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Aviation History
1957
1957 - 0527.PDF
FLIGHT, 19 April 1957 CIVIL AVIATION Seen here on test at Vickers Weybridge plant is the first new aeroplane ever to leave a British factory painted in the highly prized colours of K.L.M. It is PH-VIA, "Sir Sefton Brancker," the first of the Dutch airline's order— placed in June 7955—for nine Viscount 803s for "mid-1957" delivery. VISCOUNTS FOR EAGLE •NOTWITHSTANDING the•*-^ frustration which led both Air- work and Hunting-Clan to disposeof their Viscounts, another leading British independent airline, EagleAviation of London, announce the purchase of three Viscount 810s.The aircraft will be delivered in December 1958 and January 1959. Eagle state that the Viscount 810was chosen "because of its suit- ability for the airline's route pattern in Europe and the MiddleEast." A 70-seat layout is planned. The Eagle sale brings the total number of Viscounts sold to 367. A report from an American source hints that the Brazilianairline Varig has also decided to order Viscounts for its domestic routes—and 707s for trunk services. AIR TRAVEL MADE EASY IT is one of I.A.T.A.'s greater achievements that a passenger canfly anywhere from anywhere by any number of airlines on one ticket. Though he pays for this ticket in his own currency, histrip may involve the expenditure of francs, guilders, dollars, lira —indeed, any kind of foreign exchange. He is charged in thesecurrencies, but he never realizes it. The complex interline accounting which makes the process possible takes place behindthe scenes in the I.A.T.A. Clearing House in London. This branch of I.A.T.A. was founded in 1947 by three far-sighted airline men—Mr. Vince Long of American Airlines; Mr. M. van Pelt, then of K.L.M.; and Mr. R. L. Weir of B.E.A. They were all present at a luncheon held in London on April 9to celebrate completion of the Clearing House's first decade. The gathering was small and befittingly distinguished. Sir WilliamHildred (who had flown from Montreal for the occasion) was host; and the chief guests were Mr. Harold Watkinson, Minister ofTransport and Civil Aviation, and Mr. Cameron F. Cobbold, Governor of the Bank of England. Sir William, whose epigrammatic powers increase rather thandiminish with his years, spoke of I.A.T.A. as a "mechanism without power"—and without any desire for it. "The power," hesaid, glancing wryly at Mr. Watkinson, "is elsewhere—and is such that a Minister can scribble 'Abracadabra' on a file andup go landing fees 33$ per cent." ("50 per cent," corrected Mr. Watkinson lightheartedly.) Of the Bank of England Sir Williamsaid that, without the Governor, the Clearing House could never have started, still less endured. Mr. Arthur Quin-Harkin, manager of the Clearing House—who was a joint host with his colleague Mr. Alan Fry—welcomed the other guests. Besides the three founders already mentioned,these were:— Lord Douglas, president of I.A.T.A. and chairman of B.E.A.; Mr.Francis E. Andrews, assistant vice-president of the Chase Manhattan Bank; Mr. A. V. Leslie, vice-president, T.W.A., and present chairmanof I.A.T.A. Financial Committee; Mr. B. Strath, manager, the Royal Bank of Canada; Mr. F. W. Farey-Jones, M.P.; Mr. A. H. Wilson,Deputy Secretary, M.T.C.A.; Major J. R. McCrindle, I.A.T.A. Execu- tive Committee and member of B.O.A.C; Mr. G. T. Meller, C.B.E.,formerly of B.O.A.C. and first chairman of I.A.T.A Financial Com- mittee, 1945-46 (he is now with the Shell Petroleum Co., Ltd.); andMr. S. H. Mearns, C.A., senior partner, Whinney, Smith and Whinney. TO CO-ORDINATE LONDON'S FOUR AIRPORTS A NEW post has been created by Mr. Harold Watkinson,Minister of Transport and Civil Aviation, for the supervision of all the airports serving London (London Airport, Blackbushe,Stansted and—when opened next spring—Gatwick). Its first occupant will be Mr. R. S. F. Edwards, who will be known asGeneral Manager, London Airports. His authority will cover every aspect of the work of the air-ports; and he will, say the Ministry, pay special attention to the commercial aspects of air transport. The commandants under him will concentrate on their day-to-day operational activities.Mr. Edwards, who is 46, entered the Ministry of Transport as a highways engineer in 1936, and since the war has been largelyconcerned with shipping affairs. He became shipping attache at the British Embassy in Washington in 1951, and since 1954 hasbeen the Ministry's Director of Sea Transport. GARUDA CHOOSES THE ELECTRAI T is reported that Garuda Indonesian Airways have orderedthree Lockheed Electras, and are arranging financing through the U.S. Export Import Bank. Garuda thus become the fourthforeign airline to purchase Electras, the others being K.L.M., Braathens and Loftleidir. The order brings total Electra salesto 135. It is reported also that United Airlines' interest in the Electra is reviving. NEW B.K.S. SERVICE TO IRELAND TWO days ago, on April 17, B.K.S. Air Transport were due toopen a DC-3 service between Dublin and Newcastle. The occasion was to mark the first regular service by a private UnitedKingdom operator between this country and Eire, following upon the new agreement between the two countries which ends Eire'smonopoly. A ceremony to mark the occasion was to be held by B.K.S. in the Shamrock Rooms, Dublin, after which the inauguralflight was due to leave for Woolsington Airport, Newcastle. There it was to be met by the Mayor of Newcastle. NEW EXAMS FOR PILOTS WHEN a pilot applies for a new type of aircraft to be includedin his licence he has to pass an examination based on the A.R.B.'s flight manual for the aeroplane concerned—even thoughit may be in the same A.R.B. Performance Group as an aircraft for which he is already licensed. The system, which has caused a good deal of unnecessary work,has now been streamlined. As from May 15, a pilot applying for a new type-rating will be required to take an examination appro-priate to the particular group in which the type falls—i.e., A, C, D or Unclassified, as set forth in British Civil Airworthiness Require-ments. To this end the A.R.B., with the agreement of the Ministry, has prepared four separate books entitled SpecimenPerformance Charts, which provide generalized performance charts and information for each Group. These publications donot relate to any particular aeroplane, but they show the type of presentation required for each Group. An important change is that a pass in Group A (Britannia,Comet, Viscount, DC-7C, etc.) will exempt a pilot from further examination in any group. Similarly, a pass in Group C will giyeexemption for Group D (Auster, E.P.9, Pioneer, etc.). Passes in Groups D and Unclassified will, however, exempt a pilot onlyfrom further examination in aircraft of the same groups. The new Specimen Performance Chans are obtainable from theA.R.B.'s office at Greville House, 37 Gratton Road, Cheltenham, Glos., at the following prices post free: Group A, 17s 6d; Groups•C and D, 12s 6d each; Unclassified, 10s. The new generalized examinations will take place from May 15, and candidates will berequired to provide themselves with the appropriate charts for use in the examination.
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