A freighter remembered
 

Those with keen hearing would have heard the sound of Rolls Royce Tyne engines at Bournemouth last week!
The CL44 Association has news on the aircraft, the arrival of the complete history of the 44 to be published by Air Britain in late Sept and a new video due by Xmas.
Also-News of the next re-union to be graced by the attendance of veterans from Flying Tigers, Transmeridian Transglobe, Tradewinds Wrangler, Transvalair, UAA, Vic Air Cargo and many other 44 equipped airlines.
Want more info?
email [email protected]

The news that the Brazzaville 44 may still be complete is the first bit of positive CL44 news I have heard for some time, at least there is still hope that a standard swing tail aircraft might yet be saved. (a long shot I know).
I too remember the TAR & Transvalair aircraft that visited stn in the 70's & all those TMAC 44's, what a wonderfull sight they were.
Look forward to the next edition of Swingtail, I hope there's good news about the Guppy & the Yukon.

GAZIN

. . and there I was thinking this topic was about the Argosy :}

Thuderbird 3, as I said, the memory starts failing, either through age or alcohol, not sure which!

Thanks for the correction (and the marks, guess that means I've passed!). I seem to remember the TAR crews wearing a pretty 'normal' uniform but agree that the 'grooms' looked like they'd just stepped off the pampas.

On the same subject, but off the good ol' 44, there was another bunch that also came into STN in those days called, again if memory serves, Maveric Air Cargo who were operating an ex PanAm B707. The first clue to the way this lot saw themselves was the insciption 'The Biggest Bull Shippers in the World' over the crew entry door and then the crew appeared! Unform was light blue with a stetson. First time I saw them, laugh! I nearly bought a round! Only saw them a few times so I guess they didn't quite make their promises.

Nostalgia 'aint what it used to be!!

Cheers all,

RT.

Maverick Air Cargo apparently had two 707, although I only saw one of them at STN, sometime later the same plane returned in the colours of BMA Cargo. Maverick only lasted from Oct 77 until Feb 79.
Further O/T, are there any STN old timers who remember a 707 with a flower painted on the fin. It was parked for sometime on the mufflers near Hangar 4 earlier on in the 70's, I've been wondering which airline it was.

GAZIN

EL-AL
 

As a plod I recall being on static guard as one of Donaldson 707s had been painted up for EL-AL but as was often the case at STN Donaldson went broke so the a/c sat for sometime on the mufflers but I cannot recall how long it sat there or who eventually took it.

As we are extending this trip down memory lane I can also recall an Indian Air Force Conney that underwent a major in 72. Recollect the regular Saturn Airways stretch DC8's and the Carvairs that were repainted by TMAC I assume they must have been operated from SEN 72/73. Can someone confirm the latter.

Sadly no recollection of a flower painted 707.

....unless, of course, one is referring to the "Flower of Scotland" on the fin of the Donaldson 7-oh !

A freighter remembered
 

Many small-and often unsuccessful operators used 44's-mostly forgotten now but Guy Romero used a 44 to set up Air Calypso-used British crews on an N regd machine-changed its name to Cairgo. I recently met a guy who had a St Kitts CL44 licence-not many of those issued!
Or how about Canhellas-3 flights and it was all over!
Want to know more of these small fry operators-read 'Swingtail-The CL44 Story"-published by Air Britain

I remember seeing a Yukon at Heathrow in the early '60s working with British Eagle on the Woomera flights. It was always referred to as the 'Canadian Brit'. It wasn't part of the Eagle fleet. Anybody know who's it was?

Cl-44-o and swingtail merged
 

Is the `sky monster` still intact - last heard of at Hurn as 9G-LCA?

Still there - hasn't moved in quite a while.

Shame thats a great plane, i remember it well at Southend in recent years, and nearly 30 years ago as N447T

I remember it at STN as N reg and a single standard CL-44 with Swiss reg and a visitor CL-44 called River Plate airlines. They were all grand a/c as I recall one that appeared derelict close to TMAC engineering which rebuilt it and it took off some months later, a carpenter having built a craddle for it to be craned onto. Some very nice girls worked in the TMAC offices both sides of STN airport.

Actually I think 9G-LCA has been given by Mr Azhima to the CL44 association.
I visited the aircraft inside and outside a month ago as I was attending the Cl44 association yearly convention in Bournemouth.
Unfortunatly, even if it still looks very nice from outside, you realise as you get closer that it is getting quite heavely corroded. Same inside the cockpit.
And there are no engine, pitot/static covers.
The thing witch might be possible, would be to restore it to a conditon were they could ask for a special permission of the CAA to ferry fly it to any of the great aircraft museum places. But they shouldn't wait to much as corrosion is progressing daily, and it will soon be to late.

og

Oligoe,

I believe you are right on both counts. 1. The Cl44 association own it, and 2. It should be preserved, and that would be best served by getting it airworthy for a ferry to somewhere with a less harsh environment. Better still, a hangar.

It was the last "Canadian Edsel" I ever flew, and that was 27 years ago! I was last on it about 16 years ago, when we parked next to it in Djakarta. The Kiwi F/O on that occassion was mesmerised by the sight of it, and even more surprised when I was able to reply to his startled "J***s C****t, what the f**k is that" with the right answer!

It was corroded then, and I fear that getting it airworthy, even to a one-off ferry condition would be a monstrous effort.

I last saw it about 10 years ago, when it drifted over my house here in deepest Essex at reasonably low level, with the no. 2 engine feathered. Happy days!

I'd love to see it receive the TLC it deserves.

BSD.

Indeed a mammouth task even for a ferry, and then you've got the problem of registering it somewhere.
I think it will leave Bournemouth in a skip!

GUPPY IN A SKIP
 

Please, please leave some room in the skip for that loadmaster, thanks awfully old chap !!!!:ok:

Oh dear,

Looks like she`s up for scrapping. See statement on the home page.

http://www.cl44.org/

Jamie

From what I hear some of the more expensive items have been removed and fingers are being pointed by the association chairman.

CL44 Guppy at Bournemouth - Official Status
 

Statement from the CL44 Association regarding the Guppy at BOH

Since accepting the aircraft from LCA Partners of Kansas City, every effort has been made to secure a permanent resting place for the aircraft. Several major museums declared a keen interest but the cost of a ferry flight dampened the most ardent of them! There is no current accurate estimate as to the likely cost of a ferry flight out of Bournemouth-the last licenced engineers estimate to achieve 'signing off for flight' was in excess of US$60,000 and this is now likely to have doubled.
Many of the parts needed to achieve such an undertaking ARE available and are currently held by vendors in the UK. Alas, monies owed prevent those parts from being returned to the aircraft.
We have focused our attention to transferring the aircraft to the Bournemouth Museum but they are unable to handle such a large aircraft although we had high hopes they would find room on the current picnic area.
Meanwhile BASCO, whose ramp the aircraft continues to be parked, is insistent that it is removed forthwith and more recent efforts have turned to the ramp area adjacent to Solent Helicopters (airside of the Museum) or to a landside site near to European Airlines ramp (near the Burger Bar).

But time has almost run out and a team of former 44 flight engineers is due to begin clearing the surplus parts such as u/s avionics and spare prop blades. We are inviting offers for the prop blades right now.
(Offers over £100 as is where is)
We have sufficient fuel in tanks and engine oil to run the Tynes one more time-if anyone can sponsor us an ASU and GPU!

No matter what the outcome, we are hopeful that the flight deck of the Guppy will be preserved-the Association contains several Conroy employees who put the thing together!

If anyone out there wishes to have a specific 'bit' off the Guppy, they should email [email protected]