Airline History Blog - Yesterday's Airlines

Berlin’s Internal German Services Pt2: 1958-1965

27/3/2020

By 1958 Berlin had been served by the airlines of the victorious Western powers for a decade. Operations had settled down to a routine whereby Pan Am, BEA and Air France could compete against each other normally even though the political situation surrounding Berlin was just as volatile as ever. Pan Am had the edge with its Douglas DC-6Bs but that would all change in 1958 as BEA upped the competitive pressure with its own prop-jets.

Berlin’s Internal German Services Pt1: 1946-1958

25/3/2020

The carving up of Germany after the end of World War Two led to the unfortunate scenario whereby the nation was permanently partitioned, as the Western allies and Soviets became protagonists in the immediate postwar era. This was especially challenging for the former capital city of Berlin, which although itself split into zones, allotted to the victorious powers, was as a whole deeply situated within the Soviet zone. As a result, it would become the front-line of the Cold War and also have its own unique civil aviation arrangements.

Tens & Trouble: Spantax in the 80s

11/3/2020

By 1978 Spantax had grown to become one of the largest charter airlines in Europe, despite not necessarily having the best reputation. This was as much due to the personality of its founder Capt Rudolfo ‘Rudi’ Bay as to the solid and reliable Convair 990s that he loved so much. Unfortunately, the 1980s would prove a difficult time for the airline but would see it enter the widebody era.

Capt Rudi’s Maseratis: Spantax Convair 990s

29/2/2020

During the 1950s and 60s, as in the USA, many small airlines were begun by individuals and would go on to have long and successful histories. These airlines would often have a distinctive character and Spantax was one of the most distinct since it was not only led by the charismatic Capt Rudolfo Bay but also had a love affair with the Coronado.

Caribbean Budgies: Air BVI & Its HS748s

5/2/2020

The islands of the Caribbean have a rich and diverse civil aviation history, that is all too easily overlooked due to the small population size and limited operations of the airlines. This is a shame as air travel is vital to the region’s economy and I find the region exotic, and exciting. The December 2019 release of an Air BVI HS748, by Aeroclassics, gives me the opportunity to explore the history of this small airline from one of the last British Overseas Territories.

Mainline FLUFs: United Boeing 737-222s

16/1/2020

The success of the 737 has been immense but at the time of its development it had a mountain to climb. It would be United Airlines, more than any other, that Boeing has to thank for getting the type past its rough early years to where it is today and the ‘Fat Little Ugly Fella’ i.e. FLUF certainly put in the hard yards over the years for United.

Skystars: Australian A320s in the 1990s

21/12/2019

The A320 recently became the most produced family of jet airliners in history, however the type had a slightly rocky start in Australia. Initially it looked like both TAA and Ansett would purchase the new Airbus but in the end Ansett were the only one of the two big domestics to take the plunge.

Talofa: The Rise, Fall & Rise of Polynesian Airlines

17/11/2019

The Pacific islands have a proud history of colourful flag carriers, however the majority of the region’s airlines have struggled with their remoteness, the limited investment capability of their home nations and competition from Australia and New Zealand. Polynesian Airlines’ history illustrates all three aspects during its history.

Premier Pacific: Hawaiian's Long-haul Adventure

10/11/2019

Hawaiian Airlines was faced with the same range of challenges in the deregulated 1980s as other legacy carriers - increased competition, deflated prices and the loss of its protected status. It responded with an unprecedented expansion, hoping to open up Honolulu as a transit hub on the one hand and a major charter player on the other. The strategy was far from a success but the airline just about survived.

Hope & Despair: Air Congo's Struggle

21/10/2019

European colonialism has left a bitter legacy in many African nations, but probably none has been so disgraceful and damaging as the Belgian influence in what has become the Democratic Republic of Congo. Independence did not bring the new chapter the Congolese wanted and instead the next 50 years have been as bad or worse than what went before. Nevertheless throughout this period a veneer of normalcy was provided by the national carrier Air Congo (later Air Zaire).

Persistence over Performance: Qantas Comet IVs

23/9/2019

Qantas had always been a well-run flag carrier and as such had shown little interest in Britain’s reborn Comet 4. Instead, despite some political pressure, it pragmatically turned towards the United States when it came to looking at its first jet equipment. Even so despite the acquisition of Boeing 707s Qantas would operate the British Comet albeit as part of a lease agreement with the British flag carrier BOAC.

The First DC-8: Ship One N8008D

28/8/2019

In the long-run the Douglas DC-8 may have lost the jet-race against the Boeing 707, but it was certainly far from a failure, and in fact with the Super 60 series was able to surpass the 707 in terms of capability and development. The prototype DC-8 led a somewhat nomadic lifestyle but it is a crying shame that it was never preserved. This is its story.

Eastern Bloc Boeings Pt2: Hungarian & Bulgarian 767s

20/8/2019

As we saw in part 1 LOT, the Polish flag carrier, chose Boeing 767s when it was finally able to access Western aircraft. Interflug chose the competing A310 which still left the flag carriers of Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia, Hungary and Romania to play for. The split would in the end be effectively even between the Boeing and Airbus products.

Eastern Bloc Boeings Pt1: Polish 767s

11/8/2019

The gradual, and then sudden, changes that Gorbachev’s policy of Glasnost brought to Eastern Europe provided both a series of challenges and opportunities to the airlines of the Warsaw Pact nations in Eastern Europe. In the long term some of the airlines would not survive the experience, however one of the first challenges was modernisation of their inefficient Soviet-era fleets.

Lan Tens: DC-10s in Chile

3/7/2019

The 1980s were a time of crisis and transition at Chile's national airline Lan Chile. During that period the airline acquired its first widebodies and although the DC-10s were ultimately just a temporary addition five aircraft served at times across a six year period. Here's the story of Lan's long-haul ambitions.