BOAC Comet 4 memories and memorabilia

[India Four Two]

That Museum of Flight restoration is beautiful, I've never seen a Comet in that condition !

Wodrick,

I think that photo was taken prior to the current restoration effort. I remember reading that after years on the fire dump, Boeing, to their credit, did a cosmetic respray on an airframe that was rapidly falling apart.

I visited the MoF Restoration Centre during my "Grand Tour" two years ago. They are doing a marvellous job, but it's 22 years and counting!

More details and photos here:

http://www.pprune.org/aviation-histo...ml#post9149296

Incidentally, in my opening sentence of the post above, where I was told: "If you go out onto the ramp, don't go beyond the nose of the 727", I didn't realize at the time, that this was not just any old 727, but the prototype! It subsequently made one last flight in March 2016, from Paine Field to Boeing Field.

[Bergerie1]

But they have painted the blue line too low on the flight deck windows. The correct livery has no white on the glazing bars. I hope they have corrected this now.

https://www.google.fr/search?q=boac+...s172E5sD2mVEM:

[gruntie]

.....and BOAC never had any 4Cs. This one is going to be a problem in the future.

[Bergerie1]

gruntie,
Agreed. But they could still get the colour scheme right.

[Planemike]

Only one better would be to have decked it out in the original EAAC livery.....but there I am biased !!

[DaveReidUK]

Originally Posted by Planemike

Only one better would be to have decked it out in the original EAAC livery.....but there I am biased !!

Though that would arguably be equally unauthentic as EAA didn't have 4Cs either.

It would look rather nice in its original livery:

[WHBM]

Originally Posted by DaveReidUK

It would look rather nice in its original livery

Just to double-nitpick here, that's not the original livery, Mexicana received their 4Cs in 1960, then in 1962 they entered into a charter agreement with Aerovias Guest who had a once weekly schedule with Constellations to Lisbon, Madrid and Paris, which had become uncompetitive by then. Guest were also out of money, so the charter, and the dual titles on one aircraft, were arranged. I believe Guest crews were trained and they may have put the Comet on the first leg of the flight, Mexico City to Miami, but Guest went under before the jet service to Europe could start.


I wonder where that Mexicana Comet is, being handled by Pan Am. They had been the owners of Mexicana from the 1920s right through to the ordering of the Comets, which must have been under close scrutiny by Juan Trippe, and who had ordered the abortive Comet 2, but the carrier was nationalised just before the aircraft were delivered.

[Jhieminga]

Originally Posted by Bergerie1

But they have painted the blue line too low on the flight deck windows. The correct livery has no white on the glazing bars. I hope they have corrected this now.

https://www.google.fr/search?q=boac+...s172E5sD2mVEM:

I cannot find a photo that shows the front of the window glazing, but the top edge of the cheatline touches the top of the aftmost cockpit window, that appears to be correct judging by this photo:


Edit: This one is better for a comparison with the original image:

[DaveReidUK]

Originally Posted by WHBM

Just to double-nitpick here, that's not the original livery, Mexicana received their 4Cs in 1960, then in 1962 they entered into a charter agreement with Aerovias Guest who had a once weekly schedule with Constellations to Lisbon, Madrid and Paris, which had become uncompetitive by then. Guest were also out of money, so the charter, and the dual titles on one aircraft, were arranged. I believe Guest crews were trained and they may have put the Comet on the first leg of the flight, Mexico City to Miami, but Guest went under before the jet service to Europe could start.

That sounds about right - the photo is reportedly dated May 1961.

There is a later version of the livery with a solid blue cheat line which the Comets also wore, plus various photos of models featuring the stylised "M" on the tail, though I can't find any evidence that the Comets actually wore that.

[WHBM]

This one is better for a comparison with the original image:

Appears to be flying east over the River Thames, just where the Thames Barrier is nowadays.

[The AvgasDinosaur]

The museum of flight do / used to do a nice limited edition print of a Mexicana 4C over the mountains by Robert Bailey countersigned by John Cunningham.
Hope it helps
David

[Bergerie1]

Jhieminga,
Nice picture - thanks. Much better than the one I found. And the Duxford Comet does not even have the correct colour scheme on the wing tanks.

[India Four Two]

Appears to be flying east over the River Thames, just where the Thames Barrier is nowadays.

WHBM,
I agree. The left pinion tank is pointing towards Royal Victoria Dock and the open space, with the distinctive avenue of trees, below the right pinion tank, is Charlton Park.

[bspatz]

Of interest my wife's uncle has just written a book about the early days of the jet age based on his experience as a BOAC comet flight engineer which will shortly be available; details are at

Amazon

Amazon

.
Having seen an advance copy it is a fascinating read for those interested in a first hand account of operating the first jetliners.

[Kiwithrottlejockey]

Originally Posted by WHBM

Appears to be flying east over the River Thames, just where the Thames Barrier is nowadays.

I've got a HUGE framed photograph of the same airframe (the first Comet 4), possibly taken on the same flight. I purchased it online from the RAF Museum Shop about two years ago and had it professionally framed in NZ native rimu wood. According to info on their website, the photograph was taken in September 1958.

de Havilland Comet 4 (G-APDA) of BOAC in flight, September 1958 - Photo Prints - 1275297 - RAF Museum

[washoutt]

Re the 4C in BOAC livery: it seems the center windshield windows are larger (i.e. higher) than other versions. Is that correct?

[WHBM]

Originally Posted by Kiwithrottlejockey

I've got a HUGE framed photograph of the same airframe (the first Comet 4), possibly taken on the same flight.

de Havilland Comet 4 (G-APDA) of BOAC in flight, September 1958 - Photo Prints - 1275297 - RAF Museum

I would say your photo was taken about 20 seconds earlier than the one posted previously. It's just passing overhead Greenwich eastbound, Deptford with it's onetime riverside industry beneath, and the tip of the Isle of Dogs visible just ahead of the aircraft nose on the right.

The previous phote here has it passing over, among other things, the Charlton riverside plant of J Stone, while the one here now has it passing over their Deptford main plant, the two factories having been either side of Greenwich town centre. J Stone produced all sorts of industrial items, air conditioning plant, escalators, and aircraft components - including, according to their Wikipedia page, for the Comet. I wonder if they were on some sort of publicity photoshoot for the company. If so, they just got lucky with the cloud breaks.

Stone Foundries still operates at Charlton in a plant established in 1939 to produce aluminium and magnesium light alloy castings mainly for the aircraft industry,[1] having produced specialised alloy parts and aircraft propellers for the Vickers Viscount and de Havilland Comet.[

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/J._Stone_%26_Co


.

[Kiwithrottlejockey]

In my opinion, out of all the jetliners ever produced, I reckon the Comet 4 is the one which just looks absolutely right in the looks department.

[Discorde]

Originally Posted by Kiwithrottlejockey

I reckon the Comet 4 is the one which just looks absolutely right in the looks department.

As does the Caravelle (with its Comet nose section).

[rog747]

BOAC Comet 4
empire routes leases to flag carriers

I have seen photos of BOAC Comets with Qantas, Air Ceylon and Kuwait AW titles - were there any other Empire flag carriers that BOAC flew for with their Comet 4?
was Malayan one of them too?


BOAC Britannia and VC10's had EAAC BWIA Malayan Ghana Nigeria Air Ceylon with either stickers or titles/emblems/flags