Yesteryear

• The merger of Skywest Airlines and Trans- west Airlines has resulted in the creation of Australia’s largest commuter airline whose fleet includes three Cessna Citations.

The first flight of the second BAe 146 took place at Hatfield on January 25. Aircraft number three and four will join the test programme by the end of June. The fourth BAe 146 will be a Series 200 aircraft moved up from the number eight position originally planned.

The first unmanned flight of a QF-100 Super Sabre converted to a drone by Sperry has been made at speeds up to 275 knots and altitudes up to 35,000. The QF-100 is lighter than a manned F-100 and can reach Mach 1. 3 and 50,000ft altitude. Present contracts cover the conversion of up to 72 OF-100s by Sperry with longer term plans for up to 300.

The downturn in airline business throughout the world was highlighted by year end statistics from McDonnell Douglas. Orders for the DC-10 are at an all time low with no firm orders for any DC-IOs in 1983. At the end of last year, nine firm orders and 13 conditional orders were held taking commercial sales of the type to 380. The military has ordered 16 KC-10s with the prospect of a further 44 awaiting congressional approval. If the military orders do not eventuate and commercial demand remains at the present extremely low levels, MDC said it could become necessary to close the DC-10/ KC-10 assembly line.

20 Years Ago

The Rolls-Royce RB211 engine has received US and British airworthiness certification to operate within the temperature margins required for airline service. The 42,000lb st RB211 will enter service powering the Lockheed TriStar airliners and over 140 engines worth in excess of £60m will be delivered this year with production expected to exceed 500 engines by the end of 1974.

The Minister for Defence Mr Fairbairn has announced that 12 Boeing Vertol CH-47C Chinooks have been ordered for the RAAF to be delivered in the second half of 1973. A team of 20 RAAF and Air Department officers will go to the USA next month to begin the planning of the spares and support programme. The Chinooks will be operated by No 12 Squadron based at Amberley.

• A recent order for three Boeing 747C8 from World Airways has taken total 747 sales to 210. In another sale, Delta has ordered 14 Advanced 7278 and will sell 16 of their Convair 880s to Boeing as part of the deal. This and other recent 727 orders has taken 727 sales to 939 and total orders for all Boeing airliners 707/720, 727, 737 and 747 now stand at 2,337.

• By the end of 1971, LTV Aerospace Corporation had delivered 921 A-7 Corsairs Ils to the USAF and USN and production is continuing at a rate of 12 per month.

The US Aviation Manufacturers Association said that January 1972 was the seventh consecutive month that had shown an upward trend in sales. January 1972 sales of 581 general aviation aircraft valued at $US24. 5 compared with 505 aircraft valued at $19. 3m in January 1971.

The Canadian Air Force’s remaining 11 Canadair Yukon transports have been purchased by the Beaver Group, a Montreal construction firm.

Because of an increase in demand for agricultural aircraft, North American Rock-well will double 1972 production of the Thrush Commander. Deliveries have increased from 33 in 1966 to 59 in 1970 and are expected to reach nearly 90 this year. The 1972 Thrush Commander has a transparent 400 gallon hopper to enable the contents to be quickly read from either inside or outside.

30 Years Ago

• A decision is soon expected as to whether Britain will join France in the development of a Mach 2. 2 transport. If an agreement is reached, BAC will combine with Sud in the production of two versions of the Super Car- avelle which would only differ in their payload and fuel arrangements. The British version would carry 80 passengers across the Atlantic non stop while the French version would accommodate 100 passengers over ranges up to 2,400 miles.

• A contract for a design study of a “variable geometry” aircraft in which the wings can be swivelled in flight has been placed with the British Aircraft Corporation by the Ministry of Aviation. The Chief of Aeronautical Research and Development at Vickers-Armstrongs (Aircraft), Dr Barnes Wallis has evolved a design in which the wings are pivoted enabling the angle of sweep to be varied in flight. Scottish racing driver Ron Flockhart was killed when his CAC Mustang Mk 21 G-ARUK crashed near Kallista, Victoria on April 12. He had left Moorabbin at 10. 18am en route to Sydney and crashed at 10. 30am after entering cloud over the Dandenong Ranges. He had earlier reported compass failure and was attempting a return to Moorabbin.

• Hawker Siddeley Aviation has received an order for a quantity (believed to be 40) of Avro 748MF military freighters for the RAF The Avro 748MF is developed from the 748 civil transport and features modifications to the fuselage, wing and tail unit.

The first USN unit to be operational with the North American A3J (A-5) Vigilante is Heavy Attack Squadron 7 based at Sanford, Florida. The squadron will later go aboard USS Enterprise.

Ansett-ANA has sold three of its five Convair 440 Metropolitans to Allegheny Airlines for $400,000 each. The Convairs were surplus to requirements. Two of them were replaced by one Friendship operating services in North Queensland while the third had been on standby at Melbourne.

A crowd of 60,000 attended the 1962 Bankstown Air Display on April 1. Some of the highlights of the flying displays were the first public appearance of the Victa Airtourer 100 prototype VH-MVA, an air race involving 12 aircraft ranging from some Cessna 1828 to a Mustang in which a Cessna 310G was first across the line (the race was handicapped). and RAN aircraft, including Sea Venoms, Gannets, Sycamores, a Firefly and a Sea Fury.