Pan Am Boeing 747-100 departs LHR (1970).
Then still a rare sight - only PA & TWA operating schedules from there with the type. BOAC’s were parked up until 1971 due to a dispute with BALPA.
Early 747s had notably poor performance - tales of only FL100 by WAL on transatlantics…
Launch of the BA Shuttle LHR-GLA (1975).
Services to BFS followed (1976), EDI (1977) & MAN (1979). Pay on board, guaranteed seat, back-up a/c (usually a BAC 1-11) standing by.
Revolutionary then, but while the callsigns remain on the routes the concept disappeared long ago.
In 1967, BOAC inaugurated its legendary London–Sydney Pacific service aboard the sleek Boeing 707 — a 13,000-mile marathon that took 33 hours across five stops.
Passengers dined on caviar at 40,000 ft as the jet hopped from London ➝ New York ➝ San Francisco ➝ Honolulu ➝ Fiji ➝ Sydney.
An era when long-haul flying was pure glamour, and every journey felt like a global expedition.
Last night I spent ages looking at “our moon”. It’s not often I fly towards the moon when it’s not rising, but instead at its highest inclination. After tonight’s sad news I post this as my small tribute to a real hero, Jim Lovell. RIP
@scottiebateman YYZ used to do a ground display after the Canadian National Exhibition airshow which had flyovers over Lake Ontario. This photo from the 90s
News item with an excellent demonstration of the flight deck actions which led to the stall & crash of BEA Trident G-ARPI at Staines, Middlesex on 18 June 1972.
This was broadcast after the release of the official AAIB report in May 1973.
#OTD#trident#disaster#staines
Comeback / Sir Richard Branson has touched down in Toronto to mark @VirginAtlantic's return to Canada, launching a brand-new direct service between London Heathrow and Toronto Pearson International Airport.
Schedule: https://t.co/pnD8WB5U6G