Chamberlain and the Lockheeds

Also, is there a BA roster out there? From what little I know, it seems to have been quite varied!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_Airways_Ltd.

Thanks for replies and information everyone! The answer to my question seems to be that BA and its Lockheeds were the best available in terms of performance, capacity, and, frankly, appearance.

By the way, poor Neville didn’t bring good luck to those two planes. The L-14 Super Electra also came to grief:

http://edcoatescollection.com/ac5/ROW%20Europe/G-AFGN.html

Also, is there a BA roster out there? From what little I know, it seems to have been quite varied!

The BA Ltd Lockheed 14s never crossed the S. Atlantic….the proving flight (Dec 28 1938) turned back at Bathurst in the Gambia, routing Heston-Lisbon-Casablanca-Agadir-Port Etienne-Dakar-Bathurst-Villa Cisneros-Las Palmas(Canary Is)-Lisbon-Heston

LOT Polish Airlines did air-deliver one of their Lockheed 14s across the S. Atlantic from Brazil to West Africa in 1938

http://www.flightglobal.com/pdfarchive/view/1939/1939%20-%200036.html?search=british airways lisbon dakar

[QUOTE=Lazy8;1974355] Although they flew a couple of proving flights with the 14s, BAL never flew a revenue service to Rio

Popular perception, then and now, was that Imperial were a government corporation and that British Airways Limited were a private company. Neither is completely true. Imperial seem to have considered themselves above all that sort of thing, but seen from outside they were responsible to some private investors as well as the majority goverment shareholding. BAL also had a number of private investors, but the major shareholder was Whitehall Securities – and in case the name doesn’t give it away (it apparently didn’t at the time), they were acting as government agents, if not actually the government ‘in disguise’.

Imperial had been trying hard for years not to notice the government telling them they were getting behind the times. The government view, and to some extent the popular view, was that it was unacceptable for the state airline of the World’s Greatest Empire to be shown a clean pair of heels by all these foreign upstarts. By 1938 the government had lost patience, and the takeover of Imperial by British Airways Limited was already being plotted – to emerge as BOAC a couple of years later. In 1938 Imperial at last had some quick-ish (not ‘fast’ like the Lockheeds) monoplanes with retractable undercarriage, but while the Ensign made some forays across the Channel from April onwards neither it nor the Albatross/Frobisher were in full service until October of that year (i.e. after Chamberlain’s flights to Munich).

BAL’s Lockheed 14s were originally intended to fly London to Rio, so they appear to have declined the optional slots, probably in order to save drag and increase range. Although they flew a couple of proving flights with the 14s, BAL never flew a revenue service to Rio, and so likely fitted the slots once they’d made the decision not to progress with the long-range operation. The Lockheed subtypes refer to engine type and completely ignore the other ‘options’ that were available. For instance, BAL’s aircraft had a separate radio compartment with every radio and direction-finding device known to mankind, whereas in KLM’s machines, and most other pre-war civil 14s, the radio operator (if carried) occupied one of the front seats in the passenger cabin.

That wasn’t the only accident involving the Lockheed 14 either, there were quite a few involving the British Airways Lockheed 14’s. I studied it for my dissertation if anyone’s interested in a copy of that segment.

The glazed cockpit roof as featured on the Hudsons was introduced on the 14’s by British Airways, who requested it for extra visibility – the pre-BA Lockheed 14’s as supplied to US carriers had a metal roof above the cockpit like the later Lockheed 18’s

Also, the Lockheed 10a Electra G-AESY used for one of the Munich trips crashed in very unusual circumstances and the cause was never officially determined – only the pilot survived, and the casualties included a British MP and two American oil company executives

By October 1938 Imperial Airways was considerered a ‘laughing-stock’ along with the ancient aircraft they operated. Their new British landplanes, the Ensign and Albatross weren’t ready. No doubt the Germans were aware that the RAF had a large order with Lockheed for the armed version of the Lockheed 14 Chamberlain used on the 2nd and 3rd trip (the Hudson).
Interesting details about Robinsons crash…..I wonder if it was connected with the rapidity with which British Airways Ltd fitted the permanent wingtip slots to their Lockheed 14s at Heston, reportedly working from pencil sketches ahead of the arrival of Lockheed drawings
http://www.flightglobal.com/pdfarchive/view/1939/1939%20-%201037.html?search=british airways lockheed wing modification

http://www.audiovis.nac.gov.pl/obraz/179030:1/ right-click for larger

http://images.google.com/hosted/life/a5e441d0122f1075.html

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/76/Bundesarchiv_Bild_183-H12701,_K%C3%B6ln,_Vorbereitung_M%C3%BCnchener_Abkommen.jpg

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Photographic-Prints-Flowerday-Robinson-Raf/dp/B006J88DEM/ref=sr_1_2?s=kitchen&ie=UTF8&qid=1358000527&sr=1-2

During the Munich Crisis, Chamberlain actually made three flights to Germany, the details here (scroll down a bit):

http://www.rafcommands.com/forum/showthread.php?6155-Unit-flying-Neville-Chamberlain-to-Munich

All three flights were made in Lockheed Twins of British Airways. That they were made in American planes operated by a private airline caused some comment then and since. Why that choice of carrier and planes?

And even with the obligatory “bravely steered his aircraft away from a school and some houses” line!

Capt. Robinson’s son was at school that day in Portishead and Robinson decided to fly low over the school lost control and crashed. Sadly events like this happend many times during the war.

Ian

I have e-mailed my sister about this, as a young man I think it was a great uncle flew the aircraft,(The White Paper) I remember he left BOAC on VC_10’s.
My Aunt who lives in the UK, will know!
Regards Duggy

Thought this might be useful for you, but slightly off topic
Ian

And even with the obligatory “bravely steered his aircraft away from a school and some houses” line!

All-metal, reliable, fast.

Unlike the equivalent British types of the era.

And it would hardly have been appropriate for him to have turned up in a Junkers!

Why that choice of carrier and planes?

Just a guess…
Right size, long range, fast.

Thought this might be useful for you, but slightly off topic
Ian