Vickers Viscount

The Viscount was a medium-range turboprop airliner introduced in 1953 by Vickers-Armstrong, making it the first such aircraft to enter service in the world. It would go on to be one of the most successful of the first-generation post-war transports, with 445 being built over the life of the production line. It was particularly well liked by the passengers, as it was quiet and vibration free and had much larger windows than those found on more modern airliners.

File:Viscount802 BAE Heathrow.jpg

Vickers Viscount Model 802 of British European Airways at London (Heathrow) Airport, 1964.

History

The original design resulted from the Brabazon Committee's Type IIB design, calling for a smaller medium-range turboprop-powered pressurized aircraft to fly its less-travelled routes, carrying 24 passengers up to 1,750 miles (2,816 km) at 200 mile/h (322 km/h).^[1] British European Airways (BEA) was involved in the design and asked that the plane carry 32 passengers instead, but remained otherwise similar. The Type IIA was to be a piston powered version of similar performance, and was built as the Airspeed Ambassador.

The resulting Vickers Type 630 design was completed at Brooklands by Chief Designer Rex Pierson and his staff in 1945, a thirty-two seat airliner powered by four Rolls-Royce Dart engines for an improved cruising speed of 275 mph (443 km/h). An order for two prototypes was placed in March 1946, and construction started almost immediately. Originally to be named Viceroy, the name was changed after the partition of India in 1947. There was some work on replacing the Darts with the Armstrong Siddeley Mamba, but this was dropped by the time the prototypes were reaching completion. The prototype Model 630 flew on 16 July 1948, and the second prototype was built as a test-bed with two Rolls-Royce Tay turbojets in place of the four Darts. The first prototype was awarded a restricted Certificate of Airworthiness on 15 September 1949, followed by a full Certificate on 27 July 1950, and placed into service with BEA the next day to familiarize the pilots and ground crew with the new aircraft. However the design was considered too small and slow at 275 mph (443 km/h), making the per-passenger operating costs too high for regular service.

The design then went back to the drawing board and re-emerged as the larger Type 700 with up to forty-eight passengers (53 in some configurations), and a cruising speed of 308 mph (496 km/h). The new prototype first flew 28 August 1950. British European Airways ordered twenty V.701s, and soon orders came in from other airlines as well. The first 700 was delivered to BEA in January 1953, and in April began the world's first turboprop-powered service.

Three years later the Viscount won all honours in the transport section of the 12,367 mile (19,903 km) air race from London to Christchurch, New Zealand. The aircraft averaged 320 mph (515 km/h) in the event, crossing the finishing line nine hours ahead of its closest rival. Vickers Vicounts served with New Zealand's National Airways Corporation.

The Model 700D added more powerful engines, and the Model 724 included a new fuel system, two-pilot cockpit, and increased weights.

The final major change to the design was the Type 800 Super Viscount, stretched 3 ft 10 in (1.2 m) for up to 71 passengers. A further change to the fuselage was planned, but later renamed as the Vanguard instead.

The type continued in BEA and British Airways service until the 1980s, eventually being passed on to charter operators such as British Air Ferries (later British World). The last British-owned Viscounts were sold in South Africa where a small number are still in use.

Variants

700 - the first production version, 1,381 hp (1,030 kW) engines, 287 built
- 700D - 1,576 hp (1,175 kW) engines
724 - 15 sold to Trans Canada Airlines (TCA) of Canada, included more electrical power, a new fuel system, and cold weather operation provisions.
745D - 40 sold to Capital Airlines of the USA
757 - 35 for Trans Canada Airlines with more powerful 1,600 hp (1,193 kW) Dart 510 engines
771D - improved 770D
800 - fuselage stretched 3 ft 10 in (1.2 m), 67 built
810 - 1,991 hp (1,485 kW) engines, 84 built

Preserved aircraft

Type 700 (Registration CF-THS) on display in Air Canada colours at Western Canada Aviation Museum, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada.
Type 701 (Registration G-ALWF named Sir John Franklin) on display in BEA colours at Duxford, Cambridgeshire, England.
Type 701 (Registration G-AMOG named Sir Robert Falcon Scott) on display in BEA colours at RAF Museum Cosford, Shropshire, England.
Type 708 (Registration F-BGNU) on display in Air France colours at Sinsheim Auto & Technik Museum, Germany.
Type 745D (Registration N7471) in Capital Airlines colors, at the Mid-Atlantic Air Museum, Reading, PA, USA.
Type 757 (Registration CF-THG) in Air Canada colours under restoration at BC Air Museum, Victoria, BC, Canada.
Type 757 (Registration CF-THI) on display in Trans Canada Airlines colours at Canada Aviation Museum, Rockcliffe, Canada.
Type 789D (Serial Number FAB2101) on display in Brazilian Air Force colours at the Museu Aeroespacial, Campos dos Afonsos, Brazil.
Type 794 Military Aviation Museum, Ankara, Turkey.
Type 806 (Registration G-APIM named Viscount Stephen Piercey) on display in British Air Ferries colours at Brooklands, Surrey, England.
Type 807 (Registration ZK-BRF named "City of Christchurch") on display at the Ferrymead Heritage Park, New Zealand
Type 814 (Registration D-ANAM) on display in British Air Ferries colours with no titles at Flugausstellung Leo Junior at Hermeskeil in Germany.
Type 818 (Registration VH-TVR named John Murray) on display in Trans Australian Airlines colours at the Australian National Aviation Museum, Moorabbin, Australia.
Type 843 (Serial Number 50258) in China Air Force colours as the Beijing Aviation Museum, China.

Operators

Civil operators

In August 2006 a total of 6 Vickers Viscount aircraft (all variants) remain in airline service in Africa, with Air Horizon (2), Air Kasai (1), Global Airways (1), Guila Air (1) and Trans Service Airlift (1).^[2]