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Aviation History
1962
1962 - 0345.PDF
FLIGHT International, 8 March 1962 M^ AIR C CALEDONIAN AIRWAYS TRAGEDY AS this issue goes to press it is learned that Caledonian Airways' DC-7C, G-ARUD, has crashed in the Cameroons on a flight from Lourenco Marques to Luxembourg. The aircraft had taken off from Douala, capital of the Cameroons, and is thought to have come down in a storm. All 99 passengers and 9 crew are feared lost. The flight was a charter on behalf of Trans Africa Air Coach of London, a non-operating company who for some years have used Luxembourg and Lourenco Marques as gateways for UK/Europe - Africa low-fare charters. The flight was presumably operated under E-licence 1382 issued by the ATLB on November 1, 1961. If, as is feared, there are no survivors, the accident is the worst on record involving a British airliner, and the worst involving a single airliner to date. Caledonian is a Scottish independent, formed in April 1961 and based at London Gatwick, operating one DC-7C on lease-purchase from Sabena who carry out major maintenance in Brussels. The tragedy occurs little more than three months after operations began at the end of November, with an inaugural flight to Barbados. The DC-7C has recently been utilized at a rate of about 250hr per month. A second DC-7C, originally due for delivery from Sabena in May, is expected to be in service next month. The company was issued with an Air Operators Certificate by the Ministry of Aviation on November 30,1961. From Brussels International Airport Sabena's fleet of eight Caravelle 6s fan out to nearly 30 cities, and they have now completed their first full year in operation. (New Sabena Caravelle freight container: see photo graph on page 352) 347 O M M E R C E Caledonian's deputy managing director, Capt Adam Thompson, left immediately for the Cameroons, and Mr Max Wilson, director of Caledonian (with a majority shareholding in the company), left for Africa also. A note about Caledonian appeared in Flight InternationaHox January 25, page 121. "NO" TO YEADON, "YES" TO NEWCASTLE THE application to the Minister of Aviation for a grant towards the cost of developing Leeds/Bradford Airport at Yeadon has been turned down by Mr Peter Thorneycroft. Inevitably, keen disappoint ment has been expressed in Yorkshire; Mr Albert Roberts, MP for Normanton, was due to ask the Minister a question in Parliament on March 5. However, the member for Shipley, Mr Geoffrey Hirst, has welcomed the refusal, saying: "The attempt to build up Yeadon was an unfortunate decision a few years ago and is now quite absurd." Yeadon, he says, could never be an international airport and whatever the Minister's reasons for refusing the "immense loan requested" he applauds the decision and is "grateful that the Government had some regard for the national economy." In retort the deputy chairman of the airport committee says: "Plainly, Mr Geoffrey Hirst doesn't know what he is talking about. Yeadon is the only possible airport for the West Riding. Leeds and Bradford did not apply for a loan but for a grant. This was turned down on the grounds that local authorities would not suffer undue hardship by doing their own improvements and it had nothing whatever to do with the siting of the airport. If Mr Geoffrey Hirst knows a better site then he should tell us and say who is going to pay for it and run it." Meanwhile a so-called "Yorkshire Airport Development Associa tion" has emerged to recommend that Elvington, south-east of York, could be developed as Yorkshire's international airport. Elvington was reconstructed for the USAF at a cost of about £4m and has a 10,000ft runway (with 1,000ft overshoots), lighting, refuelling points and a very large apron. The USAF no longer requires the airfield, which is now the responsibility of the Air Ministry. The day after his refusal to Leeds/Bradford the Minister approved a grant of £100,000 towards the cost of new terminal buildings at Newcastle—a grant conditional on other local authorities agreeing to join Newcastle Corporation in sharing the remaining costs of about £650,000. BOAC BRITANNIA FREIGHTERS? CONVERSION of BOAC Britannia 312s to all-freighter aircraft has been under examination by the corporation for some years, though public reference to the possibility has only recently been made for the first time. In Cape Town last month Sir Matthew Slattery, BOAC chairman, was reported to have said that BOAC may start a special air freight service to put fresh South African fruit on the British market a day or two after it is picked in the orchards of the Cape—up to 20-30 tons at a time. BOAC would, Sir Matthew said, probably redesign a Britannia as a freighter if the idea caught on. BOACs all-freight fleet at present comprises two DC-7Fs—both from the corporation's fleet of ten converted on the Douglas production line two years ago at a basic cost of about $326,000 (£116,500) each. This relatively modest cost for such a major modification (new floor, new doors) was possible because Douglas had a production line of DC-7F conversions. The economics of
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