This photo
shows De Havilland DH106 Comet 4 G-APDC (cn 6404) of the British Overseas
Airways Corporation (BOAC) at Melbourne/Essendon in 1961. There may
have been a problem as the DCA Airport
Fire Service Land Rover Light
Rescue Tender is in attendance (see also below).
G-APDC was delivered to BOAC in September 1958 and subsequently used for a number of firsts:
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On 4 October 1958 BOAC opened the first jet service across the North Atlantic, from London to New York, using G-APDC to operate the first westbound service under Capt. R E Millichap. The aircraft had to refuel at Gander due to headwinds, but beat Pan Am and the Boeing 707 into trans-Atlantic service by three weeks.
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On 19 December 1958 G-APDC inaugurated BOAC jet services to Canada, operating London-Montreal.
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On 21 January 1959 G-APDC operated a proving flight to Tokyo.
G-APDC was the third of 16 Comet 4s delivered to BOAC in 1958-59. The Comet was the world's first passenger jet, the prototype flying in 1949 and the first Comets entering BOAC service in May 1952. However, in 1954 two in-flight break-ups forced an extensive investigation of the Comet structure, which found a problem with fatigue cracking.
The first significant, re-designed Comet production model was the Comet 4, which was a lengthened and re-engined version capable of seating up to 81 passengers and with longer range, higher speed and higher weights.
For a time in 1963 G-APDC was operated by BOAC for Air Ceylon, carrying the latter's titles but retaining its British registration. Following BOAC service, G-APDC was sold to Malaysian Airways in October 1965 where it was re-registered 9M-AOC. After the merger of Malaysian Airways and Singapore Airlines in December 1966 it was re-registered 9V-BAT. It was subsequently sold to Dan Air in August 1969 and scrapped in April 1975.
(Photo: Alan Fraser/Maurice Austin
collection)
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