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Aviation History
1951
1951 - 1616.PDF
2J August 1951 219 jj RITAIN'S MIDDLE-EAST AIRLINE Cyprus Airways: The Work of a Small, Happy and Efficient Organization ALARGE proportion of the countless tourists who,seeking sunshine and tranquillity, visit the Britishisland of Cyprus, is carried in the DC-3S of Cyprus Airways Ltd., a subsidiary of the British European Airways Corporation. This industrious little airline which, unlike so many of its contemporaries, is now running at a profit, has been in operation since September 1947. In the early days, flights were made under a charter arrangement, using three of B.E.A.'s Dakotas on a twice-weekly schedule to Athens, Beirut, Lydda, Alexandria and Cairo, with a weekly service to Istanbul. The location of Cyprus is, of course, ideal for the purpose of showing to advantage the benefits to be derived from air travel, and passenger and freight traffic has increased steadily since the early days. Today, Cyprus Airways' original paid-up capital of £125,000 has been enlarged to £185,000, of which a controlling interest of 55 per cent is held by the Cyprus Government and by private citizens] B.E.A. and B.O.A.C. are joint participants in the remainder. In the company's first year, operations were conducted at a small loss, but in 1950 a profit of £17,478 cleared the deficit. The results for 1950-51 also showed a profit of nearly £1,000, in spite of devaluation of the pound sterling. But for the effect of devaluation on the company's revenue traffic, increases would have effected a handsome improve- ment on the previous year's results. Much of the success of Cyprus Airways, writes a corres- pondent who has recently returned from the island, un- doubtedly springs from its being a small, friendly company where everyone knows everyone and regulations and red tape are at a discount. There is no need for a top-heavy overhead organization, and, indeed, no opportunity for one, to build itself up. This fact is apparent in the genuinely happy atmosphere at all levels. The company has its ad- ministrative offices in Nicosia, the capital, the aircraft being based at Nicosia Airport. This is an R.A.F. airfield, situated about five miles from the town, and on a plateau that affords excellent approaches on all three runways. The civil side of the airport is managed by Cyprus Air- ways on behalf of the Government, and a number of attrac- tive and practical buildings have been provided. From the passenger-handling viewpoint the facilities are simple yet effective. The Customs hall and passenger waiting rooms are housed in low, cream-painted buildings with red Roman- tiled roofs, and the whole layout has an attractive border of semi-tropical shrubbery. A great saving of space and time has been achieved by making the surrounding verandahs do duty as departure and arrival channels, with desks for the officials situated between them. Even so, traffic is already— ' one of the five DC-3s which comprise the Cyprus Airways fleet. A'glimpse of Nicosia Airport from the end of the Customs Building. as is the case at many airports the world over—too great for capacity. In addition to M.F., H.F., and V.H.F. radio facilities S.B.A. is available, although the only bad visibility through- out the year is brought about by occasional morning ground mist. Rain clouds seldom bring the ceiling below a couple of thousand feet, and, in fact, regularity last year was 99.5 per cent. Cyprus Airways rents from the R.A.F. a war-torn Bell- man hangar and some simple huts for use as stores and work- shops. These latter buildings, originally crude in design and without double roofs, have been made into exemplary premises of unusual neatness and efficiency by a process known in the R.A.F. as "self-help" (i.e., making what you cannot buy). Complete airframe maintenance is carried out, including progressive C. of A. and major structural repairs or modifications. Hydraulic components, instruments and radio are tested and repaired, but engines and airscrews are at present, returned to this country. Being so far from a main supply source, spares stocks are larger than would otherwise be held. The technical side comes directly under the company's chief pilot, Capt. J. B. W. Pugh, whose aircrew, unlike the other British personnel, are seconded from British European Airways. The pilots are at present averaging about 1,000 hours a year. Total aircraft utilization at 1,200 hr a month, is not start- lingly high, but the management feel this to be a critical figure. For maintaining and flying the five Dakotas at present used there are seventeen British licensed aircraft engineers— in addition to semi-skilled and unskilled local staff—and six complete aircrews. An increase in utilization would mean a considerable increase iff staff, because they would have to work in shifts; thus it would be uneconomic until business had greatly increased. Larger loads are expected, however, and these will at first be catered for by converting the present 21-seat cabins into 28-seat versions, on the lines of B.E.A.'s Pionairs. An extra DC-3 is also being acquired. The present overall revenue load-factor is more than 60 per cent and about 17,000 passengers travelled with the airline last year. With the present fleet, services are now operated at the following frequencies : Athens, four times weekly; Beirut and Lydda, thrice weekly; Rome and Cairo, twice weekly; Jerusalem, Alexandria, Ankara/Istanbul, Haifa and Khartoum, weekly; and Bahrein fortnightly. The board of Cyprus Airways is under the chairmanship of Cdr. B. Wolfson, O.B.E., V.R.D. (of B.E.A.), executive control being in the hands of W/C. J. Vick, who was previously with B.O.A.C.
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