The Queens messenger

[Garry Russell]

Footage including an Ambassador flight

http://www.britishpathe.com/video/queen ... ilver+city

[cstorey]

The Ambassador must have been brand new. Sadly, this was the very aeroplane which crashed at Munich ( Lord Burghley )

[Garry Russell]

1952, so yep

[511Flyer]

At our local Royal British Legion meetings, we often have a guest speaker. About a year ago, it was a Queens Messenger. I don't recall his name, but what an interesting chap.

Amongst the memorabilia that he had on display, was his passport. Enormous! Also, his battered old attache case. A few letters, unclassified of course, and a special seal for re-sealing anything that had been taken apart for whatever reason.

If anybody gets the opportunity to hear one of those chaps, take it!

D.

[Garry Russell]

They and other like them are very interesting links to a bygone age.

just looking at this clip and in the grand scheme of things is not that long ago...but...how thing have change, beyond recognition in many cases.

[speedbird591]

They were still very much about in the 70s and regularly flew on our long haul services. Their routine was much the same as we saw in that film. They would have two first class bulkhead seats for them and their diplomatic bags. They would board first before any other passengers and would leave last with a security guard from the embassy. They were invariably pleasant and chatty and I often flew with the same ones several times. By the 80s, health and safety prevented them having loose bags in the cabin and the 747s had a secure locker in the hold. They would supervise the loading into the locker immediately before the hold was closed and then take a seat in first class but would have to be off the aircraft first to ensure they supervised the unloading.

By the late 80s/90s it became our responsibility as Cabin Service Directors and we were issued with a huge padlock and key each and had a lockable cupboard under the stairs in 747s. We would receive several of those large diplomatic bags and I would have to check the waybills very carefully because if one digit was wrong the embassy staff at the receiving station could refuse to accept it. If I was handing over mail to another CSD he'd have to check the numbers, give me a receipt and we'd change locks. At a terminating station I couldn't leave the aircraft until the dip mail had been handed over. Sometimes I had to wait until after the crew had left the airport before somebody arrived and then I'd have to get a taxi to the hotel. One time a CSD forgot to hand over the bags to a colleague and at the final destination, when the embassy staff came to collect their bags they couldn't get into the cupboard because the padlock key was thousands of miles away. There was a delay to the aircraft while they broke into the cupboard and a serious disciplinary for the CSD. No it wasn't me

We had the same routine for precious cargo and boxes of diamonds, banknotes and airline tickets were quite common. I once had a box marked 'human eyeballs'.

Nobody thought I was glamorous enough to make a film about Although they probably would if I'd lost a bag

Ian

[FlyTexas]

A very interesting video. Thanks for the link Garry. Ian, you need to write a book about all your adventures. I'd purchase a copy in a heartbeat.

Brian