FlightGlobal.com
Home
Premium
Archive
Video
Images
Forum
Atlas
Blogs
Jobs
Shop
RSS
Email Newsletters
You are in:
Home
Aviation History
1952
1952 - 2228.PDF
CIVIL AVIATION COMETS IN THE NEWS T HE second scheduled service to be operated by a jet airliner was inaugurated by B.O.A.C. on Monday at 1037 hr, when a Comet took off for Ceylon, arriving at Colombo at 0757 B.S.T. next day. Scheduled flying time for this 5,940-mile journey is 16 hr 35 min, compared with 29 hr 35 min taken by piston- engined Argonauts. The new Comet service is to be operated once weekly in each direction through Rome, Beirut, Bahrein and Karachi, and the total elapsed time on the route is scheduled at 21 hr 35 min. Interviewed by Charles Gardner for the B.B.C. on the occasion of the departure of the Ceylon service, Sir Miles Thomas, chair man of B.O.A.C., made some most informative statements regard ing the future equipment and operations of the Corporation. By I954» he said, the Avon-powered Comet II should be in transatlantic service; and during the intervening period these aircraft would make many meteorological flights at 40,000ft along the route. By 1957 the Comet III would be in service; this "Super Comet" would be bigger, faster, and have much increased range compared with the earlier series, and would be operated as an "over-50-seater." Parallel with the fast, high-altitude Comet services there would be tourist services with the Britannia—the first of which aircraft, said Sir Miles, was likely to fly during this week. Operated as 100-seaters, cruising at up to 400 m.p.h. for 6,000 miles, Britannias would carry passengers at reduced fares; the routes would include a London-Tokyo schedule via the North Pole, and—it was hoped —a Loidon-Edmonton (Alberta) service flown non-stop. Tentative plans for inaugurating a Comet service were an nounced by Canadian Pacific Airlines and Japan Air Lines last week. The Canadian company hopes to put Comets on the Honolulu-Australia leg of its Vancouver-Australia route early next year; 1955 is the date given for the inauguration of a weekly Avon-Comet service by the Japanese operator between Tokio and London via Hongkong, Bangkok, Calcutta, Bombay, Karachi, Cairo and Rome. It is reported that two Series II Comets have been ordered by the Venezuela operators, Linea Aeropostal Venezolana, for a direct express non-stop service between Caracas and New York, a distance of 1,240 statute miles. Delivery is expected to take place in mid-195 5. The manufacturers announce that 49 Comets have now been ordered or are the subjects of contracts in advanced stages of negotiation. Linea Aeropostal Venezolana at present operates a thrice-weekly non-stop Caracas-New York service and a thrice-weekly service between these points via Havana. Constellations are used on these routes as well as on the twice-weekly service between Caracas and Lima. At December 31st last L.A.V. operated a fleet consisting of four Constellations, twenty DC-3S, two Martin 2-0-2S and two Commandos. In 1951, the company flew 7,243,000 revenue kilo meters on domestic services and 2,706,000 on international flight. The total number of revenue passengers carried was 186,576, of whom 22,715 were transported on the company's international routes. GATWICK DEVELOPMENT A S recorded briefly in Flight last week, the Ministry of Civil Aviation has announced its intention of developing Gatwick Airport as a southern alternative to London. The present main runway, 1,400 yards in length and constructed of P.S.P., will have to be improved and extended—on the western side of the airfield, according to current reports. Such an extension would involve diversion of the main London-Brighton road; on the eastern side Gatwick is well served by the London-Brighton electric railway line. The airport, 27 miles from London, already has its own station. There is also another station at Gatwick Racecourse, which lies to the north and is nearer the site of the proposed new terminal buildings. NEW LINK WITH BERLIN? ACCORDING to a report from Berlin, the city government has been negotiating with several companies over the possibility of opening a high-frequency passenger service between the capital and Western Germany. A contract to operate the services would probably involve a subsidy, since the Berlin-Hanover return fare proposed by the city government is quoted only as £4. Silver City Airways, whose Bristol Freighters would probably be well suited to short-haul, high-density operations of this type, are reported to be one of the companies involved in the negotiations. T.C.A. PERSONALITIES above are Capt. Bert Trerice (left) and Mr. H. Home, who have both received new appointments. Capt. Trerice, who has flown 3m miles with the airline since 1939, becomes check pilot on internal services; the new post of chief flight engineer goes to Mr. Home, who will be responsible for training T.C.A. engineers for the new Super Constellations ordered by the company.
Sign up to
Flight Digital Magazine
Flight Print Magazine
Airline Business Magazine
E-newsletters
RSS
Events
