Amazingly the 16 year-old pianist on that Eddie Cochran tour was Georgie Fame who still does a full touring schedule afaik

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Ceylon (EI-ACR), TWA (EI-ACS), Eastern (EI-ADA and ADD), Air France (EI-ADE), all delivered for $ to Aerlinte 8-10/47, withdrawn 2/48.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.

Avro 652….Anson

Bristol ‘Britain First’…..Blenheim

Heinkel 111 airliner….bomber

Focke Wulf condor airliner….Patrol bomber

Empire Flying Boat…. Short Sunderland

Lockheed L14 Super Electra…..Hudson

Lockheed L18 Lodestar….Ventura

DH/HSA/BAe Comet (never BAC surely)…Comet R Mk2 …Nimrod….Nimrod AEW :)….Nimrod MRA4

Bristol Britannia….Canadair Argus

Douglas DC-3….C-47….AC-47 gunship

Vickers VC-10….tanker

F-AOTP G-ACDS….mystery Comper Swift

History in A-B Archive Winter 2004……’.operated from Evreux, France in UK marks from 28.2.33. Crashed in France and UK regn cancelled.Rebuilt and regd F-AOTP.to AeroClub de l’Eure, Evreux 4.3.36. Regd 1.39 to Lucien Jules Francois Lecoq. Reportedly flown by Lecoq to Marchwood, nr Southampton early 12.42. Lecoq accused of being a German-sponsored agent,had attempted to join RAF,but detained instead.Swift reported to have been impressed but no record of this has been found and its fate remains a mystery’.
…. Don’t appear to be any photos of it…Comper history runs fromSpring2004 to Autumn 2005 in A-B Archive

….

That’s interesting and new to me. I thought that its last owner was Lucien Lecoq from January 1939 when it was based at Guyancourt. It would be interesting to hear when, why and how it returned to the UK during the war. I think that, hardly surprisingly, all the Swifts were fit for, during the war, was impressment as ATC instructional airframes or storage for the duration (with the exception of G-ABPE and its colourful wartime career). However this is not one of the two Swifts listed in ‘Cadet Corps Airframes’ (MCAS). I assume that you have had a look at Air Britain Archive of Summer 2005 in which, I understand, there was an article entitled ‘The Comper Lightplanes’, by Jack Meaden & Malcolm Fillmore, which might offer more information relating to this Swift. I can’t help with this as I do not have a copy.

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

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?