Keeping a Propliner Airworthy in the UK

Talking of Herons does anybody know what the latest news is on G-AORG?

Steve

Even ‘relatively’ inexpensive types have struggled to find funding, such as the last Heron G-AORG , based in Jersey. We are blessed to have as many flying as we do, and should appreciate them whilst we can, for like the Britannia, the Bristol Freighter and the Argosy, we suddenly realise that they are gone for good.

Watch out for the HS 748, which may be the next once-common type to disappear from our skies.

Any commercial aircraft requires a lot of technical support & expertise, to operate. Even if you take these aircraft out of the commercial environment they still need most of that support to operate safely. The CAA will not allow these aircraft to fly under the same conditions that many smaller historic aircraft use. One reason is the tragic crash of a Varsity back in the 80’s. Personally I think the British press reaction at the time probably influenced this.
I am a huge fan of propliners & old jet airliners, but I have to accept that there just isn’t enough public demand to make the operation of these types viable outside the commercial domain. If the Sea Vixen can’t attract bookings what hope is there for a Viscount or Carvair?
All this makes the efforts of Air Atlantique & other groups all the more valuable, long may they continue.

S.B.

What about the old gag that the aeroplane is not ready to fly until the weight of paperwork matches the weight of the ‘plane? Lot of paperwork to make up to, say, Belslow weight!

By the way, Jamie, if it’s within view of you out on the swampy bits are there any Victorian farm buildings surviving at Marsh Farm?
(PM me, rather than derail a thread for my random drivelling!)

Adrian

Also depends on whether you just want to fly it, or whether you want to carry passengers in it. The latter requires a public transport CofA and all the supporting mechanisms behind it. The CAA certainly had issues with a/c like the Viscount (re-spars) which was one of the reasons why the last few disappeared to the African continent, although I suspect a DC-6 wouldn’t be so much trouble as there’s already two on the register (and a M&E organisation capable of maintaining them).

However, as an example, I believe Atlantic had their DC-6s grounded for a while when they needed their main landing gear legs replaced some years ago. There are no DC-6 main gear legs left in the world with life left on them. In the US commercial operators use the military equivalent Douglas C-118 landing gears which are still available, but the CAA didn’t like that idea!

I also believe that one of the biggest challenges the Swiss had with their Connie was getting design and certification for all the extras needed for passenger carrying in the modern era – things like floor level escape lighting, even GPS, etc. When such items have to be fitted to a large fleet still in-service with many airlines, there’s usually plenty of airframes over which the design and certification costs and be recovered by the manufacturer or design authority, but when the operational fleet dips to just one of a type, obviously…

Andy

I suppose we’re quite lucky in some respects in that Air Atlantique have their classic flight which of course operate both Dakotas and DC6 as well as others (Personally I’d really love it if the DC6 did pleasure flying). Then there are slightly further afield the Dutch and Swiss constellations and the Red Bull DC6.

All of which I guess proves it can be done. But like all these things I would imagine the limiting factor is very much the available funding. Followed by availability of a suitable airframe (no Brits flying and I believe just one Viscount in Africa; which may well be grounded by now). And then of course there’s the CAA, and the need for a competant design authority.

So my guess is that we won’t see a return to flight by any of the great prop linners, and we should concentrate on keeping those that do fly up where they belong.

Steve.

And the old one that if you are in doubt there’s a good chance it’s illegal