deH Comet on UK routes?

righthandseat · Post by **righthandseat** » 22 Nov 2006, 21:17

For the historians:- Long, long ago and before I was bitten by the FS bug - if my memory serves me right - I made a flight from Heathrow to Glasgow which I'm sure was serviced by a Comet. It would have been around the late 60's which would have made it a BEA aircraft? - but what variant would it have been? I only made the one flight with the Comet; subsequent regular flights being in the Trident ("We are in Glasgow. You will be pleased to know the aircraft has found its way through the fog and landed by itself") so was the Comet 'retired' firstly from BOAC to the UK domestic route before going to pasture?

TobyV · Post by **TobyV** » 22 Nov 2006, 21:22

Comet 4Bs and 4Cs (I think the 4B was the main BEA variant, could be wrong though) went to BEA Airtours (forerunner of British Airtours which later became "Caledonian" upon the acquistion of BCal by BA) after withdrawal from the "front line" of BEA operations, along with some of the earlier BOAC 707s. The survivors, along with many Comets, including ex-RAF ended up with DAN Air, some as spares ships, some flying for only a year or two and some soldiering on till as late as 1980 (81?). DAN Air pretty much bought them up cheap, ran them into the ground (if they were usable at all) then withdrew them and scrapped them at Lasham or Kemble I believe.

ianhind · Post by **ianhind** » 22 Nov 2006, 21:23

BEA had Comet 4B (G-APMA to G-APMG plus G-ARJK/L/M/N, and perhaps the odd one I can't remember)

BOAC had the Comet 4 (G-APDA to G-APDT)

Different aircraft for different purposes.

Edit: other operator of 4B was Olympic. 4C was the export version used by Mexicana, EAA, United Arab, Sudan, etc

TobyV · Post by **TobyV** » 22 Nov 2006, 21:25

Just to add to Ian's post (now he's jogged my memory a bit!), The Comet 4, 4B and 4C are all (roughly?) the same length, but the 4B for example does not have the podded fuel tanks on the wings as it was designed for shorter European ops.

Post by **Garry Russell** » 22 Nov 2006, 21:43

British United put BAC One-Elevens on the Gatwick Glasgow so BEA retaliated by putting Comet 4B on the Heathrow Glasgow

Garry

righthandseat · Post by **righthandseat** » 22 Nov 2006, 21:44

Thanks for the info

. My memory fails me :redface: - the livery would have been BEA "red square" as per the DM/RP 4B?

Post by **Garry Russell** » 22 Nov 2006, 21:52

Red Sqaure it would have been

BEA operted 14 Comet 4B in that time there were four others interchanged with Olympic plus some of the main BEA flew for Olympic a times

G-APMA-G G-ARCO,P G-ARJKN G-ARGM

G-ARJM w/o 08-06-61

G-ARCO blown up over the Mediterranean 10-1967

Olympic G-APYC,G-APYD G-APZM G-ARDI when they flew for BEA

Garry

Post by **Garry Russell** » 22 Nov 2006, 21:56

Later replasce by Tridents when there were sifficient aicraft in the fleet.

BEA ran the Comets on that route at a thumping loss just to counter the One-Elevens

The Comets replaced Vanguards but the Vanguards still appeared on the route.

Garry

DispatchDragon · Post by **DispatchDragon** » 22 Nov 2006, 22:15

Funny that - rememeber standing outside at night (late like 2100ish every night) and hearing a Comet trolling down Upper Amber One from up north -
the Avon in cruise was so slow turning that I remember a Briannia pilot at the time saying the comet was the only jet you could sync by ear

The question to as where it had come from and going to was alsways the same from the airport folks I knew - Glasgow to Heathrow so Im assuming it was Bealine and a 4B as well.

Thanks for the memory jog guys

Leif

righthandseat · Post by **righthandseat** » 22 Nov 2006, 22:17

There's more info here than on Google!

Great forum to go with the great models.