748s to the smelter

Good luck to the Millom group with JD.
Why is the 748 less popular with museums than the Herald?
I find the scrapping of N748D particularly disappointing. Apart from my association with it in the 1960’s, this aircraft has been hangared all its life, has very low flying time & was still airworthy at Christmas! What’s more the interior is 60’s original complete with curtains. Surely a gift to anyone wanting to preserve one of Britain’s most successful commercial aircraft.:confused:

Can anyone confirm the current situation regarding N748D, formerly XW760. I read a report somewhwere its been scrapped, but seen nothing else to confirm this ?

Chatting to a friend on Monday with contacts at Southend (he is ex Heavylift) I believe 1 of the AAF 748’s has been scrapped and N748D is currently being stripped in preparation for the same fate. Sad hey…..yet more civil/airliner type aircraft just slipping away.

Jon

N748D – fate ?

Can anyone confirm the current situation regarding N748D, formerly XW760. I read a report somewhwere its been scrapped, but seen nothing else to confirm this ?

Saved 748 cockpits

Millom have saved G-OPFW’s cockpit (the red Parcel Force aircraft) and, as mentioned earlier, are in the process of dismantling G-BEJD, the series 1.
Last year they saved the forward fuselage of Old Ben – the 748 off the dump (sorry, can’t recall its reggie) but it is a well and truly stripped out hulk. They have done a lot to it since but it still requires a lot of original equipment finding to make it anything like complete – to say nothing of the repair work to the skin where some sacrilegious souls had a lot of fun with a crash axe and disc cutter.
I have recently saved the nose section (cockpit, including part of the fuselage with the forward cargo door) of G-ORAL (ex-G-BPDA) “The Paper Plane”.
Since the rescue I have been amazed at the number of pictures of it on the Internet, particularly on the spotter’s picture forums like airliners.net.
It now rests at Hooton Park near Ellesmere Port and just across the river from Liverpool Airport, where it was based.
AMS were very good and, although some equipment was spares-recovered from AL, they left most of the gear in at my request so all that is needed is a set of oxy masks and cylinders and the main flight instrumentation, plus a few other bits and bobs.
Even the batteries and the weather radar are in and it will make an interesting additional display item to be able to open the nose and show the equipment in place there.
I’ll post some pics of the rescue and internal shots when I have managed to reduce the filesize to enable me to post it on the Forum.
If all goes to plan it should make Cockpitfest next year (there may well be a row of 748’s the way it’s going!).
If anyone would like to make the trip across to view it, please PM me.

Anon.

Had me going there, you do mean G-SOEI of course!:)

Oops – yes that one!

Jon

After that all that is left is G-OSEI which will be flying away to earn a living in Africa somewhere.

Jon

Had me going there, you do mean G-SOEI of course!:)

Has anything happened to these aircraft or are they all enjoying another summer’s sun?

Yes – pretty much all been scrapped now.

Cockpits of 2 have been saved and the lads from Millom are currently dismantling the series 1 G-BEJD for preservation.

After that all that is left is G-OSEI which will be flying away to earn a living in Africa somewhere.

Jon

Has anything happened to these aircraft or are they all enjoying another summer’s sun?

I think the silence might indicate that these are not yet a lost cause! 😉

As CadMan asked, who is the legal owner of the aircraft? Is it AMS or is it perhaps the receiver or administrator of Emerald, and if so who are they?

cheers

Jon H………….

U have a PM

Planemike

My concern is for the two former RAF Andovers – formally with The Queen’s Flight. Both are in Africa. At least one of them should be flown back to the UK.

Regarding the fate of the UK based 748s, I understand that the North Essex Transport Group are looking for a airliner for the collection.

Regards

Phil Rhodes

Peter…………

Thank you for the suggestion re: Air North. Just need a ticket to Canada now!!! What parts of Canada, by the way?

Planemike

Whitehorse, Dawson City, Old Crow, Inuvik and Fairbanks.

Can someone post a list of the rege’s of the aircraft there?

thanks

on my page http://www.skippyscage.com/aviation/uk/blackpool08/ there is a link at the bottom that will answer all your questions

G-SOEI, She looks like Air North colors anyone know for sure?

G-SOEI is in old Mount Cook colours

I still think MJ should be saved, but some of the others look in better condition.

Said aircraft “back in the day” at Speke 🙂

http://www.nwan.co.uk/images/classgatmj.jpg

Jon

Peter…………

Thank you for the suggestion re: Air North. Just need a ticket to Canada now!!! What parts of Canada, by the way?

Planemike

Or ask if you can bum a ride in the ones operating out of Liverpool 🙂

Jon

Peter…………

Thank you for the suggestion re: Air North. Just need a ticket to Canada now!!! What parts of Canada, by the way?

Planemike

The ideal place to preserve a 748 would have been East Fortune due to the use of the type in Scotland with BA amd Dan-Air.

Here is G-ASJT (N748D) in the 1960’s.

Obviously I hope this is not a ‘dead end’ for N748D.
The reason G-BEJD was to be saved is that it is a srs 1 748, well so is N748D & it could fly to any museum with a suitable runway!:)
It does seem unlikely that there is a commercial future for this plane, not only is it a series 1 but it has had a lot of special modifications during its career as a research platform & may well be way behind on airwothiness directives.
A couple of interior shots from earlier this year.