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Aviation History
1954
1954 - 1089.PDF
FLIGHT, 16 April 1954 489 engined Short C-class Empire flying-boats, made first scheduled flight on a trans-Mediterranean service. December 21st: G-ADHM, R.M.A. Caledonia, first long-range Empire flying-boat, flew Alexandria - Marseilles 1,700 miles in 1 li hr. On December 22nd it flew Marseilles - Southampton in 4|hr. 1937 January 12th: First all-air trans-Mediterranean service operated by Empire flying-boat. Alexandria - Southampton. First service outward bound left Southampton on January 16th and flew via Mirabella, Rome, Brindisi and Athens, reaching Alexandria on January 17th. February 8th: Regular Southampton - Alexandria services began. February 18th: R.M.A. Caledonia flew non-stop from South ampton to Alexandria 2,222 miles in 13 hr 5 min. March 5th: Hythe Base opened for operation of Empire services; Croydon thereafter used only for European services. April: London - Budapest services re-routed to call at Frankfurt to connect with German Zeppelin services. May 2nd: Heracles completed the company's 40,000th flight across the English Channel. May 15th: Empire flying-boats took over Africa route as far as Kisumu. May 22nd: 1,000th service from United Kingdom to Empire. May 23rd: First service flight from Alexandria to Southampton in one day. May 25th: G-ADUU, R.M.A. Cavalier, made first survey flight Bermuda - New York. Pan American Airways' Sikorsky S-42 made flight in opposite direction. June 2nd: First all-flying-boat service England - South Africa. Flown by R.M.A. Canopus from Southampton to Durban via Marseilles, Rome, Brindisi, Athens, Alexandria, Cairo, Wadi Haifa, Khartoum, Malakal, Butiaba, Port Bell, Kisumu, Mombasa, Dar-es-Salaam, Lindi, Mozambique, Beira, Lourenco Marques. The route had optional stops at Macon, Mirabella, Luxor, Kareima, Laropi, Quelimane and Inhambane. June 4th: R.M.A. Cambria completed 20,000-mile survey of African routes. June 16th: Joint Imperial Airways and Pan American Airways Bermuda to New York service opened. First service in opposite direction, June 19th. June 18th: Nominal capital of Imperial Airways increased from £1,000,000 to £5,000,000. June 29th: Empire air-mail programme inaugurated between England and Sudan, East and South Africa when R.M.A. Centurion left Southampton with 3,500 lb of unsurcharged mail. July 5-6th: First commercial survey flights over North Atlantic by Imperial Airways Empire flying-boat R.M.A. Caledonia and Pan American Airways' Sikorsky S-42 Clipper III. These were first of a series made by Caledonia, Cambria and the Clipper. July 6th: First survey flight Southampton - Lisbon by R.M.A. Cambria. July 23rd: Heracles completed 1,000,000 miles of flying in 10,200 hr, having carried about 80,000 passengers. September 6th: R.M.A. Ceres left Alexandria on first Empire flying-boat survey flight to Karachi. October 3rd: R.M.A. Clio left Southampton for Alexandria on first Empire flying-boat service to Karachi. R.M.A. Calypso operated the Alexandria - Karachi sector. October 6-7th: R.M.A. Caledonia made first Southampton - Azores survey flight. October 13th: R.M.A. Delia, Diana class, left Lagos on first service to Accra. Service operated by Elders Colonial Airways in association with Imperial Airways. October 15th: Short Kent flying-boat Satyrus left Alexandria on survey flight to Singapore. November 15th: R.M.A. Cordelia left Karachi on first Empire flying-boat survey flight to Singapore. December 3rd: R.M.A. Centaurus left Southampton on first Empire flying-boat survey flight to Australia and New Zealand. December 8th: Horatius carried 250,000th passenger flown across the English Channel by Heracles class. December 19th: Hongkong route altered to fly via Bangkok, Udorn, Hanoi and Fort Bayard instead of via Penang, Saigon and Tourane. First Bangkok - Hongkong service flown by R.M.A. Delphinus; service in opposite direction on same day by R.M.A. Dorado. December 27th: R.M.A. Centaurus left Sydney on survey flight to Auckland. "Calypso" (Short C-clcss) departs for Australia with first "all-up" mails. "Frobisher," first of the D.H.91 Albatrosses used on European services. 1938 January 20th: First flight-refuelling test with Empire flying- boat, carried out under direction of Sir Alan Cobham. February 6th: First separation test of the Short-Mayo Com posite aircraft. February 23rd: Empire air-mail programme inaugurated to Egypt, India, Ceylon and Malaya. Mail left Southampton aboard R.M.A. Centurion. April 10th: England - Durban route-time reduced from over six days to four-and-a-half days. June 26th: First through flying-boat service left Southampton for Australia. R.M.A. Cordelia and Camilla operated Southamp ton - Singapore sector and R.M.A. Challenger the Singapore - Sydney sector. July 21-22nd: First heavier-than-air commercial crossing of North Atlantic: R.M.A. Mercury, upper component of the Mayo Composite, separated from Maia near Foynes and flew non-stop to Montreal, 2,930 miles, in 20 hr 20 mins. Then continued to Port Washington, New York. July 28th: Empire air-mail programme inaugurated to Australia, New Zealand, Tasmania, Fiji, Papua, Norfolk Island, Lord Howe Island, Nauru, Mandated Territory of Western Samoa and the Territories under the jurisdiction of the High Commis sioner for the Western Pacific. Mail left Southampton aboard R.M.A. Calypso. From then Qantas Empire Airways began through operation to Southampton. September 2nd: Empire air-mail programme extended to include Hongkong. First all-up mail left Hongkong for Bangkok to connect with Australia - England service. October 6-8th: Mercury flew non-stop from over Dundee to Orange River, South Africa, 6,045 miles in 42 hr 5 min, creating a world long-distance record for seaplanes. During 1938 Imperial Airways made a series of North Atlantic experimental flights with C-class Empire flying-boats using flight refuelling. Towards the end of the year the Armstrong Whitworth Ensign and de Havilland Frobisher-class Albatross airliners began operation on European routes. 1939 January 10th: R.M.A. Frobisher made a record flight from Croydon to Brussels, 200 miles in 48 mins. April 4th: Experimental flight Lagos - Takoradi by Elders Colonial Airways. Regular service opened in May. April 16th: Joint London - Paris service began with Imperial Airways and British Airways. Eight services operated each way on weekdays all with Frobisher-class airliners. Schedule, 70 min. June 12th: British Overseas Airways Corporation Bill, for the merger of Imperial Airways and British Airways, introduced in the House of Commons by Sir Kingsley Wood. July 10th: British Overseas Airways Corporation Bill given second reading in the House of Commons. August 4th: Royal Assent given to the British Overseas Airways Corporation Bill. August 5th: Southampton - Montreal - New York regular mail service opened by R.M.A. Caribou. September 2nd: All-up mail services suspended and air-fee services revived. September 3rd: Great Britain declared war on Germany. September 22nd: United Kingdom - Egypt route opened by R.M.A. Fortuna (Frobisher class). Route: Shoreham - Bordeaux - Marseilles - Tunis - Malta - Solium - Alexandria. Later extended to India and operated until Italian entry into the war. October 13th: London - Paris route re-opened in pool with Air France. Services operated twice daily from Heston. November 24th: British Overseas Airways Corporation estab lished under the B.O.A.C. Act. Chairman, Sir John Reith; deputy chairman, Hon. Clive Pearson. 1940 April 1st: British Overseas Airways Corporation officially took over the operations of Imperial Airways and British Airways.
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