Blog Archives

Combis to South America: BUA's VC10s Pt1

31/8/2015

British United was the leading independent British airline of the 1960s and unlike its state owned competitor BOAC it was an enthusiastic advocate of British aircraft. Under the audacious leadership of Freddie Laker BUA took over loss making routes from BOAC and turned them around using a cunning plan involving the VC10.

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Vickers Viscount in the USA Pt2: Southwest Jet Power

29/8/2015

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Vickers itself had been working on a stretched Viscount with British European’s order launching the series 801 on February 11, 1953. It entered service on February 18, 1957 by which time another of the smaller US trunk airlines had shown interest in the Viscount after seeing the boost it had given Capital. This airline was Bob Six’s Continental, which was looking for an uprated V801 capable of flying faster and further.

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Vickers Viscount in the USA Pt1: Nighthawk to Mainliner

25/8/2015

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Immediately following the Second World War it was obvious that the United States held a clear superiority in the field of piston engined aircraft. Though the C-54 Skymaster was already effectively obsolete, with the L-049 Constellation about to enter service and the DC-6 just around the corner, the best aircraft the British could put into service were crudely converted bombers like the Avro Lancastrian, no match even for the unpressurised C-54/DC-4.

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Aeroflot's Global Classic: IL-62s 1967-2001

20/8/2015

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The giant TU-114 had shown Aeroflot's ambitions for long-haul services however it was the four-engined jet Ilyushin IL-62 (NATO reporting name Classic) that cemented Aeroflot's position as a global airline. Often unfairly called a VC10 copy the IL-62 was very much its own aircraft and enabled the Soviet Union to show its flag from Tokyo to Washington well into the 1990s.

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Shanghai Airlines Pt2: Crane Meets Swallow

11/8/2015

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Shanghai Airlines had been in competition against China Eastern, also based at Shanghai, since its birth. The 2000s would see growth at Shanghai but not in the same league as other Chinese airlines and finally a rapprochement and merger with its neighbour. Despite this however the crane of Shanghai Airlines is still resplendent on a fleet of over 75 aircraft.

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Shanghai Airlines Pt1: Pearl of the Orient

10/8/2015

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Shanghai is the largest city proper in the world, with over 24 million residents. It has a rich history including a marked western influence which saw it become the financial hub of the Asia Pacific region by the 1930s. In recent years it has regained its status and it is not surprising that this cosmopolitan destination was a major focus in the liberalisation of the Chinese civil aviation sector in the 1980s. Nicknamed the "Pearl of the Orient" and "Paris of the East" Shanghai nowadays has multiple airlines based there but first there was Shanghai Airlines.

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Cathay's Airbus Fleet Renewal Pt2: A330s

5/8/2015

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By the late 1980s Cathay Pacific was in the market for a replacement for its Lockheed Tristar fleet that could be delivered from the early to mid-1990s. At the time the only new generation aircraft in the category were the Boeing 767-300, McDonnell Douglas MD-11 and the Airbus A330. Of these the A330 was probably the most experimental given Airbuses short history and the high aspirations of the A330/340 programme. It was the A330 however which would prove to be one of the most important aircraft Cathay has ever operated.

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Air California Pt2: AirCal Making Flying Easy

3/8/2015

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Deregulation brought opportunities galore for well run airlines like Air California. It didn't need an invitation to begin expanding outside of California and at the same time took on a new identity and shiny new fleet of aircraft. Despite its success however it couldn't keep the industry mania at bay forever and by 1988 it was gone.

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Air California Pt1: Orange County Flyer

1/8/2015

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Before 1978 the only freedom a US airline had was when operating intra-state and there were few states that could support an airline of any size. California was one that could and following PSA's lead Air California would carve itself a niche from its Orange County base in the competitive intra-state market.

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Combis to South America: BUA's VC10s Pt1

Vickers Viscount in the USA Pt2: Southwest Jet Power

Vickers Viscount in the USA Pt1: Nighthawk to Mainliner

Aeroflot's Global Classic: IL-62s 1967-2001

Shanghai Airlines Pt2: Crane Meets Swallow

Shanghai Airlines Pt1: Pearl of the Orient

Cathay's Airbus Fleet Renewal Pt2: A330s

Air California Pt2: AirCal Making Flying Easy

Air California Pt1: Orange County Flyer

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