 |
| A British aircraft for United? |
The
Viscount was the subject of numerous large orders including the United States when it was designed in 1953. Its smooth, vibration free ride, good operating economics and pressurisation
contributed to its success. At speeds of 350 mph, it was the first turbojet engined aircraft and powered by Rolls Royce. The 48 passenger aircraft was purchased by Capital Airlines in 1953-54 for a cool 70.3 million dollars acquiring about sixty from the British based, Vickers-Armstrong, Ltd.
Capital Airlines, once the fourth largest airline, merged with United in 1961 making it the largest airline the free world. Here, Nick must have preferred the Capital Airlines fuselage design to the United for visual as well as historical reasons. The Viscount flew for United for over thirteen years.
Copyright 2012-2013/Ben Bensen III
No comments:
Post a Comment