Returning home to a new base at Aldermaston airfield west of London , Eagle was now faced with a depressed charter market . The fledgling airline kept two Halifaxes serviceable , using them on several longdistance ad-hoc charters to carry machinery to the Middle and Far East . But they were rapidly approaching the end of their useful lives and would need urgent replacement if Eagle was to survive and prosper . Fortunately , BOAC was disposing of a number of its |
Avro York transports ( developed from the famous Lancaster bomber ) and Bamberg quickly snapped up three examples . In December 1950 , he doubled the York fleet with the acquisition of three more and a large spares holding for £ 30,000 ( US $ 84,000 ) from the recently liquidated FAMA of Argentina . |
The York ’ s spacious 1,835cusq ft ( 52cu m ), 10-ton ( 9,072 kg ) capacity fuselage enabled Eagle to take advantage of a growing demand for longrange |
transportation of heavy machinery ; it quickly built a reputation for dealing with unwieldy and bulky loads . The new aircraft , which entered service from mid-October 1949 , were soon active hauling a diverse variety of cargos : a complete Christmas circus troupe , including animals , from Valencia to Liverpool ; a 10-ton ship ’ s propeller shaft to Amsterdam ; oil-drilling equipment to Iraq ; and empty Pepsi-Cola bottles to Cairo . The York could also be fitted with up to 46 seats for passenger charters , the first of which carried a speedway motorcycle team to Johannesburg . Subsequent movements included pilgrims to Rome and the Holy Land , and Hajj charters for Mecca . |
1 Stunning view of a British Eagle Bristol Britannia on takeoff . The Britannia was referred to as the Whispering Giant . // PAUL ZOGG COLLECTION ( ZOGGAVIA )
2 3 Eagle Aviation purchased three Avro Yorks from BOAC , followed by another three from FAMA of Argentina . The York ’ s hold could accommodate a Rolls Royce Merlin engine as seen in photo # 3 . // HRB ARCHIVE VIA MAURICE WICKSTEAD
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The purchase of Trent Valley Aviation in September 1950 brought a Douglas C-47 ( DC-3 ) into the fleet along with an eightpassenger DeHavilland Dragon Rapide bi-plane . The Rapide was used on a summer service linking Nottingham ( Midlands ) |
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