I had the honour of being an electrical engineer at Brize Norton in the eighties, and worked on all levels of the VC10 servicing from first to third line, and flew on many post service check flights which really put the plane through it;s paces and made it do things it never normally would when carrying passengers. I loved everything about this majestic aircraft and it was way ahead of it's time, like so many other British designed planes. .
It is beautiful as a bird. The flaps look like feathers, the tail wing is handdrawn. Airplanes will never look so 'analog' again. The sound is magnificent.
Majestic plane. Flew on both the VC10 and the Super VC10 back in the 60's with my parents and siblings. Still have very fond memories. Quite an era for passenger air travel back then, same for the 70's; not the cattle car experience it has now become.
British United, Ghana Airways, Malawi Airways, East African Airways, Gulf Air, Middle East airlines. I think Nigeria flew them. As well as airlines, the governments of, Oman, Qatar and United Arab Emirates flew them in a VIP configuration.
The last VC10 built was an order for East African Airways, A Super VC10. I saw a photo of it in the snow at the Vickers factory before delivery, lost now. I used to fly on these birsds regularly on the Nairobi, Entebbe routes inthe early 70s. Fantastic.
That was 5H-MOG, later ZA150, and it can still be seen at Bruntingthorpe to this day. Kepler Aerospace had plans to return it to tanker service in the USA, but those plans have not yet materialised, and probably never will.
Reminds me of my childhood plane spotting at Heathrow. Loved the rear engine airliners, VC-10, Tristar, Trident and BAC-111. All made a racket even while taxiing to and from their stand.
Love the Howl!! Living on finals to EGCC, that "after howl" was my alarm clock for a daily 8am arrival as it passed overhead. Great memories, thanks so much for sharing
As a Stockport schoolboy, that 0800 arrival was our bus keeping time clock. The black sooty smoke and the howl mixed with the engine whistle noise. Fabulous!
It was a good plane but it wasn't even close to being one of the best planes ever! if it was one of the best planes ever there would be more than just 54 built! it was one of the best British planes ever built but not one of the best planes ever!
@John Higgins It was not 'ordered less' than other airliners it happened to be extremely popular and the most popular (and only one for two or three years) wide bodied airliner of its era, it was king for 25 years, and the competition came in the guise of the DC10 and Tristar. The Tristar, though a technical tour de force didn't sell and was Lockheed's final attempt at a commercial. McDonnell Douglas cut more corners than a kid with scissors and a stack of A4, and still the 747 had many more orders. It single handedly changed the world as we knew it giving everyone the opportunity to travel like nothing before or since. It flew well too and the crews liked it. It was fast. 625 mph, so leaves ALL modern twins far behind. Airbus didn't get a look in till decades later, even though the A300 was introduced in the 70s it made no impact till much later. Some idiot mentioned the 737 MAX and made some inane comment - Well that is it - you are an idiot.
@@fredgarvinmaleprostitute6451 Numbers built do not guarantee quality, just means you managed to sell for the right price. The VC10 was a technical marvel and made the contemporary 707 look very mediocre. The VC10 would be at 2000 feet before the 707 had got half way up the runway. It flew like a fighter jet and was tough and rugged. Aerodynamically advanced it looked beautiful too. It was certainly one of the finest aircraft ever built.
I used to watch these RAF VC10's doing this at St. Mawgan - used to call them circuits and bumps. My late wife flew to Accra in a BOAC one in the late sixties, but I never had the privilege. No other plane quite like the VC10
Having lived very near Brize Norton, listening to the Rolls Royce Conway power plants......This bird is the ultimate....... Looks combined with that noise...
I lived next to Prestwick Airport, Scotland when I was young(1960s), BOAC VC-10s were very common, you knew it was one taking off by that amazing engine sound, the only sound that could beat it were the F-104s that regularly flew from there.
The VC10 is a beautiful aircraft, it will never be forgotten. I think that there should be an updated version made of this aircraft instead of the ugly looking planes they make nowadays.✈❤💙☺
Yea those Conways have a unique sound. I love the Vc-10 I wish it would have been more popular with buyers. I love that engine layout. It may have been the layout that scared buyers away. They were afraid if one engine was damaged it could ultimately damage the neighboring engines. This did ring true to an extent. Either way it's a beautiful plane.
Reminds me of the flight I had on a VC10 on an Air Training Corps summer camp at RAF Brize Norton. The flight was straight after lunch and it wasn't long before people started being ill as the flight was a training flight that included several touches and go.
As an American and longtime fan of Boeing and all things aviation, I must say that the VC-10 is more awesome than my beloved 727. 4 beats 3, hands down. 😢
I flew in one when I was 8 .We were allowed to get off the plane in Nairobi for a while. taking off is great. So much power it pushed you back in you seat. I don't think it had the range though. We landed in Rome and Tenerife and finally Joburg 1971
Still design wings ( for Airbus - BaE sold nearly all the remaining civil aviation industry to them ) & engines, which is arguably some of the harder parts. Asking British industry to manage flight software development might be going a bit far, going on existing evidence...
Absolute perfection! And all this could have been the rival of the Boeing 707 if not for bloody British Airways. Why you Brits still allow these wankers to display the Union Jack on their planes is beyond me. They're just another multi-national conglomerate. You Brits must be SO proud.
