Home 

RAILWAY OPERATING DEPARTMENT
 
 


 
   TERMINAL 1  
 


AIRCRAFT


INTRODUCTION


As has been discussed in the first article on Terminal 1, the air side of the N gauge exhibition layout was incorporated with visiting models in mind although the demands of other public displays had already prompted the Jet Age Reserve Model Collection to invest in a 1/144 scale Handley Page Victor and Avro Vulcan. Subsequent to this, the Corgi die cast model of Vickers VC10 C1 XV 107 ( pictured above ) was acquired to check various height and width tolerances during layout building before two chances to purchase Vickers Viscounts at very reasonable prices presented themselves.


As has been discussed in the first article on Terminal 1, the air side of the N gauge exhibition layout was incorporated with visiting models in mind although the demands of other public displays had already prompted the Jet Age Reserve Model Collection to invest in a 1/144 scale Handley Page Victor and Avro Vulcan.  Subsequent to this, the Corgi die cast model of Vickers VC10 C1 XV 107 ( pictured above ) was acquired to check various height and width tolerances during layout building before two chances to purchase Vickers Viscounts at very reasonable prices presented themselves.

In this article I aim to describe the "tin kites" of  Terminal 1 and some of the fascinating stories that link them together.



VICKERS VISCOUNT


With the end of World War II, British civil aircraft manufacturers were keen to exploit the nations "jet lead" won by the pioneering Gloster E28/39 and Meteor aircraft. While De Havilland focussed on the turbojet Comet at their Hatfield factory, Vickers of Weybridge Surrey, investigated the possibility of a smaller 24 seat airliner powered by four wing mounted propeller turbines - first tried on Gloster Meteor EE227.


With the end of World War II, British civil aircraft manufacturers were keen to exploit the nations "jet lead" won by the pioneering Gloster E28/39 and Meteor aircraft.  While De Havilland focussed on the turbojet Comet at their Hatfield factory, Vickers of Weybridge Surrey, investigated the possibility of a smaller 24 seat airliner powered by four wing mounted propeller turbines - this prime mover having been first tried on Gloster Meteor EE227.  This 24 seater was to be Vickers Commercial (VC) type 2, following on from the earlier piston engined Viking, which initially combined a stressed skin metal body with the geodetic wings designed for the Vickers Wellington bomber by Barnes Wallis of Dambuster fame.

The design resulted from the Type II format designated by the 1944 Brabazon Committee, set up to define post War British aviation. The Type II was envisaged as a medium-range aircraft for less-travelled routes, carrying 24 passengers up to 1,750 miles at  200 mph .

British European Airways. (BEA) then suggested that the new aircraft carry 32 passengers instead while Vickers advocated the use of turboprop power, believing piston-engines to be a dead-end in aviation.

The Brabazon committee was not so convinced, but agreed to split the design into two types, the Type IIA using piston power, and the Type IIB using a turboprop. Vickers won the IIB contract, while the IIA became the Airspeed Ambassador - not introduced until 1952.

The resulting 32 seat Vickers Type 630 design was completed at Weybridge by Chief Designer Rex Pierson and his staff in 1945, featuring four Rolls Royce Dart engines providing a cruising speed of 275 mph. George ( later Sir George ) Edwards, who did much to realise Rex Pierson's original concept, championed the use of the more robust centrifugal flow Dart turbine against the more technically advanced - but more fragile - axial flow but  Armstrong Siddeley Mamba.  This resulted in the Viscount's distinctive long engine nacelles which moved the aircraft's centre of gravity forward.  This in turn required a larger fin surface as well as dihedral tailplanes - swept upward out of the efflux from the propellers and turbines.

An order for two prototypes was placed in March 1946 and construction started almost immediately. Originally to be named Viceroy , the name of the Vickers Type 630 was changed to Viscount after the partition of India in 1947.


The first prototype Type 630 - registered G-AHRF - flew on 16 July 1948 and was given a restricted Certificate of Airworthiness on 15 September 1949 with full certification being awarded on 27 July 1950. On 28 July 1950 G-AHRF was placed into service with BEA to familiarize the pilots and ground crew with the new aircraft although the design was now considered too small and slow at 275 mph, making the per-passenger operating costs too high for regular service.


The first prototype Type 630 - registered G-AHRF -  flew on 16 July 1948 and was given a restricted Certificate of Airworthiness on 15 September 1949 with full certification being awarded on 27 July 1950.  On 28 July 1950 G-AHRF was placed into service with BEA to familiarize the pilots and ground crew with the new aircraft although the design was now considered too small and slow at 275 mph, making the per-passenger operating costs too high for regular service.

The second prototype Viscount was designated theType 663 and was built as a test-bed. This aircraft fitted with two Rolls Royce Tay turbojet engines and first flew in RAF markings as VX217 at Wisley on 15 March 1950. It demonstrated at the Farnborough SBAC Show in September and was later used in the development of powered controls for theVickers Valiant four jet bomber. Subsequently Boulton Paul Ltd used it as a test bed for electronic control systems until scrapping in the early 1960s.



Vickers responded to BEA's new requirements by designing a new 700 series Viscount with up to 53 passenger seats and a cruising speed of 308 mph. The Type 700 prototype G-AMAV first flew from Brooklands on 28 August 1950 and was used in flight tests and proving trials throughout 1951/2.


Vickers responded to BEA's new requirements by designing the 700 series Viscount with up to 53 passenger seats and a cruising speed of 308 mph. The Type 700 prototype G-AMAV first flew from Brooklands on 28 August 1950 and was used in flight tests and proving trials throughout 1951/2.

In October 1953 G-AMAV achieved the fastest time in the transport section of the 12,367 mile air race from London to Christchurch, New Zealand, spending 40 hours and 41 minutes airbourne and averaging 320 mph before crossing the finishing line nine hours ahead of its closest rival, a piston engined Douglas DC-6A of KLM which technically won the race on handicap.  En route, the Vickers Viscount - equipped with extra fuel tanks - flew  3 530 miles non stop from Cocos (Keeling) Island in the Indian Ocean to Melbourne's Essendon Airport in 10 hours 16 minutes.  Vickers Viscounts later served with New Zealand's National Airways Corporation.

There were three main versions of the Model 700 Viscount, with variations in fuel capacity, interior arrangements and internal equipment, but externally they were virtually the same.  Each was powered by four Rolls-Royce Dart variants giving a maximum cruise speed of 334mph at 20,000 feet.

Among the first operators were Aer Lingus ( naming all four Viscounts after Irish saints ) , Air France and Trans Australia.  The first North American customer was Trans Canada Airlines, which involved a Vickers Viscount 700 making the first trans Atlantic crossing by a turboprop airliner in February 1953.  Then, in June 1954, Washington DC based Capital Airlines - a large short haul company - signed the largest single dollar order ever placed in Britain for 40 Viscount 700D aircraft at $ 45 million.  The Vickers Viscount would thus become not only the first turboprop airliner to fly in the United States but also the first foreign airliner to be purchased by an American airline.


As in the rest of the World, American public acceptance of the Viscount was immediate and enthusiastic. The plane was fast, quiet, comfortable and - from the airline point of view - economical and highly profitable . Capital's pilots also dubbed the Viscount 700D as "fast, forgiving and fun to fly" although in trying to order more of the four engine turbo-props Capital over-reached itself financially and was thus forced to merge with United Airlines in 1960.



As in the rest of the World, American public acceptance of the Viscount was immediate and enthusiastic.  The plane was fast, quiet, comfortable and - from the airline point of view - economical and highly profitable . Capital's pilots also dubbed the Viscount 700D as "fast, forgiving and fun to fly" although in trying to order more of the four engine turbo-props Capital over-reached itself financially and was thus forced to merge with United Airlines in 1960.

However, United was so impressed with the 41 Viscounts that had been delivered to Capital from 1955 that they ordered a further six. Vickers Viscounts gave sterling service throughout North America until the last revenue earning flight on 14 January 1969.

N7440 - as depicted in United colours above - carried Vickers construction number 138 and first flew at Hurn, Hampshire, on 14 September 1956.   It was delivered to Capital Airlines on 24 September 1956 and was repainted in United livery in June 1961.  It was then sold out of United service on11 January 1969

Like many classic propeller airliners, Vickers airframe 138 eventually found its way to South America, arriving in Colombia in 1974.  After over-stressing in flight on 31 March 1991 the former Capital fleet number 359 is now a simulator at a theme park near Medellin.

Technically designated as a V745D Viscount, N4770 was supplied with four Rolls Royce Dart R.Da7 Mk 520 engines rated at 1890 bhp and turning Rotol or De Havilland 10' diameter propellers.  It had a maximum cruising speed of 291 knots, a ceiling of 27 000' and a range with 43 passengers of 1 165 nautical miles.

Interestingly, although the Capital  Viscount fleet were supplied with such standard North American features as integral passenger stairs, Corgi happily supply separate stairs with this 1/144 scale model.



Vickers 744 Viscount XR801 meanwhile is seen in the smart yet functional markings of the Empire Test Pilots School although it too was destined for Capital Airlines after its first flight from Hurn on 30 June 1955.


Vickers 744 Viscount XR801 meanwhile is seen in the smart yet functional markings of the Empire Test Pilots School although it too was destined for Capital Airlines after its first flight from Hurn on 30 June 1955.  

Delivered to Washington DC on 9 July 1955 with the American regstration N7403, it was only leased to the American short-haul organisation until the arrival of a batch of  more advanced 745 series Viscounts.  Given the Capital fleet number 322 was given the square tipped propellers more associated with the Dart RDa 6 Mk 510 engines rather than its own RDa 3 Mk 506 powerplants.

After short spells with Denver based Continental and Japanese All-Nippon Airways from 1958-1961, on 5 January 1962 the aircraft - Vickers construction number 89 - became XR801 with the Ministry of Aviation's Empire Test Pilots School at Farnborough, Hampshire. Shortly afterwards it departed for a tour of United States flight test establishments and was eventually to be retired from military flying and stored at Hurn from 25 October 1971.

XR801's final flight was to Bagington, near Coventry, in the company of Viscount XR802 ( also ex Capital and ex ETPS ) at the end of which it had logged  11 597 flying hours.  By 1973 it had been moved to Bolsover, Derbyshire, but plans to turn the airframe into a cafe fell through and c/n 89 was scrapped on site in 1975.



V-BOMBERS INTO AIRLINERS ?


  As mentioned above, the second prototype Viscount - VX217, first flown at Wisley on 15 March 1950 - was fitted with two Rolls Royce Tay turbojet engines and was later used in the development of powered controls for the Vickers Valiant four jet bomber. Although most famous for dropping Britain's first atomic and hydrogen bombs - at Maralinga and Christmas Island respectively - the Valiant ( pictured above ) also represented a huge technical challenge for Vickers.


As mentioned above, the second prototype Viscount -  VX217, first flown at Wisley on 15 March 1950  - was fitted with two Rolls Royce Tay turbojet engines and was later used in the development of powered controls for the Vickers Valiant four jet bomber.  Although most famous for dropping Britain's first atomic and hydrogen bombs - at Maralinga and Christmas Island respectively - the Valiant ( pictured above ) also represented a huge technical challenge for Vickers.

Air  Ministry Specification B.35/46 - in fact issued to the British aircraft industry in January 1947 - was for an aircraft that could fly fast, high and far enough to deliver an atomic or conventional weapons to Moscow and would result in a quartet of British four-engined jet bombers.

Most technically advanced were the Handley Page Victor and Avro Vulcan with two examples of the simple straight-winged Short Sperrin being built as a back-up in case the other projects failed.  In between the Sperrin, Victor and Vulcan however, the Valiant was to fly just 27 months after official authorisation and be in RAF Bomber Command service just four years after Vickers received the contract.  

In detail, Specification B.35/46 called for 3 500 nautical miles of range, 500 knots ( 575 mph ) top speed, 50 000 feet altitude over the target day or night and for the bomber to be able to operate from any air base in the World, including ones with short grass runways.  The specified payload was 10 000 lb and the aircraft was also to have a reconnaissance capability, pressurised nose cabin for a crew of five, H2S radar for navigation and bomb aiming and - unlike American practice - no defensive armament.  In other words, like the wartime De Havilland  Mosquito, Britain's new atomic bombers were to rely on speed and altitude to evade interception.  Of the four competing designs, all except the Sperrin featured engines buried in the wing roots.


Across the Atlantic the Boeing XB-47 ( pictured above ) first flew on 17 December 1947 with a tactical range of 1 200 miles, top sped of 630 mph, service ceiling of 35 000 feet and 20 000 lb bomb load. However, it was fitted with six General Electric turbojets - yielding 5 800 lb of static thrust each - in pods under each wing and was designed to take off from long paved runways. However, the B-47 ( as it became in USAF service ) also had a tendency to suffer wingtip stalls due to the high sweep of its long, thin, high-aspect ratio wings.





Across the Atlantic the Boeing XB-47 ( pictured above ) first flew on 17 December 1947 with a tactical range of 1 200 miles, top sped of 630 mph, service ceiling of 35 000 feet and 20 000 lb bomb load.  However, it was fitted with six General Electric turbojets - yielding  5 800 lb of static thrust each - in pods under each wing and was designed to take off from long paved runways. However, the B-47 ( as it became in USAF service ) also had a tendency to suffer wingtip stalls due to the high sweep of its long, thin, high-aspect ratio wings.

As a result, George Edwards designed his Vickers Type 660 with a cranked swept wing invented by Vickers aerodynamicist Elfyn "Sam" Richards.  As "GRE" himself explained:

"We increased the sweepback against the body of the aircraft on the basis that the vices of high sweepback against the body were not that serious because it was away from the centre of gravity, which is where you don't want a stalling lift. Then we decreased the sweepback over the outer part of the wing because that is where you don't want a sudden drop-off in lift"

However, although the clean 20 degree mean swept wing mounted high on the shoulder of the Vickers Type 660 gave assurances against wingtip stall - and also accommodated the main undercarriage - it also reduced speed to 460 knots and altitude to 46 000 feet.  The Air Ministry was to accept this though if the Vickers Type 660 would definitely fly by mid 1951. On 18 May 1951 it did just that and was henceforth known as the Vickers Valiant.

During the early 1950s both General Curtis E. Le May, Head of Strategic Air Command, and General Vandenburg, Chief of the American Air Staff, visited Hurn airport for a demonstration of the Vickers Valiant ( pictured below ) which they proposed buying to fly off nuclear powered aircraft carriers.  This idea came to nothing but later Boeing Chief Designer Wellwood Beall told George Edwards that he had tried to persuade the USAF to accept their new B-52 Stratofortress with a B-47 style tandem cockpit.  "Then you turn up with an aeroplane that has a performance if anything better than the one we are offering, with side by side seating.  Le May was so impressed with your aeroplane that I have had to go back to square one and re-cast the whole thing with side by side seating."

As a result, from the third example onwards, Boeing B-52s had a cockpit very similar to those used on later Boeing airliners.




While Vickers Valiant B1s were rolling off the production line for the RAF, George Edwards was working on a B2 Pathfinder variant for low level operations. Forever known as The Black Bomber due to its dark achromatic paintwork, the B2 Pathfinder had a main undercarriage retracting backwards into wing pods and a longer nose but was otherwise outwardly similar to the B1. Inside however it was greatly strengthened for flight in thick turbulent air under enemy radar. Despite an appearance at the September 1953 Farnborough Air Show, the B2 was ignored by the RAF and subsequently scrapped, only for all three V-bombers to change to low altitude penetration in 1963 following the 1960 U2 incident. As Francis Gary Powers found out to his cost, even an altitude of 68 000 feet was no longer security against Soviet surface to air missiles - but within a year all Valiant B1s were grounded due to fatigue cracking in the wings and only the historic XD818 ( pictured at the top of this section ) was preserved - nowadays at Cosford.




While Vickers Valiant B1s were rolling off the production line for the RAF, George Edwards was working on a B2 Pathfinder variant for low level operations.  Forever known as The Black Bomber  due to its dark achromatic paintwork, the B2 Pathfinder had a main undercarriage retracting backwards into wing pods and a longer nose but was otherwise outwardly similar to the B1.  Inside however it was greatly strengthened for flight in thick turbulent air under enemy radar.  Despite an appearance at the September 1953 Farnborough Air Show, the B2 was ignored by the RAF and subsequently scrapped, only for all three V-bombers to change to low altitude penetration in 1963 following the 1960 U2 incident.  As Francis Gary Powers found out to his cost, even an altitude of 68 000 feet was no longer security against Soviet surface to air missiles - but within a year all Valiant B1s were grounded due to fatigue cracking in the wings and only the historic XD818 ( pictured at the top of this section ) was preserved - nowadays at Cosford's National Cold War Museum.

Sadly however this was not the only time that George Edwards would be years ahead of his paymasters in Whitehall.  An expert at developing military aircraft from civil types and vice versa ( such as the Wellington - Viking - Varisity - Valetta series ) he received in 1951 a formal request from the Ministry of Supply ( which had taken over from the wartime Ministry of Aircraft Production ) to submit plans for a dual-purpose long range jet transport based on the Valiant.  

This would have to meet both an RAF requirement for fast troop carrying and also provide British Overseas Airways Corporation (BOAC) with a new jet airliner that was larger than the De Havilland Comet IV and capable of flying the North Atlantic without a refuelling stop.  In addition it needed to be of the same basic dimensions as the Valiant so as to have a similar radar signature to act as an effective decoy on bombing missions.

The military version of this aircraft came to be known as the Vickers V1000 and the civilian airliner the VC7.  In both cases the pressurised cabin would stretch the full length of the fuselage to carry 100 airline passengers ( six abreast for the first time ) or 150 troops and the distinctive cranked swept wing would be retained but repositioned at the base of the fuselage.  As can be seen from the picture of the models below ( unfortunately not my models! )  the V1000 / VC7  had a slot-like wing leading edge intakes ( as used on the prototype Valiant but changed to the sort seen here for production models ) , a cockpit more like that of any modern single deck airliner ( right at the front as no H2S was involved ) and horizontal tail surfaces harking back to the Viscount.




The military version of this aircraft came to be known as the Vickers V1000 and the civilian airliner the VC7. In both cases the pressurised cabin would stretch the full length of the fuselage to carry 100 airline passengers or 150 troops and the distinctive cranked swept wing would be retained but repositioned at the base of the fuselage. As can be seen from the picture of the models below ( unfortunately not my models! ) the V1000 / VC7 had a slot-like wing leading edge intakes ( as used on the prototype Valiant but changed to the sort seen here for production models ) , a cockpit more like that of any modern single deck airliner ( right at the front as no H2S was involved ) and horizontal tail surfaces harking back to the Viscount.




To enable the new jet transport to carry a full load across the Atlantic and to meet the RAF requirement to take off from short runways George Edwards selected  the 15 000 lb thrust Rolls Royce Conway: the World's first turbofan engine and also used to power the Handley Page Victor B2.

The greater propulsive and fuel efficientcy of the turbofan is achieved by ducting cold intake air around the hot parts of the engine and mixing it with the hot exhaust gas at the rear.

In fact the Rolls Royce Conway also linked the Valiant derivative and the Victor B2 with the Avro Vulcan as the first prototype, VX770, was used as a flying test bed for a quartet of the pioneering turbofans during 1957. On 20 September 1958 however, a Rolls-Royce test pilot was authorised to fly VX770 on an engine performance sortie with a fly past at RAF Syerston Battle of Britain "At Home" display when the delta winged aircraft became over-stressed and crashed, sadly killing all on board and three people on the ground.

XA902 then became the second ever Vulcan flying test bed when powered by four Conway Mark 11 engines.  In 1961 the two inner Conways were replaced with Rolls Royce Spey engines - as used in the Blackburn Buccaneer S2 and British Phantoms flying for the first time on 12 October 1961.

In addition, the range of the V1000 could be extended with the addition of wing mounted slipper tanks.

Construction began in October 1952 with an order from the Ministry of Supply for a prototype - XD662 - and structural test specimen - to be increased to six aircraft by request in January 1953. Mindful of the then - recent crashes of the De Havilland Comet 1, George Edwards also used more robust construction methods such as milling the main wing spars from solid metal billets - a technique pioneered and developed at Weybridge and later used by Blackburn Aircraft to build their own Buccaneer naval bomber.  This sturdy construction added to the all-up weight of the aircraft but power to weight ratios were due to be restored by uprating the Conway engine to 17 500 lb thrust.

Had XD662 been completed - around June 1956 - it would have been the first jet airliner in the World to be capable of flying the North Atlantic non stop and two years ahead of the Boeing 707.

However, in the spring of 1955 the RAF was put under extreme Treasury pressure to reduce costs at a time when the V1000 was the most expensive item in its inventory.  As a result it dropped its requirement for a high speed transport which could also act as a bomber decoy and looked instead towards the Bristol Britannia turboprop airliner, pictured below.  





First flown in 1952, the Britannia had experienced delays in its development but was still eagerly anticipated by BOAC for its long haul routes, especially as the 1954 crashes had grounded BOAC's fleet of De Havilland Comet 1s and left the airline waiting for the Comet 4: which would not fly until 27 April 1958. As an interim measure, BOAC even bought well-proven American DC-7 piston engined airliners until more powerful Britannias could arrive. At the same time rival airlines such as KLM could buy all the proven American airliners they wanted without any pressure to support a home grown airline building industry.




First flown in 1952, the Britannia had experienced delays in its development but was still eagerly anticipated by BOAC for its long haul routes, especially as the 1954 crashes had grounded BOAC's fleet of De Havilland Comet 1s and left the airline waiting for the Comet 4: which would not fly until 27 April 1958. As an interim measure, BOAC even bought well-proven American DC-7 piston engined airliners until more powerful Britannias could arrive.  At the same time rival airlines such as KLM could buy all the proven American airliners they wanted without any pressure to support a home grown airline building industry.

As well as now being suitable for the reduced needs of RAF Transport Command, the Filton designed "whispering giant" could also be built by Shorts of Belfast, which was in desperate need of work after the cancellation of the Sperrin bomber.  

As it turned out, even the influence of enthusiastic Viscount customer Trans Canada Airlines could not sway Minister of Supply Reginald Maudling and both V1000 and VC7 variants were cancelled on 12 November 1955.  By this time the British taxpayer had spent £ 4 million on the project and George Edwards ordered XD 662 - which was just six months from its first flight - to be scrapped along  with all its jigs and machine tools.  

As he later said in a television interview "It's no good leaving a corpse about for the chaps to mourn over".  At the time the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Supply also said :

"BOAC is satisfied that it can hold its own commercially on the North Atlantic route until well into the 1960s with the Comet IV and the long range Britannia."

This was just one month after Pan American Airways had placed a launch order for the Boeing 707 and in the same month that United Airlines had ordered its rival, the Douglas DC-8.

In October 1956 however, just after Britain's humiliation by America over the Suez Crisis , Harold Watkinson, Minister of Transport and Civil Aviation, announced to the House of Commons that permission had been given for BOAC to purchase from America 15 Boeing 707 long range jets at a cost of £44 million .  What he did not say was that £35 million of this price would have to be paid in US dollars which Britain could ill afford, but he did go on to say:

"This was in order that the Corporation may hold their competitive position on the North Atlantic route from 1959 to the 1960s.  At that time no suitable British aircraft can be made available for that purpose - the purchase is an exceptional measure to bridge the gap."

As it was the long range version of the Boeing 707 did not fly until 1959 - the same year as the "urgently needed" RAF Britannias - and the BOAC 707s were powered by the same17 500 lb thrust Rolls Royce Conways that had been selected for the VC7.  Considering that the 707 was also heavier than the VC7, it is little wonder that Sir George Edwards called this "The Biggest Blunder of All".





However, Sir George Edwards was not alone in trying to use military technology to capitalise on the civil market . Plans were afoot in 1952 for an airliner version of the Victor ( seen above refuelling a Blackburn Buccaneer and discussed in depth at Handley Page Aircraft )




However, Sir George Edwards was not alone in trying to use military technology to capitalise on the civil market .  Plans were afoot in 1952 for an airliner version of the Victor ( seen above refuelling  Blackburn Buccaneer XV348 )  and discussed in depth at Handley Page Aircraft )

Looking rather like a bloated version of the Victor, the Handley Page HP47 would have seated 96 passengers on its upper deck with a circular staircase leading down to Ladies and Gentlemens dressing rooms and toilets with a large lounge and galley. Another proposal accommodated 140 passengers on two decks with a lounge on the rear of the upper deck.

Handley Page promised a first flight in 1958 and service in 1960 but despite BOAC's refusal the Radlett based firm tried again in 1958 with the revised HP.111.

This prefigured the Boeing 747 and later Airbus designs with a new circular section ‘widebody’ fuselage and was proposed by Handley Page to the RAF as a strategic transport and to BOAC as a 200 passenger medium range or 150 passenger transatlantic transport and civil freighter. In this form it was actually selected by the RAF but politics intervened and the British government insisted the order went to the Shorts Belfast and Handley Page never offered a large transport aircraft again.




Avro, who had famously converted their wartime Lancaster into the York transport , also


Avro, who had famously converted their wartime Lancaster into the York transport , also
considered a civil variant of the Vulcan - the Type 722 Atlantic - during 1952 but insisted on firm orders for 25 aircraft before committing to production.  Had BOAC taken an interest in the subsonic yet Concorde-like Type 722 it would have carried 131 passengers in a six abreast layout.  Interestingly, Avro proposed using either four 15,000lb Rolls Royce Conway or Bristol Olympus engines while the Handley Page HP111 was designed around Pratt & Whitney JT3 turbines.

Although the Type 722 Atlantic was never more than a paper aeroplane the Avro Vulcan  - seen above next to the Handley Page Victor and Vickers VC10 - did make contributions to the Anglo-French Concorde programme both in terms of experience gained with ogive delta wings and as a test bed for the Rolls Royce Olympus engine.

The Vulcan had long undercarriage legs so that nuclear free fall bombs and stand-off missiles - such as the British Blue Steel and American Skybolt -  could be driven underneath and offered up into its bomb bay - a feature which made it ideal for the experimental ventral nacelles.

The first of two test bed Vulcans was the metal-finished B1 variant XA894. This was originally delivered to Filton to trial the Bristol Siddeley B.Ol 22R (Olympus 320) turbojet destined for the TSR2. The Bristol-Siddeley firm and its Olympus family of engines were later taken over by Rolls Royce and XA894 appeared at the 1962 Farnborough Air Show with its distinctive split-intake belly nacelle - and a white undercarriage door robbed from another Vulcan!

Developed from the Olympus 301 (as fitted to the Mk 2 Vulcan, the first Vulcan B1s being Avon powered) and fitted with an afterburner, the Olympus 22R had a troubled development that resulted in XA894 being destroyed on the ground. Luckily nobody was hurt in the engine calamity at Filton on 3 December 1963. But apparently while the airfield fire crew were busy dousing the fire with foam they failed to notice some burning fuel streaming downhill to their brand new fire engine which also caught fire and blew up - much to the amusement of office staff looking on!

Although Vulcans could not test engines above the speed of sound, the loss of XA894 left initial TSR2 flights with barely airworthy engines - doubtlessly adding to the cost and time over-runs and eventual cancellation of this potentially World-beating Canberra replacement.

Indeed, the one flyable TSR2 XR 219 and its almost-flown sister XR 220 were also mooted as test beds for the 35 080 lb thrust Olympus 593 development as fitted to Concorde, but the cudgel was in fact taken up by a further Vulcan: B1 XA 903.

This had already been used to prove the Blue Steel nuclear stand-off weapon and flew with a mockup of a single Concorde nacelle from 1 October 1966 to June 1971. In April 1973 XA903 flew with an underbelly Rolls Royce RB.199 turbofan destined for the Panavia Tornado. It was mounted in what was essentially one side of a Tornado, including reheat and thrust reverser. Full details of these research aircraft can be found at www.famousvulcans.co.uk.



Despite these pioneering contributions towards the realisation of supersonic passenger flight, Vulcans as such have not always had happy experiences at civilian airports - the 1973 airshow flypast at Gloucestershire Airport captured above by Ken Guest being an exception.


Despite these pioneering contributions towards the realisation of supersonic passenger flight, Vulcans as such have not always had happy experiences at civilian airports - the 1973 airshow flypast at Gloucestershire Airport captured above by Ken Guest being an exception.

On 1 October 1956 for example the RAF's first production Vulcan B1 - XA897 -  crashed at Heathrow Airport when approaching in bad weather after a world tour.  As RAF aircraft of the time were not fitted with the Instrument Landing System used by Heathrow's commercial airliners a Ground Controlled Approach was used.

Unfortunately, instead of rolling to a smooth halt in front of British aviation journalists, the Vulcan struck the ground 700 yards short of the runway just as engine power was applied. The impact probably broke the drag links on the main undercarriage, allowing it to be forced back , damaging the trailing edge of the wing.

After the initial impact the Vulcan rose back into the air and the pilot, Squadron Leader D.R. Howard and co-pilot Air Marshall Sir Harry Broadhurst - Air Officer Commanding in Chief of Bomber Command - both ejected and survived.  However the other four crew members - including Howard's usual co-pilot and an Avro technician - were killed when the bomber hit the ground and broke up as there was no time to open the escape hatch just in front of the nosewheel leg.






On 14 October 1975 meanwhile Vulcan B2 ( with the ogive delta wing also seen on the model of XL 443 above ) XM645 of Waddington based 9 Squadron RAF lost its left undercarriage and suffered airframe damage when it undershot the runway at Luqa Airport, Malta. The pilot decided to do a circuit to crash land on runway 24 after it was covered with fire prevention foam. As the aircraft was turning inbound for the landing, it broke up in mid-air over the village of Zabbar, killing five of its seven crew members. Once again, only the pilot and co-pilot escaped, using their ejection seats. Large pieces of the aircraft fell on the village, killing one woman instantly and injuring 20 others.

Finally, and with a happier ending, Vulcan B2 XM597 had flown Black Buck mission 6 from Ascension Island to Port Stanley in the Falkland Islands on 3 June 1982 and had successfully destroyed an Argentine Skyguard fire-control radar installation when, on the return journey, the nose refuelling probe broke.  One of its remaining Shrike anti-radiation missiles was ditched into the ocean to reduce drag but another remained stuck to its pylon.  Sensitive documents on board were then jettisoned via the crew hatch before the pilot, Squadron Leader Neil McDougall sent a Mayday message which resulted in priority clearance to land at Rio De Janiero Airport with less than 2 000 lb fuel remaining in the tanks - not enough to have completed a circuit!

The neutral Brazilian government interned both aircraft and crew, who were well treated and released nine days later on 11 June 1982 to fly home minus the confiscated Shrike.




The Corgi model Vulcan, XL443, delivered from Avro at Woodford in October 1962, is in pre 1963 anti nuclear flash markings and carries on its fin the deer's antler insignia of Scampton based 83 Squadron. It later served with 35 Squadron in the same Scampton wing but was withdrawn from service and cut up by Birds Commercial Metals at RAF Scampton in 1982, prior to their remains being taken to Long Marston, Worcestershire, for reprocessing.

 

The Corgi model Vulcan, XL443, delivered from Avro at Woodford in October 1962, is in pre 1963 anti nuclear flash markings and carries on its fin the deer's antler insignia of Scampton based 83 Squadron.  It later served with 35 Squadron in the same Scampton wing but was withdrawn from service and cut up by Birds Commercial Metals at RAF Scampton in 1982, prior to their remains being taken to Long Marston, Worcestershire, for reprocessing.

Although noted at RAF Wittering in February 1964,December 1966 saw XL443 joined fellow top-camouflaged Scampton Wing Blue Steel Vulcans XL425 and XL392 on a dispersal exercise at the Royal Aircraft Establishment at Bedford.  While the main runway at Scampton would have had Operational Readiness Platforms (ORPs)  at the end of the runway, RAE Bedford's were a short taxi away.  Most Vulcans on these exercises carried the inert Blue Steel Training Round (BSTR) but those that carried the live Blue Steel Wet Round were attended on the ground by a fire tender, ready to douse any leaking High Test Peroxide fuel.




VICKERS VC10 C1 XV107


Vickers VC10 XV107 was one of fourteen C1 variants delivered to 10 Squadron Royal Air Force between 1966 and 1967, combining the fuselage of the standard VC10 with the wings and more powerful engines of the Super VC10. The C1 could carry 139 passengers in rear facing seats, eight standard pallets or up to 78 medical evacuation stretchers, as is reflected by the red cross "Casevac" markings seen on the Corgi model. This dates the die cast representation to June 1982 when such mercy missions were arriving at RAF Brize Norton, Oxfordshire, from the Falklands via Ascension Island


Vickers VC10 XV107 was one of fourteen C1 variants delivered to 10 Squadron Royal Air Force between 1966 and 1967, combining the fuselage of the standard VC10 with the wings and more powerful engines of the Super VC10. The C1 could carry 139 passengers in rear facing seats, eight standard pallets or up to 78 medical evacuation stretchers, as is reflected by the red cross "Casevac" markings seen on the Corgi model. This dates the die cast representation to June 1982 when such mercy missions were arriving at RAF Brize Norton, Oxfordshire, from the Falklands via Ascension Island.

A strengthened floor allowed the C1 to transport fifty 1 000lb bombs per flight for the Panavia Tornado GR1 force during the 1991 Gulf War with a total of 1 326 sorties being flown by 10 Squadron in  over 5 000 flying hours during this conflict.  Since then, VC10s have assisted British forces during the 2003 invasion of Iraq and still often fly over Churchdown in 2009 - a reminder that Britain used to build the World's most beautiful airliners.

All fourteen RAF VC10 C1s were named after Victoria Cross holders and XV107 is named after Flight Lieutenant James Nicolson, who was Fighter Command’s only VC in the Second World War.   Flight Lieutenant James Nicolson of Boscombe Down based 249 Squadron was awarded his decoration after an engagement with Messerschmitt 110s near Southampton on 16 August 1940, when his Hawker Hurricane was hit by 4 cannon shells, 2 of which wounded him while another set fire to the gravity tank.  When about to abandon his aircraft because of the flames in the cockpit, he sighted another Messerschmitt 110.  This he attacked and shot down, although as a result of staying with his aircraft he sustained serious burns to his hands, face and legs.  Afterwards, Nicolson did bail out and was convalescing in Torquay when he heard that he had been awarded the VC.

The blue and silver stairs seen in the model pictures below were made using the long step and side wall components from the Ratio Concrete Footbridge kit ( number 222 ) held up to the correct height using a strip of plastic card and with triangles of thinner plastic card to fill in the sides.  The figures at the top of the steps are from the Bachmann Businessmen set and thanks to Nick Gilpin of Rural Railways a Fleetline model (N118) of a 1960 vintage Rolls Royce Silver Cloud has now been acquired and should feature in presentations from 2010. All  I need to do now is make a red carpet and find some press photographers and airmen with blanco'd rifles standing to attention!


In 1957, nearly two years after the V1000 / VC7 debacle, BOAC once again approached Vickers for an special airliner that could reach the "hot and high" short runway airfields of the southern hemisphere and Far East that could not accept the new Boeing 707. De Havilland had already rejected developing a Comet V for this role but with Valiant production coming to an end at Weybridge Vickers were desperate for new work.


In 1957, nearly two years after the V1000 / VC7 debacle,  BOAC once again approached Vickers for an special airliner that could reach the "hot and high" short runway airfields of the southern hemisphere and Far East that could not accept the new Boeing 707.  De Havilland had already rejected developing a Comet V for this role but with Valiant production coming to an end at Weybridge Vickers were desperate for new work.

In January 1958 a contract was signed by BOAC for 35 of these new airliners - to be known as VC10s - each holding 147 passengers- with options for 20 more.  In June 1960 these options were confirmed as being for ten 191 seat Super VC10s  Later however the Super VC10 specification was reduced to a 163 seat aircraft.  Four of these aircraft, earmarked for East African Airways but later repossessed by Vickers formed the basis of the RAF Super VC10 tanker fleet

To get in and out of such awkward airports as Singapore, Karachi, Kano (Nigeria ) and Nairobi the VC10 would need larger and more powerful engines than could be buried in the wing roots and the wings would likewise need long unbroken landing flaps and slats for maximum lift, impossible if engines were podded under the wings in the style of the Boeing 707.  As a result, Sir George Edwards placed the four Rolls Royce Conway turbofans - now uprated to 20 000lb thrust -  at the back of the fuselage as Sud Aviation had done with their successful twin engined Caravelle.  Mounting four engines in this way also had the advantage of making the 150 seat six-abreast passenger cabin very quiet.

The VC 10 would also be the most powerful airliner in the World -  by 10 000lb of takeoff thrust - and have a range of 4 000 miles.  More than half of its structural weight was also to come from parts machined from solid aluminium alloy yet it could take off and land at 20 knots less than the Boeing 707.

The first standard VC10 flew from Brooklands to Wisley on 29 June 1962 with Jock Bryce and Brian Trubshaw at the controls and drag and stalling problems during test flying were eventually cured by the addition of wing fences near the fuselage to stop the outward flow of air.

The VC10 entered BOAC service in 1963 and proved popular with passengers and returned higher utilisation and lower costs to its operator although thanks to the desire of BOAC chairman Sir  Giles Guthrie for an all-American fleet the final production from Vickers for the Corporation was only 12 standard and 17 Super VC10s.  A further 3 aircraft went to British United Airways, a similar amount to Ghana Airways and five to East African Airways.  Aerolineas Argentinas however - among other airlines - cancelled their orders.


The VC10 entered BOAC service in 1963 and proved popular with passengers and returned higher utilisation and lower costs to its operator although thanks to the desire of BOAC chairman Sir Giles Guthrie for an all-American fleet the final production from Vickers for the Corporation was only 12 standard and 17 Super VC10s. A further 3 aircraft went to British United Airways, a similar amount to Ghana Airways and five to East African Airways. Aerolineas Argentinas however - among other airlines - cancelled their orders.


A 1978 Air Staff Requirement also resulted in five ex commercial VC10s and four Super VC10s being bought for conversion to flight refuelling tankers.  The five VC10s became the K2s of 101 Squadron from 1983 and the four Super VC10s became the unit's K3 tankers from 1985.  In 1990, Vickers successor company British Aerospace received a contract to convert five Super VC10s into Super VC10 K4 tankers and then convert eight 10 Squadron C1s in to dual role C1 (K)s for transport and tanker operations.


A 1978 Air Staff Requirement also resulted in five ex commercial VC10s and four Super VC10s being bought for conversion to flight refuelling tankers. The five VC10s became the K2s of 101 Squadron from 1983 and the four Super VC10s became the unit's K3 tankers from 1985. In 1990, Vickers successor company British Aerospace received a contract to convert five Super VC10s into Super VC10 K4 tankers and then convert eight 10 Squadron C1s in to dual role C1 (K)s for transport and tanker operations.