Couple of Constellation pics & Airport Query

cool pics thanks for sharing i had a video years ago called “Marsh To The Skies”
was all about shannon in the early days with alot of film reel in it i remember thy where some connies onit cant remember which ones tho !

BOAC’s Capt O P Jones had been seconded to Aer Linte for the start-up and BOAC’s Capt. Kelly Rogers (an Irishman), was involved ,too….wonder if anybody mentioned the events in their memoirs……

longshot: I don’t think it was a “front”. (this is my dim memory from an academic piece on early Bermuda/bilateral air transport Agreements). Aerlinte Eireann, formed early 1947 for Boston/NY-Shannon/Dub., but with a 5th.Freedom intent to link with Aer Lingus so as to offer London-NY/BOS. Lockheed had 5 white tail L-749s released by Air Ceylon (EI-ACR), TWA (EI-ACS), Eastern (EI-ADA and ADD), Air France (EI-ADE), all delivered for $ to Aerlinte 8-10/47, withdrawn 2/48. BOAC bought them, 6/48. My memory is that UK found ways of blocking ticket sales ex-London; demand in little Emerald Isle alone could not support that fleet; Eire, early-1948, had money problems. BOAC’s offer was gratefully received: it was politically sensitive in UK – all those Brabazon Types were expected, 25 Hermes ordered 19/3/47; anyTudor rejected 4/47; 22 C-4M ordered 21/7/48. The excuse given was early delivery for £: no doubt the same notion was offered as when 707-420 was ordered after VC7 was passed over: “interim”, to be rolled over asap for a BritType.

Done a little photoshop on this….I’ve always thought these L-749s were intended for BOAC and the Irish brief use was just a ‘front’…any ideas?

The reason that the proposed Aerlinte service was not proceeded with was a change of government in Ireland and a decision by the new Inter-party Government in April 1948 that the scheme was too costly and should not go ahead. The fact that virtually all the major carriers of the time had transatlantic services passing through Shannon meant that Ireland was still very well served with international connections anyway.

longshot: I don’t think it was a “front”. (this is my dim memory from an academic piece on early Bermuda/bilateral air transport Agreements). Aerlinte Eireann, formed early 1947 for Boston/NY-Shannon/Dub., but with a 5th.Freedom intent to link with Aer Lingus so as to offer London-NY/BOS. Lockheed had 5 white tail L-749s released by Air Ceylon (EI-ACR), TWA (EI-ACS), Eastern (EI-ADA and ADD), Air France (EI-ADE), all delivered for $ to Aerlinte 8-10/47, withdrawn 2/48. BOAC bought them, 6/48. My memory is that UK found ways of blocking ticket sales ex-London; demand in little Emerald Isle alone could not support that fleet; Eire, early-1948, had money problems. BOAC’s offer was gratefully received: it was politically sensitive in UK – all those Brabazon Types were expected, 25 Hermes ordered 19/3/47; anyTudor rejected 4/47; 22 C-4M ordered 21/7/48. The excuse given was early delivery for £: no doubt the same notion was offered as when 707-420 was ordered after VC7 was passed over: “interim”, to be rolled over asap for a BritType.

Rome Ciampino scene

The DC-3 looks like KLM, although the dark tailbands look a little narrow and the central band not light enough….the fuselage stripe looks right, though.

Pic of St Kevin at Heathrow attached scanned from AC Merton-Jones scholarly book ‘British Independent Airlines 1946-1976’….hangars on LH are the first BOAC ones parallel to RWY 23L and were used by the L-749s when BOAC got them…the building on the RH margin is the pre-war Fairey hangar I think

Longshot – You are quite correct. I meant to say Dublin-London and put Rome again 😮

Although the airport is more or less decided as Ciampino, I was looking at some other photos of the same trip and I was wondering if anyone could identify the airline for the DC-3 in the background of this shot. It is just under the wing of the Connie and it has fairly distinctive tail markings.

Irish Constellations 1947-1948

I believe they flew Dublin-London Heathrow for a while, too….there are several Kodachromes of them in the Clare County Library Archive online pages 4 and 21 of the Bluett Collection

Longshot – you could well be right. They were only ever used on the Shannon-Dublin-Rome and Dublin-Rome routes. Here is another shot taken I am assuming of Rome (Not sure). You can see part of the registration (ADD of EI-ADD) on the wing.

Saint Kevin Ciampino Rome

Done a little photoshop on this….I’ve always thought these L-749s were intended for BOAC and the Irish brief use was just a ‘front’…any ideas?

I know this is thread drift and I may have mentioned this before, but David Shepherd, the well known painter of elephants and railway locomotives (both evocatively) did a number of civil airliner paintings in the 1950’s and an L749 Constellation was amongst them. He hadn’t sold the pic a couple of years ago when he brought it to my local village hall for a talk, and seemed surprised anybody was interested.

Yes I do believe that you have it Wieesso. One of the blokes on the Irish forum told me that Aer Lingus operated a short-lived service to Ciampino using the Constellation so this is probably where it is. My father was with this particular flight as there is a picture of him in front of the aircraft. It is nice to get that one nailed down.

Thanks Old Git for your feedback! Good night!

Maybe a wild guess:
The name “Saint Nevin” or Kevin directed my search to
http://1000aircraftphotos.com/Contributions/McKillop/6083.htm
“Aerlinte Éireann Teoranta” EI-ACR, ACS, ADA, ADD
“…Dublin-Rome routes”
The old airport CIAMPINO had railroad tracks east of threshold of runway 15

Yes I do believe that you have it Wieesso. One of the blokes on the Irish forum told me that Aer Lingus operated a short-lived service to Ciampino using the Constellation so this is probably where it is. My father was with this particular flight as there is a picture of him in front of the aircraft. It is nice to get that one nailed down.

Maybe a wild guess:
The name “Saint Nevin” or Kevin directed my search to
http://1000aircraftphotos.com/Contributions/McKillop/6083.htm
“Aerlinte Éireann Teoranta” EI-ACR, ACS, ADA, ADD
“…Dublin-Rome routes”
The old airport CIAMPINO had railroad tracks east of threshold of runway 15
“The L.749 Constellation started November 12, 1947 to the new destination Rome, which was however canceled 1948.”
http://www.berlin-spotter.de/airlines/aerlingu.htm

Yes – looks like pantograph supports.

In photo 1, is that an ‘electrified railway ‘ running along in the background ??

Keith.

No idea about the first except to say that the hardstanding looks like PSP .(Pierced Steel Planking – or “Dakota Strip”).

The other two – possibly Hurn for No.3 – no idea about No.2.

Interesting with the left image is the fuel tanker:
“Standard Italo Americana Petroli” – they only had this brand name for a short time in 1950