Why is the HS 748 known as the Budgie?
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The main advantage of the Herald as a cargo aircraft over the 748 and the F27 was the very large double doors with the low sill located aft.
The forward freight doors were tricky due to prop damage caused by the forklifts.
One snippet of useless information, the Herald had the two rear doors, the forward one as a passenger door, with the rear one opening to give access for cargo loading. Additionally there was a forward crew door, left hand side behind the cockpit, one of the original customers was an Australian airline who specified that the forward door opening should be designed to permit the loading of a standard bale of wool, this was incorporated into the design, the airline did not then buy the aircraft.
The pressurisation was pretty poor on the Herald, max diff 2.2 psi if you were very lucky, the large rear doors used to leak very badly, one regular load was a consignment of day old chicks that we used to fly down to Valencia, in order to prevent the chicks from expiring the flying spanner had to take a bin bag of wet rags on the trip and caulk the gaps around the doors to reduce the leaks. On the return trip we often brought back exhaust pipes for the Ford plants at Cologne and Speke.
The forward freight doors were tricky due to prop damage caused by the forklifts.
One snippet of useless information, the Herald had the two rear doors, the forward one as a passenger door, with the rear one opening to give access for cargo loading. Additionally there was a forward crew door, left hand side behind the cockpit, one of the original customers was an Australian airline who specified that the forward door opening should be designed to permit the loading of a standard bale of wool, this was incorporated into the design, the airline did not then buy the aircraft.
The pressurisation was pretty poor on the Herald, max diff 2.2 psi if you were very lucky, the large rear doors used to leak very badly, one regular load was a consignment of day old chicks that we used to fly down to Valencia, in order to prevent the chicks from expiring the flying spanner had to take a bin bag of wet rags on the trip and caulk the gaps around the doors to reduce the leaks. On the return trip we often brought back exhaust pipes for the Ford plants at Cologne and Speke.
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I once worked for a company that had taken over part of the old Handley Page factory at Reading. The company was involved in light engineering. Some ex Handley Page staff worked for the company including a draughtsman who told me the idea for the Herald's rear door arrangement came directly from the C47/DC3.
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There were half a dozen HAL 748s happily buzzing around at Yelahanka AB last week.
The Indian Air Force seem to be getting good use out if theirs.
Still a useful aircraft.
Mind you, out here it's known as an 'Avro'. They've never heard of Budgie.
The Indian Air Force seem to be getting good use out if theirs.
Still a useful aircraft.
Mind you, out here it's known as an 'Avro'. They've never heard of Budgie.
om15 another operator of the Dart Herald was Eastern Provincial Airways. They had a total of four, one was lost on March 17th 1965. The airplane came apart in the air because of corrosion in the forward lav area. Here's a précis of the accident. The full report is out there somewhere, it makes for chilling reading.
Accident CF-NAF
Accident CF-NAF
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The early Heralds had a serious design flaw, the preformed belly skins below the chines had longitudinal top hat stringers fitted, Handley Page had used a form of spot welding to attach the stringers, this process removed the protective surface of the materials and resulted in the rapid process of corrosion in the structure.
Following the fatal crash of CF-NAF, HP reduced the max diff to either 3 psi for aircraft less than six months old, to 2 psi for aircraft between six months and one year old, and zero for aircraft over a year old.
The aircraft were recalled and modified skins were fitted, the new structure was of conventional design, with the top hat stringers attached with three thirty two mush head solid rivets, the skins and stringers being treated with heat cured epoxy resign prior to assembly, and faying surfaces sealed with prc sealant.
To prevent corrosion in service, a system of fibre wicks was fitted, running laterally from chine to chine, with small pellets of strontium chromate fitted, the idea being that moisture would cause the chromate to leach out to protect the structure.
A further problem arose later, with the last dozen or so aircraft converted to cargo aircraft, the requirement for a class E freight compartment meant that all ventilating air had to be ducted to the cockpit and not into the cabin, together with the removal of all sound proofing/insulation caused condensation, this on low utilisation aircraft that were parked up for long periods each day.
The strontium chromate pellets and wicks were eventually removed due to heath and safety and lack of spares, in the final few years corrosion was kept at bay by use of dewatering fluids, a regime of through cleaning and boroscope inspections of the internal structures in the top hat stringers and replacement of skins and structure that showed signs of corrosion.
Following the fatal crash of CF-NAF, HP reduced the max diff to either 3 psi for aircraft less than six months old, to 2 psi for aircraft between six months and one year old, and zero for aircraft over a year old.
The aircraft were recalled and modified skins were fitted, the new structure was of conventional design, with the top hat stringers attached with three thirty two mush head solid rivets, the skins and stringers being treated with heat cured epoxy resign prior to assembly, and faying surfaces sealed with prc sealant.
To prevent corrosion in service, a system of fibre wicks was fitted, running laterally from chine to chine, with small pellets of strontium chromate fitted, the idea being that moisture would cause the chromate to leach out to protect the structure.
A further problem arose later, with the last dozen or so aircraft converted to cargo aircraft, the requirement for a class E freight compartment meant that all ventilating air had to be ducted to the cockpit and not into the cabin, together with the removal of all sound proofing/insulation caused condensation, this on low utilisation aircraft that were parked up for long periods each day.
The strontium chromate pellets and wicks were eventually removed due to heath and safety and lack of spares, in the final few years corrosion was kept at bay by use of dewatering fluids, a regime of through cleaning and boroscope inspections of the internal structures in the top hat stringers and replacement of skins and structure that showed signs of corrosion.
Avro 748
This is how I first met this aircraft in 1965
From the BKS tribute website at http://website.lineone.net/~biggles200/
and how it looks today (with kind permission of photographer)
From the BKS tribute website at http://website.lineone.net/~biggles200/
and how it looks today (with kind permission of photographer)
Last edited by Flightwatch; 1st Mar 2015 at 19:16.
Bernie was one of my instructors on the Varsity at Valley. He was not only a fine instructor but a first class human being.
Anyway, I unearthed this photograph of XS611 on the ramp at Khormaksar when I was looking for something else.
Puzzled of Redhill here.
I can understand the upper camouflage colours for the desert, and I've been given to understand the gloss white cockpit roof was to reflect the sun for cooling purposes, but what was the thinking behind the gloss black undersides?
I can understand the upper camouflage colours for the desert, and I've been given to understand the gloss white cockpit roof was to reflect the sun for cooling purposes, but what was the thinking behind the gloss black undersides?
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Re the Valetta being called the pig, as a student navigator in those, could never enderstand why the ride was aleays more uncomfortable in the Valetta than the Varsity.
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No one (I think) has mentioned Skyways 748s. My memory is that they were one of the first operators. I used to see them dot in and out of Renfrew in the early 60s. I only heard them called Budgies, usually Paraffin Budgies when BA used them in Scotland, much later on.
