Gatman

[LTNman]

This thread is very good at time and dating the unusual movements, the more regular aircraft could be a tough call. How about a few examples you are looking for?

[gatman]

Unfortunately they are common but here goes

Monarch Airlines Britannia Luton to Basel approx 29/5/73 returning 7 or 10/6/73 these are the two I'm really interested in

Dan Air BAC 1-11 Luton to Palma 14/1/74 am returning 18/1/74 PM

This one is slightly more sketchy on dates Britannia Airways B737 Luton to Rimini 3/5/75 returning 17/5/75 Previous research showed one a week but not sure which day. Return was within 5 days after the 13/5/75

I appreciate these will probably be unsolvable but it would be great to find out.

gatman

[dc9-32]

cj241101 to the rescue I suspect......

[cj241101]

dc9-32, thanks for the vote of confidence - just had a look and I was actually living in Reading on the dates in question, so nothing doing, I'm afraid. The only source I know of for Luton ATC logs is the Bedford Archive Centre but they only have Aug 1966-Aug 1968.

[gatman]

Oh well, it was worth a try.

Thanks for your help.

Cheers

gatman

[LTNman]

Marty Feldman during filming.

photo by Luton Airport

[YVRLTN]

Did Air Inter ever operate the Mercure into LTN?

[SpringHeeledJack]

Unless it was a one-off charter, I'd very much doubt it because Air Inter were the French government's internal/domestic airline to counterbalance Air France being the international/external airline. An interesting aircraft, used to see them in Orly back in the day.

[treadigraph]

I recall a Mercure at Gatwick, not sure if I saw it or just a photo, or indeed why it was there.

[Level bust]

My records show that no Mercure ever visited Luton.

[SpringHeeledJack]

I used to fly on Air Inter a lot in the 90's and I'm pretty sure that i flew on a Mercure between Paris Orly and Avignon and return in 93 or 94, but to my enthusiast shame the memory isn't clear, only that the airport was restricted to the size of aircraft that could land there. If anyone's interested there's one apiece at the Le Bourget and Speyer museums to wander around. A shame that this aircraft didn't have success, a bit like the story of the HS Trident.