Absolutely correct, Dave. A slip of the typing finger. Also great stuff about the naming of runways - I had no idea!
Indeed, bus to school as did I, John. Then I had a bike which gave me the excuse to stop at Kenton Rec for a bit of train spotting on the way home.
I remember that louvred deflector, and the excitement of seeing the occasional Czechoslovak or even Russian plane, although I can't remember what they were. Flights from Poland (Airline was LOT which, I understand, it remains) were quite common, though, even though it was a Communist country at the time.
Thanks all for your comments. Some wonderful memories and info new to me. As a result of the enthusiasm I'll now impose some more on you, with apologies to all who have no interest in the subject. It won't go on for long as I don't have sufficient material. In view of the boredom factor for those disinterested parties I may read you some of my Vogon poetry later (with apologies to Douglas Adams).
I've just realised - in that photo of the East African Comet IV above, on the skyline to the left of the picture are two buildings and a chimney. That's Technicolor. When I took the photo it never crossed my mind that in 15 years I'd be working there and watching aircraft every day on my way in and out of work. When Concorde made it's final flights and the remaining aircraft gathered at Heathrow I shut the plant down and everyone went on to the roof to see them land. I did the same for the first A380 landing. Historically there'd always been interest in goings on at the airport (which we always claimed had been put there to make it easy for us to ship movies out to the colonies - say that to the guys in the US and they'd go apoplectic
) and there were a few there in my time who remembered the Vulcan crash on 1st October 1956. The plant had been on that site since 1936 and before my time actually owned a farm - in searching for some early papers we turned up an invoice for a chicken plucker
.
Having successfully diverted my thought processes from the subject in hand, here are the remaining photos. There are more distance shots but, unless you have an interest in the layout of the airport in the '60s they are of little value. The first one, though, shows the entrance to the airport through the tunnel, with an RT on the bus stand bottom right. It's a scene which has changed beyond belief in the subsequent 50 years. This was taken in July 1965, almost certainly from Queens Building.
View attachment 93750
This one, in June 1965 shows BEA Tridents, a Vanguard and Viscount on the apron.
View attachment 93748
On 29th September 1963 BOAC Comet IV G-APED taxis past BEA Viscount G-AOHJ.
REGISTRATION DETAILS FOR G-AOHV (BRITISH AIR FERRIES) VICKERS/BAC VISCOUNT-802
Serial 170
Line Number
First Flight 10.07.57
Model Vickers/BAC Viscount-802
Status Left Fleet
Comments
Registration History
Reg Airline Delivered Status
G-AOHV British European Airways 25.07.57 Left Fleet
G-AOHV British Airways 31.07.73 Left Fleet
G-AOHV British Air Ferries 16.01.81 Left Fleet
G-AOHV Oasis Oil Company 08.02.81 Left Fleet
G-AOHV British Air Ferries 28.05.81 Left Fleet
G-AOHV Oasis Oil Company 08.07.81 Left Fleet
G-AOHV Esso Standard Oil Company 00.09.81 Left Fleet
G-AOHV Oasis Oil Company 00.10.81 Left Fleet
G-AOHV British Air Ferries 00.08.82 Left Fleet
G-AOHV Polar Airways 22.03.83 Left Fleet
G-AOHV British Air Ferries 05.07.83 Left Fleet
G-AOHV Euroair Transport 02.08.83 Re-Regd
G-BLNB Euroair Transport 07.06.84 Left Fleet
G-BLNB British Air Ferries 01.08.85 Left Fleet
G-BLNB British World Airlines 01.04.93 Left Fleet
G-OPFI British World Airlines 01.03.93 Left Fleet
3D-PFI Airwing 2000 Ltd 25.08.99 Left Fleet
5V-TTP Transtel 14.10.01 Left Fleet
TU-VAB Ivory Coast Government s28.01.03 Left Fleet
3D-PFI Pegasus Aviation 21.07.03 Left Fleet
3D-PFI Global Airways 15.06.04 Left Fleet
9Q-COD GTRA Airways 00.01.11 Scrapped
REGISTRATION DETAILS FOR G-APDE (DAN-AIR LONDON) COMET-4
Serial 6406
First Flight no info.
Model Comet-4
Status Scrapped,
Registration History
Reg Airline Delivered Status
G-APDE British Overseas Airways Corporation 02/05/1957 Left Fleet
9M-AOE Malaysia-Singapore Airlines 04/10/65 Left Fleet
9V-BAU Malaysia-Singapore Airlines Unknown Left Fleet
G-APDE Dan-Air London 11.70 Scrapped
5Y-ALF East African Airways Corporation Unknown Left Fleet
G-APDE Dan-Air London 03/03/1971 Scrapped
I've not worked out yet how it came to be scrapped twice.
View attachment 93749
In July 1965 I photographed this Boeing 707 romantically flying away in to the sunset, Pratt and Whitney engines smoking like a Deltic.
. I was wishing I was aboard and thinking that I'd never have a job where I'd be doing that. Less than 20 years later I was doing just that (but in wide bodied jets) and already the whole process was becoming a bore. It's only in retrospect that I realise how lucky I was to have such an interesting job.
View attachment 93746
Moving on to the visit to the BEA hangers in November 1968, here's an Air France Viscount. Sorry, no registration details.
View attachment 93736
Then, in the maintenance bays this collection of spares including engines and props.
View attachment 93747
And another of the Argosy 222, G-ASXO. Details in the previous posting.
View attachment 93737
An unidentified Trident in the Maintenance Shed.
View attachment 93741
And BEA Vanguard G-APEI.
REGISTRATION DETAILS FOR G-APEI (BRITISH AIRWAYS) VICKERS/BAC VANGUARD-953C
Serial 712
First Flight no details
Model Vickers/BAC Vanguard-953C
Status Left Fleet
Registration History
Reg Airline Delivered Status
G-APEI British European Airways 20.07.61 Left Fleet
G-APEI British Airways 01.04.74 Left Fleet
PK-MVD Merpati Nusantara Airlines 22.03.75 Scrapped
View attachment 93742
Here's of BEA Viscount G-APOX.
(BRITISH EUROPEAN AIRWAYS) VICKERS/BAC VISCOUNT-806
Serial 418
First Flight 24.03.59
Model Vickers/BAC Viscount-806
Status Left Fleet
Comments built from the remains of G-AOYF (C/N 255)
Registration History
Reg G-APOX British European Airways 11.04.59 Left Fleet
PK-RVL Mandala Airlines 00.06.70 Scrapped
View attachment 93743
And another Viscount, G-AOHW.
REGISTRATION DETAILS FOR G-AOHW (BRITISH AIRWAYS) VICKERS/BAC VISCOUNT-802
Serial Number 253
First Flight 18.07.57
Model Vickers/BAC Viscount-802
Status Scrapped
Comments wfu 11.75 Newcastle dona to Airport Fire service 18.05.76 used for fire practice brup 08.83 (tapl94/not tapl98?!) not Surv97,
Registration History
Reg Airline Delivered Status
G-AOHW British European Airways 00.07.57 01.04.74 Scrapped
View attachment 93744
An unidentified Viscount in Maintenance.
View attachment 93745
Finally, back to Trident G-AVFB, details in the previous post. First a shot of Comet IV G-APMD from the Trident.
REGISTRATION DETAILS FOR G-APMD (BRITISH EUROPEAN AIRWAYS) COMET-4B
Serial 6435
First Flight no details
Model Comet-4B
Status Left Fleet
Comments
Registration History
Reg Airline Delivered Status
G-APMD British European Airways 1960 Left Fleet
G-APMD BEA Airtours 1970 Left Fleet
G-APMD Dan-Air London 09/10/1972 Scrapped
View attachment 93738
And a final couple of photos of G-AVFB itself.
View attachment 93740 View attachment 93739
That's it! No more to come. However.......... I have a fewer number of even earlier photos of shipping on the Solent. I'll consider those when I've had a chance to put them through Photoshop and discovered how good - or bad - they may be.
Brian