Stansted Airport History and Nostalgia

[SpringHeeledJack]

Your absolutely correct, I should have known better when I typed it. Originally delivered to American Airlines on the 27 November 1970 as Boeing 747-123 N9669, it was the 87th Boeing 747 off the production line.

Thanks to your digging on G-HIHO's history, I can say that I flew on it as N9669 American Airlines between HNL and LAX in 1983. The Palindromic registration is what made it stick in my mind. Who was/would have been responsible for the technical side of Highland Express at the time ?

[Sotonsean]

Originally Posted by SpringHeeledJack

Thanks to your digging on G-HIHO's history, I can say that I flew on it as N9669 American Airlines between HNL and LAX in 1983. The Palindromic registration is what made it stick in my mind. Who was/would have been responsible for the technical side of Highland Express at the time ?

Sabena was responsible for the technical side of the Highland Express Boeing 747-123 G-HIHO and the aircraft would be scheduled to fly to Brussels Airport on a weekly basis for routine maintenance.

It does state that in the link provided, if you haven't already done so it's worth a read 😉

[rog747]

inbox full

SotonSean
re your PM to me -

Sorry i cannot access my inbox - nor send you a reply --- seems I have been Mod'd and my account is now quite restricted,
guess it will be a while before I can access PM's again

Re G-HIHO- you know this became G-VMIA? I worked on it a lot at VS.

[GAZIN]

Sotonsean , thank you for your comments on the earlier pictures, I don’t have any info on the flights unfortunately. The Worldways DC8’s did visit STN for maintenance , I don’t think they flew any routes from here. The same is probably true for the 707.
Here are some more Canadians.

[Sotonsean]

GAZIN

You've made my day, you've ABSOLUTELY excelled yourself.

These are just the type of photos I've been looking forward to. Amazing selection I have to say. The photos I have posted have been good but your photos are so rare I'm ABSOLUTELY overwhelmed. I can't thank you enough for sharing them with us here on the Stansted Airport History and Nostalgia thread 🤗🤗🤗🤗🤗

The fact that you have a photo of a Wardair A310 at London Stansted Airport is just fantastic. I'd completely overlooked the fact that Odyssey International used to use London Stansted Airport. All of them are great, honestly I can't stop looking at them 😉

Top quality mate, I can't thank you enough.

London Stansted Airport wasn't the busiest of airports but it just goes to show the variety of airlines that previously used the airport prior to the new terminal being opened in 1991.

I am so glad that I started the Stansted Airport History and Nostalgia thread as I knew that it was going to be a worthy thread.

I look forward to any more gems that you might have hidden away.

Once again thank you very much, your on my Christmas card list 🤗

[ifonly]

Had a scroll through and couldn't see a mention of these two -apologies if they're already on here.

December 1988

July 1989

[Sotonsean]

Originally Posted by rog747

SotonSean
re your PM to me -

Sorry i cannot access my inbox - nor send you a reply --- seems I have been Mod'd and my account is now quite restricted,
guess it will be a while before I can access PM's again

Re G-HIHO- you know this became G-VMIA? I worked on it a lot at VS.

Hi Rog

I wasn't sure if you knew that I had PM you as it said that your inbox was full. I had enquired about your membership and why your now a "new member"!

Yes I'm fully aware of the history of G-HIHO and it's later life with Virgin Atlantic as G-VMIA. You have also mentioned it in your post 334. The history of G-HIHO is also listed on the link provided to the Highland Express article.

I won't repeat what I've wrote in my message as it was Pvt but hopefully your be able to access your messages soon and we can respond accordingly.

Hope your well and keeping safe.

Regards

Sean

[Sotonsean]

Ifonly

Many thanks for sharing your photos with us here on the Stansted Airport History and Nostalgia thread and neither airline has been discussed as of yet so they are very welcome especially the Evergreen International Boeing 727-100.

Evergreen International were fairly frequent visitors to London Stansted Airport over the years especially with their Boeing 747's and it's an airline that hasn't been mentioned until now. I'm not really familiar with Air Freight, so a photo of one of their DC8-63F's is very welcome.

​​​Much appreciated and hopefully your have some more photos to share with us. 🤗

Regards

Sean

[GAZIN]

I always liked the Evergreen livery. The DC8 is. 62 series, ex Zantop, I think I changed an engine on that very plane at PIK, when it was in Zantop colours.
Here is another DC8-62, again I am sorry I have no other details.

[Musket90]

Thank you all for the many fond memories and amazing photos from Stansted's past. I'v got a few more photos and memories to share in due course..

On the transatlantic schedules, I remember when EOS first started in 2006 (?) the first one or two B757's were in all white livery with the pre-EOS registrations. Ex Mexicana but American registered. They may have been trial flights before they were painted in EOS livery.

Also on the cargo front Fedex operated a schedule and still do I believe. The Air Express International CL-44 to JFK was also a schedule and I remember it used to arrive on a Sunday morning in amongst all the the Scandinavian flights which made a Sunday viewing something not to be missed.

[WHBM]

I believe the Air Express CL-44 was the last, ever, transatlantic propeller schedule of any sort. When did it end ?

[Sotonsean]

GAZIN

You've excelled yourself yet again 🤗🤗🤗🤗🤗

​​​​​​I knew that Hawaiian we're using London Stansted Airport during the late 1980's but I never personally saw one and I've never seen a photo of one at London Stansted Airport so your photo is yet another ABSOLUTE gem 🤗

I had seen Hawaiian DC8's, DC10-30's and L1011's at London Gatwick Airport during the same period but was never fortunate enough with seeing one at London Stansted Airport.

I had previously searched online to find details of the Hawaiian flight's at London Stansted Airport but that was before I started this thread, but I've never been able to find the information since. That's a task for me this week so I can add some information regarding these flight's.

I knew that you were going to come up with with yet another ABSOLUTE gem of a photo and you didn't fail me.

I thought that I might have misjudged the DC8 as being a 63 series rather than a 62!

Once many thanks for your contribution, it's really appreciated 🤗🤗🤗

[Sotonsean]

Musket90/WHBM

I'm not sure what year that the AEI Air Express International scheduled flight's from New York JFK to London Stansted Airport ended but I have a feeling that it was in 1983 or 1984. I will try and find out the exact year and it was indeed the last trans-Atlantic "propeller" scheduled flight.

Indeed they we're regulars on a Sunday and if you look at one or two of the Scandinavian visitors that I've uploaded the aircraft can be seen in the background at the former cargo terminal. The flight operated upto three times weekly. Myself and others have already uploaded photos of AEI Air Express International CL-44's at London Stansted Airport.

Regarding FedEx, they are very much a prominent freight carrier at London Stansted Airport with several flights a day. I'm going to cover the history of FedEx at London Stansted Airport once I've gone over the history of American Airlines, Continental Airlines, EOS, Maxjet and Premair trans-Atlantic flights from London Stansted Airport to the USA. That's something that I intend to do this week after initially starting with Highland Express yesterday.

Regards Sean 😉

[Sotonsean]

Originally Posted by G-ARZG

That DC8, N810ZA (was Zantop) is in the colours of Consolidated Freightways

Thanks for the additional information.

I've not come across Consolidated Freightways before although Zantop DC8's were once fairly regular visitors to London Gatwick Airport during the late 1980's early 1990's.

Regards Sean

[WHBM]

Originally Posted by Sotonsean

I've not come across Consolidated Freightways before although Zantop DC8's were once fairly regular visitors to London Gatwick Airport during the late 1980's early 1990's.Regards Sean

Consolidated Roadways was the largest trucking company in the USA for many years, and Freightways was their air freight side. I don't think they operated in their own right, but subcontracted other freight carriers. For some time they also owned Emery, who did their operations. They went bankrupt in the early 2000s, then re-emerged, and finally were merged into UPS.

Zantop was one of the big US freight operators based in Detroit, doing much work for the major automobile companies taking parts between factories. Kalitta, still very much around, is another. Besides the car company work there is a huge amount of dedicated air freight in the US, civil and military, lots have consolidated into FedEx and UPS in recent times but still lots of other operators, who regularly subcontract work between each other.

[GAZIN]

The Odyssey 757 pictured above, was recently back at STN operating a FedEx freight schedule to LGG. Fedex still operate transatlantic scheduled flights from STN, to and from MEM and IND using the MD-11 and 777. The 757 and 767 operate from STN into Europe.

[GAZIN]

Air Express and other early 80’s cargo.

[treadigraph]

Is that a TEA 707 in the background left of he last Tradewinds shot?

LV-MSG seemed familiar, it's ex G-BEAF, Dan-Air and Tradewinds.

[rog747]

Originally Posted by treadigraph

Is that a TEA 707 in the background left of he last Tradewinds shot?
.

Yes indeed, TEA 707 is on the ramp. In 1982 TEA had 4 or 5 707's but the 720's had gone by then.

[SpringHeeledJack]

Is that a TEA 707 in the background left of he last Tradewinds shot?

Two of the boeings that I remember back then. Wasn't the TEA there for a good few years ?