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Post by johnoakes on Aug 6, 2011 9:23:59 GMT 1
 My God as a 13yr old I cycled from St.Helens to the airport to see a very strange DC-4 that just didn't look right. I remember it was a poor drizzly day but what a cop.10/10 as the ONLY Hermes ever to visit--- Phil Butler has a good photo of it parked behind the right hand side hangar--I saw it on the apron. Happy days. Be nice to have the photo on this posting.
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Post by Biggles on Aug 6, 2011 15:12:20 GMT 1
Relaing to the flight mix up of a Shawbury landing, could it also be connected to the fact that RAF Shawbury was classed as a Master Diversion Airfield for any flights civil or military at which point no flight plan would be required to get ATC permission to land if it was an emergency ? Only a maybe reason.
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Post by viscount on Aug 6, 2011 16:16:58 GMT 1
Thought the error had been firmly proved to just that, an error on my part. Mistaking a hand-written G or an O changed EGGS (old code for IoM) into EGOS Shawbury. The IoM made perfect sense in the context, as confirmed by Garstonboy and Danairamb; Shawbury made no sense, the original statement in the Ambassador piece has been long changed.
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Post by Deleted on Aug 7, 2011 16:30:53 GMT 1
I remember these startups well - many a time it took three or four goes before they sprang into life. It was many years ago but I seem to recall either live dolphins or small wales being loaded on to one which had been specially converted to take them.
Also remember a hearse arriving on the tarmac and coffin coming off one. First time I'd ever seen it but unfortunately not the last and have watched a couple being loaded onto craft I've been traveling on. Must be why the pilots report 136 souls plus one etc, when asked how many passengers they have on board.
Watched a film on youtube a couple of months ago of G-AMAD crashing at Heathrow and was going to add a link to it here but it has been removed - anyone know why or if its been posted on another site?
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Post by danairamb on Aug 7, 2011 22:46:57 GMT 1
Could memory re. the dolphins. This was in 1970 and was a special charter to Malta which was arranged by Lewis's Travel (the department store). Not sure why the dolphins needed to get there, or how Lewis's got involved, but I recall it very well as I had just started to work there as a "Saturday Boy."
David in Ottawa.
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Post by viscount on Aug 8, 2011 0:03:11 GMT 1
Umm.... By 1970 the BKS freighter Ambassadors had been retired. Indeed the only Ambassadors left flying were 3 Dan Air machines.
I've looked through the 1970 visiting aircraft logs. Only aircraft noted all year departing to Malta direct was a diverted passenger BEA Trident flight. It is likely that an older freighter type would not make Malta non-stop though. There were many freighter flights on behalf of Fords during the year, so few possible candates stand out. Mind you, as regular scheduled aircraft, it is quite probable that despite the odd routing and purpose of flight, a Dan Air Ambassador charter would have not been noted in the visitor logs.
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Post by danairamb on Aug 8, 2011 4:39:55 GMT 1
The dolphin flight was definitely Dan Air, and it would have been early 1970 or possibly late 1969. I joined Lewis's travel in February 1970, and the dolphin charter had either just taken place or was about to. I am pretty sure it wouldn't have been a non-stop flight but no idea where refuelling would have taken place. I think there was a picture of it in the local press too, so I am not sure if old Echos or Daily Post archives are available on line.
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Post by ronturner on Aug 8, 2011 6:52:03 GMT 1
It was certainly possible to make a day return to and from Hawarden with British Eagle. It was 5/= each way and worth every penny (In fact all 120 of them)
RT
...only joking about the price. I think it was a fiver each way.
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Post by Deleted on Aug 8, 2011 9:59:47 GMT 1
With ref to the Dan Air Dolphins. If you look at the first page here, you will see a photo of G-ALZO parked on the Western Apron in front of LFS. This aircraft had positioned in on the Friday (when this photo was taken) in preparation to take the dolphins out on Saturday morning.
It was very rare to see G-ALZO in LPL - it did not normally operate on our passenger services, but it was used for this as it was fitted with a large rear freight door.
My brother remembers it having to be de-iced the following morning and, after a quick e-mail to him, he says..... "The flight was on the Saturday, I think to Norway? And it had snowed overnight. I have several photographs of it being de-iced (or de-slushed - I think it was February - certainly late for snow). It must have been February 1971 (as 'ZO was withdrawn from use in October that year). I saw it a couple of times more between the February and the October when it was deputising for the failed Nord 262".
Hope this helps add to the detail. Perhaps my brother means 1970, but February certainly seems to be right as "danairamb" agrees too.
Cheers,
Dave
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Post by danairamb on Aug 8, 2011 15:29:45 GMT 1
Thanks that helps a lot. It certainly was 1970 though, and February makes perfect sense, as it was around the time of my 15th birthday that I started working at the travel agency. Yes for the last few years anyway, LPL was served almost exclusively by G-AMAE and AH.
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Post by viscount on Aug 8, 2011 23:31:10 GMT 1
I've just looked back at what I wrote in the original post #1 at the top of side 1 of this thread, and realise in the light of the recent posts, I had very likely have included the 'Dolphin' flight, although not knowing what it was at the time! The entry for 1970 includes the detail: G-ALZO appeared on 13th January 1970, but not on the regular operation, as it routed in from Gatwick and out to Cologne/Bonn. I'll admit when I originally typed that, I was thinking 'could be a Ford charter', but Cologne would be reasonably placed as a fuel stop en route Liverpool to Malta.
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Post by Deleted on Aug 8, 2011 23:36:54 GMT 1
I've just looked back at what I wrote in the original post #1 at the top of side 1 of this thread, and realise in the light of the recent posts, I had very likely have included the 'Dolphin' flight, although not knowing what it was at the time! The entry for 1970 includes the detail: G-ALZO appeared on 13th January 1970, but not on the regular operation, as it routed in from Gatwick and out to Cologne/Bonn. I'll admit when I originally typed that, I was thinking 'could be a Ford charter', but Cologne would be reasonably placed as a fuel stop en route Liverpool to Malta. No, 13th Jan 1970 was a Tuesday. I'd stick with a motor charter for that. It definitely arrived on Friday, night-stopped and departed Saturday. We also have two people saying Feb. Cheers, Dave |
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Post by johnoakes on Feb 14, 2013 9:25:58 GMT 1
Brilliant shot of the Hermes--- and I was there--LOL-- thanks very much-could we have a BKS Ambassador next? I remember my disbelief as I prepared to leave after a busy day spotting when the announcement came over the tannoy--"The aircraft approaching to land is a BKS Ambassador from Newcastle" My first Ambassador and a complete surprise--what a beautiful aircraft.Happy days.  |
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Post by mooneyncp on Mar 14, 2022 14:59:36 GMT 1
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Post by viscount on May 6, 2023 10:05:12 GMT 1
A 'bump-up' for a thread tracing activity at Liverpool Airport by Ambassador, Argonaut, Hermes and Marathon aircraft at Speke, now that it has had the images refreshed and considerably added to. Some iconic prop driven airliner types of the 60s.
Originally posted July 2011, for the past few years has had the few images mutilated by photobucket's watermark. Now refreshed with the original images replaced via a different image 'host' and many more added. Once a very popular thread, the 'hit' counter stands at around 7,180 since first posted - not just NWAN members but clearly many have discovered this on a 'Google' search.
Well worth a look through the images, although the discussion on page 2 regarding transportation of live dolphins was never resolved.
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