Cl144
 

Rumour has it that Heavylift are bring the CL144 back to the UK from the Us to renter service....Any comment from HLA???;)

Whats a CL 144?

Hogg,

You don't know about this great old lady? Transmeridian (HeavyLift 'predecessor) used to operate a fleet of 7 including the 'Guppy' version. I spent many a 'happy' hour down the back, on the bunk or producing coffee & meals. Produced by Canadair, looked a but like the Britannia but was a completely different aircraft, swing tail, could haul 27.5 tons bulk loaded over about 6 or 7 hours if memory serves with 4 Tynes gently vibrating the loadie to sleep. Real old Freight Dog aircraft.

Ah, happy days:) :cool:

Yes, but to pacify all the ex Tradewinds and Transmeridian Air Cargo (TMAC) 'truckies' kindly refer to it correctly as a CL44! Good grief!!

Ah the CL44. A purpose built freighter that could carry 27.5 tonnes - or fill it up with fuel and it would still carry 12 tonnes - for over 16hours nonstop at 280ias - some range- some war stories. The last one flying (G-ATZI for TMAC veterans) was written off in an accident a couple of months ago. The Guppy however lives on and every effort is being made to get it back working again. There is an active 'Swingtail Association' for those associated with this great freighter aircraft.

cl44
 

Go on "pullusapint" show us a picture of this yoke. Will ya?

CL44
 

Go to www.!!!!!!!!!!!!!!/ , select Canadair CL44, and there are 153 pictures of the '44 in various guises.

Ramp Tramp, Not quite correct there. OK anorak mode on......

The CL-44 was a Bristol Britannia license built by Canadair. They put a 13' plug into the fuselage of the -300 series (which had already been extended by 10'over the 100 series) and replaced the Proteus engines with Tynes.

Only the D4 model had the swing tail.

I think it was Conroy who did the Guppy conversion.

Anyway, they were all lovely aeroplanes. Anorak mode off.

:D :D

Loadlugger,
Where did you get this little gem from?

:D :D

LowNSlow,

OK, agree that only the D4 had the swing tail & confirm that
Conroy did the Guppy conversion. (Only 2 & one was written off
many years ago leaving only what was originally N447T)

There has been long discussions regarding the 'licence built
Britannia'. Although based on the Brit design, it bore only a passing resemblance & parts were not interchangable.
Never did get to the bottom of that one. Anybody else clarify the
situation??

The design was a combination of the Argus and the Britannia. It had the Brit wings and tail shape, but the fuselage was an entirely different structure with tied floor beams. The Yukon was developed first, with two freight doors and the small Brit cockpit windows. All CL44s had the swing tail (an Avro invention) and large (Convair 880 design) cockpit windows. The 'plug' I think you refer to was when the Icelandics stretched some of the D4 models to produce the CL44-J, the largest passenger aircraft (nearly 200 pax) to operate on the Atlantic at that time. It must the the only freighter to have been converted to pax! The Guppy was designed by Jack Conroy, I think for NASA. It was built in Santa Barbara by cutting a standard D4 fuselage down to floor level and fitting the large fuselage frames, complete with extra attachments for the swingtail. Does anyone out there know about the 'cold war' secondary role of the CL44 design as a military freighter? . It could carry ICBMs and its 6 generators could produce 300kva.

Thanks pullusapint, that's clarified the situation.

I'll have a pint of Guinness if you're pouring :D

Thanks Pullusapint, now at last I know.

LowNSlow, I think we both came out about quits.

Was a great freight hauler however it cam to be built.

Hey Ramp you are going to make "Duct Recovery" go all misty eyed now. Who cooked a whole christmas dinner over the pacific in an electric wok? and what about the story of Gadafi Duck and the flight engineer who was found having a bath of Guinness in Tripoli !:)

Sorry about the typo finger in wrong mode, heard it from one of the ops bods at Heavylift coming to supplement the Belfast.

LUGS

Ramp tramp, sounds OK to me. :D

The only 4 engined turboprops I've seen recently have been Electra's and the Belfast out of Stanstead. Are there any others to look out for?

We do get the odd AN-12 at STN, and there's a Herc based here at the moment. Haven't seen a 'lectra in ages, tho' :(

Nopax,Thanx you don't work weekends then, as the Electra is back on Sat and Sun doing the Channel Island Newspapers. You will have to get up at 5.00 am to see it, if yer mad enough!:D

Dead right I don't work weekends...........don't need to anymore on £26k!!!!

and no, there aren't any vacancies!:p

FDD,

Yea, stories too numerous to mention here.

The film crew going down route & getting side tracked in BKK. Various
senior voices heard in the background as one of the girls
was performing!

Ho hum, but it was fun!:D

I don't believe that there are still so many of us former CL44 drivers in here!

Anyone got the link for the association?

Or remember when Teemack took lose portland cement down to Lagos? or transported ***** ******'s circus to Oman?

Edited the name out, CR2.

Nopax Thanx, it's not what you earn, it's what you keep from the taxman ( so the scots boss keeps telling me!). Well at least the Allisons will wake you all up at 5.30.
Ramp Tramp, well I like the story of the Captain who had a stiff neck that needed manipulating in BKK and tried to put it on the bar bill. Except I doubt it was ever put thro petty cash as 'lots of beers and 1 sh@g'. Hopefully flying on the Sally B on Wednesday with Wah Wah, so I will hear more no doubt.:)

:) The Guppy was converted by Conroy I first flew N447T as an F/E on the 24.04 .74 for TMAC It was converted by cutting the fuselage frames just above floor level and then bolting larger horse shoe shaped frames to the bit that was left which gave it its double blister shape it could carry some big sized loads I think we even carried a BAC 1-11 fuselage on one trip.But boy did that flight deck get cold on long sector but it paid the morgage.
;)

If they do get another one, I hope it's better than the one they were involved with when I worked for them. It rarely got anywhere and back without being tech at some godforsaken place. HLA didn't own it, just did all the Flight watch etc and it was registered in so many places it should have flown under UN auspices! Last I heard it was Azerbaijan registered.

Glad it didn't fly very often. What a heap.

Doc C.

Skytrucker,

Oh God, do I remember ***** ****** circus to Oman!
Had to be there for the Sultans wife's birthday on the Wednesday,
planned to fly on the Sunday, animals in one aircraft and
big top in another.
Trouble was, southern UK cloased that weekend in fog for 3 days and
we finally got it away on the Tuesday. Somehow it all happened on
time. That & many other stories should be written down for the
education of future freight dogs!

FDD,

Amazing what got put in the 'Misc.' box on the flight expence form!

Edited the name out, CR2.

RampTramp et all, it sounds like some good stories are lurking in the shadows there. How about starting a thread for them.....

Maybe you'll have to censor the names to protect the guilty :D

Good one, freightdoggy.......takes me back to my contractin' days - had to pay £93.00 tax in my first year! Wouldn't mind hearing Allison's at 0530 - but I live 42 miles from Stansted!!:D

I'm sure there's a joke here about being woken by Alison early in the morning:rolleyes: :rolleyes: :rolleyes:

There is a Guppy site with some good stuff in............

http://www.allaboutguppys.com/aag.htm

For a graphic account of the last moments of 9Q-CTS (ex G-ATZI) see page 22 of the May issue of Aircraft Illustrated. It sounds as if Captain Snow had his hands full! For the un-initiated, there's also a piccy of the mighty beast with tail swung.

CL44
 

The secretary of the Canadair CL44 Association can be reached on [email protected]. A tenner a year brings the Swingtail newsletter, full of war stories and contacts. Video available, Book out soon, and organised formation drinking at decent intervals.

Pullusapint,

Thanks for the contact, I'm signing up!

Skytrucker,

To be strict, I wasn't a driver. Operations, Loadmaster & some time
Station Manager in the sh**ty places of the world. I guess that should give some clues to my identity!!

CR2,

THe name you edited out was actually a very famous circus at the time.
Dunno if it's still going but was certainly a household name at the
time &, bearing in mind the 'fun' we had with a freight shed full
of elephants, lions & horses for 3 days until we finally got them away,
I wouldn't have thought they would object to being named. However,
that's why you're the moderator.

Still come across the odd bod from those days. I still play at loadie
on the odd occasion & did a trip to the Middle East a couple of
years ago & found an F/E from the old days flying the panel.
We worked out that last time that combination was airborne was 20 years
previously in deepest darkest!
Had a few, very enjoyable, beers after landing!

Rampie,

The story you refer to has been written and features in a soon-to-be-published book.

Oh, and the edited name is not Monty Python although the number of letters is the same!

Like the book, names have to be changed to protect the innocent!