old BEA pics for marcus

[richard]

more family photos than technical marcus but here some pics of probably my first flight . i am the little one with the reins , with mum and older brother . also one random pic when a little older of me inspecting the undercarriage of an aircraft
are you keen marcus on BEA aircraft at all ?

[richard]

just realised the most dating thing there . the HATS

[marcus]

Cheers Dickie-In-The-Reins! Yup I like all aircraft, like that Dakota / DC3!

[richard]

would you be interested in a period un-made card kit of a BEA Viscount aprox 2'6"  

[marcus]

That's nice! I don't think I need anything else at all, I have SO much stuff already. If you cannot find a home for it or sell it on eBay then I would take it to stop it being thrown out, but it is a great and probably rare item, so possibly of some value to a collector.

[marcus]

My Dad got posted to Montevideo when I was two and my earliest memories are of ship and de Havilland Comet journeys between England and Uruguay. We visited Montevideo (Carrasco) airport many times, and I loved watching the old tail-draggers like DC3 Dakotas and Curtis C47 Commanders.

 My Dad was sent to Argentina once with a Naval delegation and the British Ambassador in 3 Dakotas to sell an old British WW2 Aircraft Carrier to Argentina. The ship had been built then immediately assigned to Canadian Navy for a few years, then returned to UK, was used for successful Rubber Deck Landing experiments, in which de H Vampires landed safely with under-carriage up, the idea was to see if carrier planes could dispense with undercarriage as this is about 25% of their weight. More powerful jet engines solved the problem better! The carrier was then used in the Pacific for British nuclear tests, then sailed (irradiated!) to Argentina and was re-named Independencia.

On the way down to Punta Arenas Dad's Dak had an engine fire and they had to put down in the huge Riiver Plate/Atlantic coastal marshlands. Pilot made one low pass to see where cows scattered so he knew where the solid ground was. No radio contact with anywhere, but after a few hours a ranchero on horseback found them. He went back to his ranch and came back with a big wagon, and we still have a great photo of Dad in his mac and smoking his pipe, surrounded by the Ambassador and some British and Argentinian Naval "Brass", all standing happily in the ox cart. Back in Montevideo Mum had to wait 3 days for news.

[richard]

not SO exciting perhaps but my mum and dad were visiting Ibiza, Mallorca and Minorca way before the huge uptake  in summer holidays . it was all 60's nudist beaches and unspoiled . cine films of what is now endless hotels was then endless salt harvesting fields .there was no ,or very little , mains water and water was brought to the  hotels daily by road tanker .
Minorca is still relatively primitive compared to the other Balearics ( language Timothy ! ) on one of those early  trips , the BEA photo's would be 1960 ish ,  we travelled from Manchester airport , then Ringway, to Mallorca as was usual and we transferred to a smaller aircraft that could be accommodated at Minorca . on this flight my older brother asked dad why the propellor wasn't turning ! dad with his usual air explained that like a wagon wheel at a certain speed a propellor would look stationary . THEN HE LOOKED !! the plane had an engine on each wing and one had failed . a steep bank and a return to Mallorca was in order . on landing we were met by the full panoply of emergency vehicles , you would have had a field day marcus, all as it turned out unnecessary as an unexceptional landing ensued . i recall none of it other than the endless tails of it as a child  

[marcus]

Yes, piston engines certainly were prone to dying! I have never had any actual problems in planes, but one worrying take off from Dulles in a 737 through an epic thunderstorm with green, orange and purple colours in the cloud. It looked just like the old Twilight Zone with William Shatner (Capt James T. Kirk) watching a Gremlin vandalising the wing and engine.

Sometimes the main flights between UK and USA began or ended at JFK, New York, and we flew to or from there to Washington National airport in Lockheed Electras which were terrifying turbo-props which tried to emulate the style and success of the Vickers Viscount, but with US Allison engines which were rough. The exhaust came out half way across the top of the wing, along with 20-40 ft long flames for most of the flight, due to inefficient combustion. Landing at National was odd when towards the back: the runway was very short so they had to make use of all its length, and it is on the bank of the Potomac river. When you felt touch down all you could see for a second was river, and I always felt we had not made it! They had a bad crash in the 80s when an iced-up plane could not gain altitude, crashed into a bridge and went into the river.

I always liked the look of Boeing Stratocruisers but never went on one.

[Big Al]

So that Twiglet Zone was remade with John Lithgo playing the scared passenger in the compilation film? Apparently W. Shatner did 4 Columbo editions. For all the micky taking he managed to pick up some good scripts by getting Star Trek as well.

[Barry]

For the aircraft enthusiasts..........

http://www.mission4today.com/index.php?name=ForumsPro&file=viewtopic&t=14429

[marcus]

Many thanks for the link, some excellent photos there, including Swordfish Albacore and Walrus which my Dad flew in, will show him these next time I see him.

[Big Al]

Many thanks for the link, some excellent photos there, including Swordfish Albacore and Walrus which my Dad flew in, will show him these next time I see him.

Had a very odd scruffy Schmitt with a GRP flat dome like an aircraft carrier nicknamed 'Shagbat'.

[Rob Dobie]

Many years ago in a pretty cottage garden near Gatwick airport, two lovely old ladies, Doris and Elsie were having afternoon tea whilst watching the planes flying above. All of a sudden Elsie cries out in delight, " Look, look, there's a Mail plane!"  Doris replies "Don't be so daft, they are it's wheels" 

[richard]

Tee hee must update my christmas card list when did they move from warmington on  sea