G-BEJD's Liverpool Heritage
Outline History of Avro 748 G-BEJDTAHS's 'Turbo Prop Airliner Production List' Roach & Eastwood, and 'BAe.748' Air Britain 1986, provide the basic outline of the aircraft's history:
C/no. 1543, Production Set No.10 off the A.V.Roe & Co Ltd, Woodford production line (ie 12th Avro 748 built). A Mk.1, series 105. Later Avro were to become Hawker Siddeley Aviation in 1965, changing the Avro 748 into the HS.748 overnight.
First flight, 19th May 1962 at Woodford with Argentinian import registration
LV-PUF. Delivered to State carrier
Aerolinas Argentinas 5.6.62 ex Woodford, arriving Buenos Aires 13.6.62 and immediately transfered to the permanent Argentina civil register as
LV-HHE. The 5th of 12 purchased by launch customer, Aerolineas. In service by 14.7.62, named 'Ciudad de Resistencia'. Operated on scheduled, mainly domestic feeder passenger routes for around for eleven years by Aerolineas Argentina. As airfields were paved, upgraded and passenger loads increased, so the Avro 748s were replaced by Boeing 737s. Sold to
Yacimientos Petroliferos Fiscales, the Argentinian state oil company 18.4.75. They used 6 Avro 748s for transporting personnel and equipment throughout Argentina. Sold by YPF to Dan Air 17.12.76.
Registered in the UK as
G-BEJD to
Dan Air Services Ltd on the day of purchase 17.12.76, and painted as such the same day. Ferried back to the UK and delivered into Dan Air Engineering at Manchester 24.12.76. UK C of A issued 7.3.77 after overhaul, and into service next day, 8.3.77.
Flown by Dan Air on its network of passenger flights around Britain and Europe, but mainly on oil related contract work from Aberdeen and later, on night mail contracts. Operated by Dan Air for a little over 16 years. With Dan Air it wore two different colour schemes, initially in the broad dark red window depth cheat line bordered in black with red tail with the Davies Newman Shipping Co. nautical flags logo in a white circle, later (can this be tied down more accurately then sometime in the '80s) replaced by the blue and red cheat lines rising and widening from the nose to the tail top scheme, again with the Davies and Newman logo on the fin. Retired and into storage pending sale 28.3.92 at Manchester.
Purchased by
Janes Aviation with change of ownership notified 15.7.92 and delivered from Manchester to their engineering base at Blackpool 17.7. Initially operated in her former Dan Air colours, with Dan Air's name and logo painted out. Sometime between 11.92 and 5.93 her former colours were painted out, becoming all-white overall, without titles. Janes Aviation officially was renamed
Emerald Airways on 27.9.93 to reflect the Irish Sea focus of their operations. Chartered to
Reed Aviation for the period 2.12.94 to .02, when returned to
Emerald. Withdrawn from use Liverpool 18.2.05 and stored Blackpool from 13.3.05. Still there when Emerald entered receivership June 2006. Transferred to
PTB(Emerald)PTY Ltd 12.06 on their purchase of the Emerald assets. Eventually the CAA were informed that 'JD was 'permanently withdrawn from use', so cancelled from the UK register April 2010.
Proving G-BEJD's Liverpool HeritageOK, so now onto establishing a Liverpool 'connection' for G-BEJD. Although Dan Air HS.748s operated on the five nights per week "Spokes from Speke" mail flights from the very first night in July 1979, it was not until the very end of 1981, with a shuffling of the fleet, that G-BEJD appeared on the contract. At this time all Royal Mail flights used a small bag sorting office on the Western Apron (adjacent to Banks Road) of the North Airfield.
G-BEJD first landed at Liverpool late on Wednesday 9th December 1981 on mail flight DA071/072, from & to Newcastle. No flight operated the next evening due to fog at Liverpool, however G-BEJD appeared again on Friday 11th, Monday 14th and Tuesday 15th before being rotated away from Newcastle. G-BEJD subsequently became a regular on the mail flights, particularly the Gatwick and Belfast connection.
This ties 'JD down absolutely to being a frequent visitor to the north airfield - albeit the western apron rather than passenger terminal - but that is splitting hairs! The mail operation moved to the south airfield apron 12.1.84, ahead of passenger operations 3.86. Actually G-BEJD was in use that last night of Western Apron mail ops. It arrived from Gatwick as DAN6FB with Royal Mail on Friday evening 9th January and continued onto to Belfast/Aldergrove as DAN6FC, returning in the early hours of Saturday morning as DAN6FE to weekend stop before leaving with Mail to Belfast mid-evening Monday 12th. Which makes G-BEJD one of the very last mail flights off the Western, and the first mail flight to operate from the South apron, two years ahead of passenger operations.
For a while in early/mid 80's one of the Dan Air HS.748s would day stop and weekend stop at Liverpool between flights. This aircraft was used at times for passenger charter work, for example flights to Rotterdam (for Amsterdam) although I suspect the Mk.2's were mostly used. However, as I type this, I've just had a 'light bulb' moment and realised that not only did G-BEJD definitely fly passengers from Liverpool, but that I was passenger on one of them - and from the north 'art deco' terminal!!
What more proof of a Liverpool connection can SAHG want than 44 enthusiasts as witnesses!G-BEJD chartered by the M.A.S.For a while Centreline/Dan Air sponsored the Biggin Hill Air Fair each May. For three consecutive years, Dan Air 'borrowed' their HS.748 from Liverpool to appear statically at Biggin Hill, as it was the nearest aircraft not in use on a Saturday. In May 1982 someone in Dan Air made a connection between a day return visit to an Airshow and the crazy aircraft enthusiasts of the Merseyside Aviation Society at Liverpool. In a matter of days a price was fixed, 48 willing enthusiasts paid up and off we went. On 16.5.82 G-BHCJ, 15.5.83 G-BEKE and 19.5.84 G-BEJD. The 1984 flight with 44 M.A.S. members on Saturday 19th May 1984 was flown by G-BEJD with Capt. de Witt at the controls as charter flight number DA6428 (using ATC 'alpha-numeric' DAN6FV) and took 58 minute airbourne at a max of 11,000ft, having departed 09. The return flight DA6429 (DAN6FW) took 57 minutes airbourne at a max of 12,000ft onto runway 27.
More G-BEJD passenger flights from LiverpoolOther passenger work using G-BEJD between mail flights include Friday evening 27th May 1983 with passengers to Belfast as DAN6JU, returning empty as DAN6JV before the usual mail operation. G-BEKE brought the charter home on Sunday. On Saturday 9th July the weekend stopping G-BEJD took a charter group to the Isle of Man, returning on the Sunday, using call-signs DAN6GZ/6HB. On Saturday 22nd October G-BEJD was the weekend stopper, so operated a passenger charter out to Belfast Harbour on the Saturday morning at 0810 as DAN6XT, returning later at 1745 as DAN6XU. The charter groups were quite likely sports teams. All will have used the north airfield 'art deco' terminal.
Into 1984 and a Ford's passenger charter to Maastrict on Tuesday morning 17th January as DA6050, returning late Wednesday as DA6053. On Saturday 28th January a day return charter to Belfast/Sydenham as DA6123/6124, possibly with conference delegates. Another Ford's Maastrict pax charter out on Tuesday 14th February, back on 15th as DA6050/DAN6OG. The Biggin Hill flight in May detailed above. A freight charter on Thurs 19th July due to national dock strikes to and from Belfast/Aldergrove as DAN6OP/6OS. Another activity to fill the day-stop was crew training. G-BEJD was involved in training, usually as DA40T on 3rd, 5th, 25th, 27th & 31st August 1984. On Wednesday 20th March 1985 two one hour educational flights on behalf of a local school as DA6061 & DA6062. A further 3 hours of training, DA45T on Wednesday 24th April 1985, while another cargo flight on 26th November 1985, Belfast return for Reeds/Air Bridge.
Back to mail and freight work with Janes and Emerald.The mail contract flown by Dan Air through Speke was changed from 1.4.90 to operate direct Gatwick-Belfast, without the Liverpool stop. Naturally, G-BEJD was in use on the last night, Friday 30th March 1990, operating f&t Belfast, then later from Belfast and onto Gatwick in early hours of 31st, as DA7302/3 and DA7304/5. So after near 8 years, frequent night time visits to Liverpool by G-BEJD with Dan Air ended.
However, on Wednesday morning 4th September 1991 G-BEJD landed at Liverpool at 0117 from Gatwick, on mail flight DA7300 due to fog at destination Belfast. The mail continued on at 0605 to Belfast/Aldergrove once visibility had improved. Latter G-BEJD returned as DA7302 at 0919 bring delayed mail to Liverpool (which had not been carried during the night by Business Air SD.360 due to the fog). Having dropped the mail, G-BEJD then day-stopped at Liverpool departing at 2050 for Belfast as DA89JD. Early in 1992 G-BEJD was placed in storage at Manchester pending sale.
Janes Avn had taken over two mail flights on reorganisation of the Royal Mail 'Skynet' from 28.9.92 using their HS.748s. G-BEJD made its first appearance on 24th October 1992 and subsequent nights on JAV144/145, from & to Edinburgh. First visit to Liverpool once Janes Aviation moved their operational base from Blackpool to Liverpool, June 1993 was on Thursday 17th June 1993 with an arrival from Coventry at 0251 as JAN170P to swop with another of the fleet, G-BEKE. G-BEJD then departed to Ostend at 1708 as JAN748P the next evening.
Initially the aircraft 7.92 to at latest 5.93 retained the Dan Air scheme, less airlines name and tail logo. By 5.93 the Dan Air scheme was covered by plain white overall, without titles. G-BEJD was away at Exeter for checks and repaint between 12.11.94 and 5.12.94, returning to service in 'Reed Aviation' scheme, with narrow green and red cheat lines, logo and titles, matching sister-ship G-ATMI. On being repainted white in 5.93 she gained the individual name
"John Case" painted below the cockpit windows. The name survived the 12.94 respray into Reed Aviation colours, however later (certainly by 1.96) G-BEJD this was replaced by the individual name
"Sisyphus". Sometime, probably early 2002, the 'Reed Aviation' fuselage titles were painted out, but never replaced with 'Emerald' ones.
G-BEJD was reported on 31.12.02 to have recorded 48,948 hours total flight time.
The end and a new beginningLast operational flight with Emerald was on JEM916 on Friday 18.2.05 into Liverpool, which was also coincidently the last operation of Securicor's contract JEM915/916. Mostly parked out, a short spell was spent inside Hangar 2. On Sunday 13th March G-BEJD flew a short flight from Liverpool (air test?) as JEM07T, then departed for Blackpool as JEM65E an hour later.
So the aircraft's last flight departed from Liverpool'. The C of A did not expire until 29.3.06, however 'JD, the oldest '748 in the fleet and the only Mk.1, did not fly again, becoming a source for spare parts.
Following the demise of Emerald Airways in June 2006, G-BEJD sat outside with the rest of the fleet. The airframe was stripped of useful parts and positioned in the fire training compound, prior to being cut up and removed as scrap. Gradually the preservation movement became aware of the plight of 'JD (as the last Avro built '748 surviving in the UK) and certainly by 2008 the enthusiasts at Millom began the process of acquiring the the aircraft, although interest was also expressed by the Jetstream Club at Liverpool. When Millom Aviation Museum failed, the Speke Aviation Heritage Group stepped in July 2010, however it would be over a year before they became the legal owners. Over a period of a week-and-a-half in October 2011, 'JD was prepared for transport at Blackpool Airport, with arrival at Liverpool's Crowne plaza apron, mid afternoon, Thursday 20th October in three main sections. Unloaded they were placed in the correct sequence at ground level. The long process of restoration comes next.
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There are very few airliners that can make the claim, as G-BEJD does, to be a regular at Liverpool for some 24 consecutive years on mail, freight and the occasional passenger flight, operating with both Dan Air and Janes/Emerald. While with Dan Air carried charter passengers which were handled in the art deco, original terminal, so a position outside that building is very appropriate. I've added considerable detail to the above account over the past few days since first posted. Clearly 'JD served Liverpool as a 'work horse' for very many years. I will continue to dig for fresh information and add it.
I've yet to uncover any photos of 'JD on the old airfield - but I'm still looking, as I hope all members with photo collections from the 81-92 Dan Air and 92-05 Janes/Emerald/Reed period, are searching their collections. Someone must have photos over the Bank Road fence of 'JD day-stopping between Dan Air mail flights, or departing on the '84 Biggin Hill flight.
