Airline Call Signs
 

When I was a lad, all those years ago, there was a number of airline call signs that were not as mundane as the airline name, but did have some connection. Pan Am was ‘Clipper’ (who remembers “This is the Clipper One” as if it was the only flight that had ever arrived in Europe? Presumably the pilots had to wind themselves up on their seats before calling anyone in European radar), Air 2000 was ‘Jetset’, which I thought was rather nice, Canadian Pacific Airlines was ‘Empress’, and the Kiwis were ‘Teal’, an acknowledgement to their ancestry as Tasman Empire Airways Limited. Those first three examples no longer are with us, and the Kiwis rather boringly announce themselves as ‘New Zealand’ these days.

The only call signs that I can immediately think of that are just that tad obscure and still in use are ‘Speedbird’, ‘Shamrock’ and ‘Springbok’. So the questions are:

• Can anyone think of any other, current or historic, call signs used by the larger carriers (there are some slightly obscure names in use by small and charter operators), that are not immediately connectable to the airline name?

• Does anyone know when Air New Zealand (formed, I see, on 1 April 1965), stopped using ‘Teal’?

And then for those who have a Transport Command pedigree…

I can remember a summer trogging all round the Mediterranean at the end of the 1970s as a supernumerary in a Whistling Wheelbarrow… and I am sure that the call sign used was ‘Ascot’. Elsewhere, I see that the current RAF call sign is ‘Rafair’. Can anyone help with whether ‘Ascot’ no longer is used (perhaps it was dropped to avoid confusion with One’s Landau when it’s on short finals for the home straight to open Ladies’ Day at Royal Ascot)? And, if it’s still in use, what determines whether ‘Rafair’ or ‘Ascot’ is given to a particular flight?

"Ascot" = Air Support Command operationtal traffic. As the Royal Air Force (Happy Birthday!) now only has an Air Command for everything it has long gone!

Bill.

During my time ASCOT was a c/s used by the 1 Group (later 38 Group) Transport Fleet: eg Hercules C1 were ASCOT 4xxx and Hercules C3 were Ascot 5xxx.

ASCOT had been inherited and stood for Air Support Command Operational Tasking.

RAFAIR was used on overseas flights by non Transport Fleet aircraft such as Nimrods when deploying to Cyprus, or Dominies on overseas trainers. The callsign block on the Flight Plan would be filled in as: RFR.

These come to mind - Canada 3000 "Elite", Titan Airways "Zap", Thomas Cook previously "Globe" then "Topjet" then "Kestrel". Another Uk Charter Airline in the 90's, possibly Air World used "Envoy"

Nowadays Rafair (ICAO RFR) tends to be used by fast jets, helicopters, Tucanos, etc while Ascot (ICAO RRR) will typically be a 146, Voyager, A400M, C17, etc.

Some present-day callsigns that spring to mind include China Airlines "Dynasty", Virgin America "Redwood", AirAsia X "Xanadu", Jetstar Japan "Orange Liner".

“Nitro” TNT?
“Brickyard” American Eagle, operated by Republic.
“Cactus” America West then US Airways.
“Giant” USAF MAC.
“Reach” USAF MAC.

Funnily enough, the same date as Her Majesty, perhaps against her better judgement, saw fit to grant me a commission.

Diverging from the actual question asked, but relevant to the Ascot & Rafair question; who remembers the RAF five letter "registrations" written on the black nose radome of the Hastings - MOGCC etc; & the Varsities with MPTLA etc. ? I think I also remember the Beverley used the same call sign system.
What was the origin of these ?

Clipper One as I recall was Pan Am's east-bound round the world flight and Clipper Two was west bound. Is that right?

BEA were Bealine, not remit of the question though.

Military Airlift Command used to be MAC followed by the aircraft's FY serial, though I gather if, say, C-5 70-0446 had gone tits up on the ramp, and 70-0457 flew the mission, the flight planned serial was used! My teenage spotter's logbook was a tissue of lies folks...

Farnborough based aircraft were allocated in the sequence MPDX- eg MPDXA was Comet XV814. The last one ever allocated was when we got the Dakota (KG661/ZA947) from West Freugh so we gave it MPDXY.

Krueger -MK Airline (cargo airline,not the one in Mauritius) // named for its boss.
Dynasty -China Airlines (Taipei)
Xanadu -Air Asia X
Quality - TNT Air

Anilv

A rather boring one, but I like the fact that Flybe still use 'Jersey'. A nice nod back to their origins as Jersey European.

I heard some upstart airline using 'Bealine' the other day; shouldn't be allowed as whoever it is can't be anything like BEA.

Wikipedia has a list, didn't t know there where that many :eek:
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/List...ine_codes_(0–9)

If you want a list of spoken callsigns, the ICAO one is hard to beat.

'Clipper One' was Pan Am's flagship flight; it was a 'round the world' service westbound from the USA; 'Clipper Two' was the opposite direction equivalent.

Isn't it true that once created, an airline cannot change its call sign?

Hence SAA is still Springbok.

No, NetJets have changed several times.(Skyshare, Fraction)

beetours was bea airtours/british airtours

jetset was air2000

kestrel was airtours intl

aspro was IEA (i think)

I believe Bealine is used by British Airways tugs at Heathrow.

Jet2 still uses Channex.

About a hundred years ago Northeast Airlines (the British one) was using either Norjet or Norprop regardless of aircraft type. I don't know why they didn't use Northeast. Then after the BA amalgamation the callsign was variously Albion or Bealine until about 1980 when Speedbird found its way to the Regional fleet.

This subject was discussed on here about ten years ago so it may be in the archive. I started it !

One I don't like is the UK long-haul Norwegian=Red Nose

But of course Thomas Cook=kestrel, various freight operators=quality, Aer Lingus=shamrock, Indigo (India) =Ifly, West Atlantic = Neptune, RVL = Endurance etc etc.

I never knew that Northeast had two callsigns, Mooncrest. Thanks for that info! About 10 or 15 years ago I was listening to my airband (don't tell the feds) and about the time the last Heathrow-Toon Shuttle (Shuttle 12T) was due in I heard an old fella calling up as 'Northeast 12T' . Turns out it was an ex-Northeast captain's last flight before retirement. A nice touch, but did they get the callsign wrong?!

Virgin America callsign until a week ago was “Redwood”.
Having been bought by Alaska Airlines the callsign is now “Alaska”, I gather Virgin America will cease operations in April having been integrated into Alaska Airlines.

Someone used the callsign Nugget. My memory is not what it used to be, but I think it was the RAE shuttle, generally a Dove from Farnborough to Bedford.

Didn't Bae use the c/s Tibbet for there positioning a/c?

Yep RAE used Nugget- Dove shuttles between Bedford and Farnborough etc.

Tibbet (or teppit?) was the BAe Hatfield callsign if remember. Chester was Newpin, Woodford Avro (still used) , BAC Hurn Llama, Handley Page Hanair.

Qinetic still use Gauntlet and Tester (ETPS) IIRC

And the fictitious Glassjar (unless it was really supermarine) used in "Sound Barrier"

Too young to remember

And at Cranfield where I am today we still use "Aeronaut"

Nugget (RAE) was the callsign for pilots based at all the RAEs, Farnborough, Bedford, Llanbedr, West Freugh and the last unit to use it was Farnborough, Bedford having closed and the other two airfields using 'Tee-bird' when they became 'Test and Evaluation Establishments' rather than 'RAEs'.
When Farnborough test flying moved to Boscombe Down, the pilot's callsigns all changed to 'Gauntlet'(BDN). According to the ICAO listing, Nugget has been re-assigned now.
Tibbet was Hatfield test pilots callsigns; BAe Warton test pilots use 'Tarnish'.

At one time didn't BAe (HSA) shuttle pilots use the callsign 'Felix' ?

And Bedford test pilots 'Blackbox' ?

"Giant" is Atlas Air, although they do operate many CRAF flights.

BAE Corporate Air Travel (CAT) do use Felix...as in "Felix the CAT"

'Blackbox' was the callsign for the Radar Research Squadron at Pershore, then Bedford. I still have my personalised squadron mug, presented to me by Blackbox Delta.

My thanks to Plane Speaker and Simtech for your replies.

Another question if I may, and it's a real long shot. Does anyone know what callsign was used by the De Havilland Sea Vixen test pilots at Christchurch and Hurn back in the 1950s?

We used to hear 'AVRO' callsigns going in and out of Woodford. And I'm sure I've heard 'GHOSTRIDER' on RT as well.

ASCOT reminds me of the exchange which may be apocryphal:

"London Military good afternoon, ASCOT 123. We're an Andover on handover over Dover, over".

The old Concorde callsign 'SPEEDBIRD 1' is, I understand, now used by a lowly A318 out of London Docklands for New York via Shannon.

Early 70's 'Raffles One', always sounded like 'Airforce 1', but was
Baron G-AYID, frequent LHR visitor

Yes, Beverleys used a similar system. I noted the following in the 1960s: XB168 MOBXD; XB284 MOBXH; XL148 MOBCY. The last letter was carried on the tail also.

Laurence

BAe Prestwick used PWK = "Tennant", the younger me thought the Jetstreams were the corporate aircraft for the lager company.

Air Sinclair SCK = "ClanKing" for an Islander which literally did.
Highland Express had VY/TTN = "Tartan" which I liked.

I have heard the callsign "Vicars" a few times - Church of England Air Services maybe? :E

Royal Flights - "Kitty" positioning, "Kittyhawk" with Royal on board. "Rainbow" with Prince Phillip at controls and "Unicorn" if Prince Charles.

My personal favourite is the very appropriate "Vortex" used by the RAF Chinooks