Vickers-Armstrongs

26 April 2024

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59 of the 444 Viscounts built survive as complete airframes or major components. Some are in very good condition and are looked after by museums while others are just wrecks. They can be found in 24 countries.

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Our website contains over 20,000 pages of photos and information that can all be accessed from the menu at the top of every page. Here are a few to get you started.

In the Beginning

The Turboprop World-Beater

Sir George Edwards

The Rolls-Royce Dart

c/n 1 G-AHRF V.630
The Prototype Viscount

c/n 2 VX217 V.663
The Tay powered Viscount

c/n 3 G-AMAV V.700
The V.700 series prototype

c/n 4 G-ALWE V.701
The first BEA Viscount

c/n 5 G-ALWF V.701
The oldest surviving Viscount

c/n 8 F-BGNK V.708
The first Air France Viscount

c/n 30 EI-AFV V.707
The first Aer Lingus Viscount

c/n 40 CF-TGI V.724
The first TCA Viscount

c/n 44 VH-TVA V.720
The first TAA Viscount

c/n 67 YI-ACK V.735
The first Iraqi Airways Viscount

c/n 70 CF-GXK V.737
The first Canadian DoT Viscount

c/n 71 VP-TBK V.702
The first BOAC Associated
Companies Viscount

c/n 74 G-ANRR V.732
The first Hunting-Clan Viscount

c/n 77 LN-FOF V.736
The first Fred Olsen Viscount

c/n 79 IU-683 V.723
The first Indian Air Force Viscount

c/n 88 N7402 V.744
The first Capital Airlines Viscount

c/n 97 VH-BAT V.747
The first Butler Air
Transport Viscount

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Viscount c/n 162

Operational Record

British European Airways Corporation (BEA)

England flag England

This V.802 series Viscount was built for
British European Airways Corporation (BEA) as G-AOHM

It first flew on Thursday, 30 May 1957 at Weybridge, Surrey, England powered by Rolls-Royce Dart 510 engines.

During its life this aircraft was also owned and/or operated by
British Airways (BA), British Air Ferries (BAF), Air Algerie, BAF Air Tours, Loganair, Manx Airlines, British World Airlines (BWA), Airwing 2000 Ltd and Interflight

Transtel

Togo flag Togo

Its final owner/operator was
Transtel as 3D-OHM.

Its fate:-
Damaged beyond repair after an aborted takeoff at N'djamena International Airport, Tchad 24 July 2001. Reportedly re-registered as 5V-TTJ circa 2002 but there is no physical evidence of this on the aircraft. Possibly scrapped in 2003. Details please to information@vickersviscount.net.

Operational record

Photo of British European Airways Corporation (BEA) Viscount G-AOHM

January 1956 to July 1973

British European Airways Corporation (BEA)

G-AOHM - c/n 162 - a V.802 series Viscount
United Kingdom registered

February 1953
An order was placed for the first 800 series Viscount which was specifically designed for British European Airways Corporation (BEA).

This was the 13th Type 802 ordered by British European Airways Corporation (BEA).

Production Aircraft No. 19 - the 19th production 800 series Viscount built,
was the 13th 800 series Viscount fuselage assembled at Hurn, Bournemouth, Hampshire, England,
and the 19th 800 series Viscount assembled at Weybridge, Surrey, England.

Production Order No. F13/802. Sales Order No. F13/63B. Stock Order No. F13/26B.

2 January 1956
Registered to British European Airways Corporation (BEA).

20 September 1956
Fuselage assembly commenced at Hurn Airport, Bournemouth, Hampshire, England.

December 1956
Fuselage transported by road from Hurn Airport, Bournemouth, Hampshire, England to Weybridge, Surrey, England.

8 December 1956
Fuselage to Erecting Shop 'E' at Weybridge, Surrey, England.

30 May 1957
First flight from Brooklands Airfield, Weybridge, Surrey, England.

It landed at Wisley Airfield, Surrey, England for fitting out and test flying.

27 June 1957
Delivered to British European Airways (BEA) named as 'R M A Robert Machin'.

24 December 1958
Noted at Gatwick Airport, Surrey, England due to a London Airport (Heathrow) weather diversion.

29 January 1959
Noted at Gatwick Airport, Surrey, England due to a London Airport (Heathrow) weather diversion.

BEA
‘Red Square‘ livery

March 1959
A new BEA 'Red Square' livery was adopted and aircraft were repainted during the early 1960s when they next went in for overhaul.

Sadly, after repainting, the aircraft no longer carried a name including the nameplate on the forward cabin bulkhead.

BEA
'Flying Union Jack‘ livery

4 May 1960
Noted at Gatwick Airport, Surrey, England due to a London Airport (Heathrow) weather diversion.

6 October 1960
Noted at Gatwick Airport, Surrey, England due to a London Airport (Heathrow) weather diversion.

18 December 1960
Noted at Gatwick Airport, Surrey, England due to a London Airport (Heathrow) weather diversion.

4 December 1962
Noted at Gatwick Airport, Surrey, England due to a London Airport (Heathrow) weather diversion.

circa 1968
A new BEA ‘Flying Union Jack‘ livery was adopted and most aircraft were repainted when they went in for major overhaul, which took some of them into the early 1970s before this was accomplished.

20 February 1968
Noted at Gatwick Airport, Surrey, England due to a Heathrow Airport weather diversion.

July 1969
Noted operating with BEA 'Channel Islands' titles.

7 May 1972
Operated the inaugural service from Jersey Airport, Channel Islands to Schiphol Airport, Amsterdam, Netherlands flown by Captain R H Poirrier. The flight took 1 hour 38 minutes and a commemorative postal cover was issued and flown in the aircraft.

31 July 1973
Transferred to British Airways (BA) due to a corporate merger.

FURTHER READING: Books about BEA - British European Airways

Photo of British Airways (BA) Viscount G-AOHM

July 1973 to February 1981

British Airways (BA)

G-AOHM - c/n 162 - a V.802 series Viscount
United Kingdom registered

31 July 1973
Transferred from British European Airways Corporation (BEA) due to a corporate merger.

Continued operating on the Channel Islands routes.

British Airways (BA)
‘New‘ livery

circa 1975
Painted in the new British Airways (BA) livery.

19 March 1975
During a touch and go exercise at Dinard Airport, Pleurtuit, Northern France the flaps that were selected for the previous approach and landing would normally have retracted into the takeoff position when the engine throttles were advanced for a go-around but for some reason, in this instance they remained in the landing configuration. The extra drag would have resulted in the aircraft not getting airborne so Base Training Captain Anthony McLauchlan immediately elected to abandon the takeoff and his trainee pilot managed to stop the aircraft within the remaining runway length without any damage. Invaluable training no doubt!

After vacating the runway Anthony verified visually from the cabin the incorrect flap position and then cycled the flaps through their full range. He then selected the correct takeoff position which was again verified visually from the cabin. After consulting with the engineers at Jersey they agreed that the aircraft should be flown back to its home base in Jersey, Channel Islands for a full inspection of the flap and throttle interconnect systems. The ferry flight was made without further incident. Unfortunately, Anthony was too busy flying other Viscounts to be able to find out the cause of the malfunction.

Stored at Rhoose Airport, Cardiff, Wales.

Stored at
Rhoose, Cardiff, Wales

8 May 1980
Operated from Heathrow Airport, London, England to Rhoose Airport, Cardiff, South Glamorgan, Wales and withdrawn from service and stored.

February 1981
Sold to British Air Ferries (BAF).

FURTHER READING: Books about British Airways (BA)

Photo of British Air Ferries (BAF) Viscount G-AOHM

February 1981 to March 1981

British Air Ferries (BAF)

G-AOHM - c/n 162 - a V.802 series Viscount
United Kingdom registered

February 1981
Purchased from British Airways (BA).

23 February 1981
Ferried from Rhoose Airport, Cardiff, South Glamorgan, Wales to Southend Airport, Rochford, Essex, England.

26 February 1981
Airtested from Southend Airport, Rochford, Essex, England after 'BAF' titles were applied to the tail with the remainder in a basic BA blue and white livery.

1 March 1981
Rolled out in British Air Ferries (BAF) livery with BAF logo on the nose and Air Algerie logo on the tail.

10 March 1981
Leased to Air Algerie.

March 1981 to May 1981

Air Algerie

G-AOHM - c/n 162 - a V.802 series Viscount
United Kingdom registered

10 March 1981
Leased from British Air Ferries (BAF) and delivered to Noumerate Airport, Ghardaia, Algeria still named as 'Anne Marie'.

May 1981
Returned to British Air Ferries (BAF).

May 1981 to November 1981

British Air Ferries (BAF)

G-AOHM - c/n 162 - a V.802 series Viscount
United Kingdom registered

May 1981
Returned from Air Algerie lease.

Repainted in the new BAF double stripe livery.

November 1981
Leased back to Air Algerie in a basic BAF livery.

November 1981 to January 1982

Air Algerie

G-AOHM - c/n 162 - a V.802 series Viscount
United Kingdom registered

November 1981
Leased from British Air Ferries (BAF) in a basic BAF livery.

10 January 1982
Returned to British Air Ferries (BAF).

January 1982 to March 1983

British Air Ferries (BAF)

G-AOHM - c/n 162 - a V.802 series Viscount
United Kingdom registered

10 January 1982
Returned from Air Algerie lease.

British Air Ferries (BAF)
‘Yellow and Blue Tail‘ livery

September 1982
Noted painted in the British Air Ferries (BAF) ‘Yellow and Blue Tail‘ livery and named as 'Anne Marie'.

9 March 1983
Transferred to BAF Air Tours.

March 1983 to February 1984

BAF Air Tours

G-AOHM - c/n 162 - a V.802 series Viscount
United Kingdom registered

9 March 1983
Transferred from British Air Ferries (BAF) and still named as 'Anne Marie'.

circa June 1983
Noted at Squires Gate Airport, Blackpool, Lancashire, England with a 'Skyrider' logo on the forward fuselage. The name 'Anne Marie' has now been removed.

It was being used for the nightly newspaper run to Belfast Airport, Northern Ireland.

1 February 1984
Leased to Loganair 'Scotland's Airline'.

February 1984 to May 1984

Loganair

G-AOHM - c/n 162 - a V.802 series Viscount
United Kingdom registered

1 February 1984
Leased from British Air Ferries (BAF) whilst operating for BAF Air Tours.

Painted in a modified British Air Ferries (BAF) livery named as 'The Flying Scotsman'.

Operated a twice daily schedule from Manchester, England to Edinburgh, Scotland as LC561/562 and LC567/568, replacing a Fokker F27 Friendship.

4 May 1984
Returned to British Air Ferries (BAF).

May 1984 to April 1990

British Air Ferries (BAF)

G-AOHM - c/n 162 - a V.802 series Viscount
United Kingdom registered

4 May 1984
Returned from Loganair lease.

Re-entered service in a plain dark blue and white livery with no titles.

British Air Ferries (BAF)
‘BAF‘ livery

June 1984
Painted in the British Air Ferries (BAF) 'BAF' livery and named as 'Viscount De L'isle'.

Stored at Rochford Airport,
Southend, Essex, England

March 1985
Noted stored at Southend Airport, Rochford, Essex, England with all four Rolls-Royce Dart RDa6 Mark 510 engines removed.

British Air Ferries (BAF)
‘British‘ livery

19 April 1986
Air tested after long term storage and re-named as 'Viscount Sir George Edwards' and now painted in the British Air Ferries (BAF) 'British' livery.

18 June 1986
Official naming ceremony as 'Viscount Sir George Edwards' at Gatwick Airport, West Sussex, England that was attended by Sir George Edwards who was presented with a model of a British Air Ferries (BAF) Viscount.

A flight with 70 invited guests was made along the South Coast of England that included an overshoot at Hurn Airport, Bournemouth, Dorset.

January 1987
Noted with 'British' titles which were previously used by British Airways.

22 January 1988
Noted beating up Richard Toll Airfield, Northern Senegal at low level at the end of a three week charter as a logistical support aircraft for the Dakar Rally with Captain Don Nay and First Officer Joe Gunnett.

20 October 1989
Noted at Southend Airport, Rochford, Essex, England in British Air Ferries (BAF) livery minus titles.

1 April 1990
Leased to Manx Airlines.

Photo of Manx Airlines (Skianyn Vannin) Viscount G-AOHM

April 1990 to April 1990

Manx Airlines (Skianyn Vannin)

G-AOHM - c/n 162 - a V.802 series Viscount
United Kingdom registered

1 April 1990
Leased from British Air Ferries (BAF) in full BAF livery with BAF still on the tail but no cabin roof titles.

11 April 1990
Returned to British Air Ferries (BAF).

April 1990 to April 1993

British Air Ferries (BAF)

G-AOHM - c/n 162 - a V.802 series Viscount
United Kingdom registered

11 April 1990
Returned from Manx Airlines lease still named as 'Viscount Sir George Edwards'.

1 April 1993
Transferred to British World Airlines (BWA) due to a corporate name change.

Photo of British World Airlines (BWA) Viscount G-AOHM

April 1993 to April 1999

British World Airlines (BWA)

G-AOHM - c/n 162 - a V.802 series Viscount
United Kingdom registered

1 April 1993
Transferred from British Air Ferries (BAF) due to a corporate name change.

15 November 1993
Total time 50,304:14 hours.

20 March 1994
Total time 50,685:16 hours.

18 July 1994
Total time 51,004:12 hours.

18 April 1996
This aircraft was scheduled to participate in a special retirement celebration at Heathrow Airport, London, England to mark the withdrawal of the Viscount from passenger service in the United Kingdom. Unfortuntantly one of the engineers preparing the aircraft for departure at Stansted Airport, Essex, England taxied the aircraft into a wire fence and cut the outer wing.

Viscount G-APEY (C/N 382) was brought down from Dyce Airport, Aberdeen, Scotland at short notice as a replacement to participate in the celebrations.

May 1996
Converted at Southend Airport, Rochford, Essex, England from passenger to cargo configuration, but without a large cargo door.

British World Airlines (BWA)
Parcel Force livery

27 June 1996
Painted in the red Parcel Force livery at Southend Airport, Rochford, Essex, England.

24 December 1996
Last service for Parcel Force from Baginton Airport, Coventry, England to Turnhouse Airport, Edinburgh, Scotland as BWL4273, then ferried to Southend Airport, Rochford, Essex, England as BWL341P.

8 January 1998
Operated the last Viscount flight for British World Airlines (BWA) from Belfast, Northern Ireland and then withdrawn from service and stored at Southend Airport, Rochford, Essex, England.

Chris Hatton wrote in the Evening Echo local newspaper: -

It was the end of an era. One of Britain's most successful airliners made its final touch down at Southend Airport, Rochford, Essex, England as tearful staff said their final goodbyes.

The British World Airlines plane - the last one in operation in the UK - made a low pass over the airport to celebrate its last flight from Belfast.

The Captain of the landmark flight was Ray Hill who had flown the Viscount for 29 years, with Paul Henty as his co-pilot. This was Ray's last flight as he took retirement at the same time as his aircraft.

Malcolm Ginsberg, spokesman for British World Airlines (BWA), which owned the Viscount said: "Over the years, the Viscount fleet has reduced as each aircraft has reached the end of its airframe life."

"The last three remaining in the UK have been operating twice nightly from Belfast and Edinburgh to Coventry, moving the nation's parcels."

circa April 1999
Sold to Airwing 2000 Ltd.

Photo of Airwing 2000 Ltd Viscount G-AOHM

April 1999 to May 1999

Airwing 2000 Ltd

G-AOHM - c/n 162 - a V.802 series Viscount
United Kingdom registered

circa April 1999
Purchased from British World Airlines (BWA).

21 May 1999
Departed Southend Airport, Rochford, Essex, England on delivery to Luqa Airport, Malta via Côte d'Azur Airport, Nice, France.

It was reportedly then operated for two weeks from Palma, Mallorca, Spain carrying cargoes of fish. Details please to information@vickersviscount.net.

25 August 1999
Sold to Interflight.

UK registration cancelled.

August 1999 to March 2001

Interflight

3D-OHM - c/n 162 - a V.802 series Viscount
Swaziland registered

25 August 1999
Purchased from Airwing 2000 Ltd and registration 3D-OHM applied.

31 August 1999
Departed Luqa, Malta on delivery to Lanseria International Airport, Johannesburg, South Africa together with Viscount 3D-PFI (C/N 170).

September 1999
Noted stored at Wonderboom Airport, Pretoria, South Africa.

circa March 2001
Sold to Transtel.

March 2001 to

Transtel

3D-OHM - c/n 162 - a V.802 series Viscount
Swaziland registered

circa March 2001
Purchased from Interflight.

24 July 2001
Damaged beyond repair after an aborted takeoff at N'djamena International Airport, Tchad.

February 2002
Noted stored under armed guard at N'djamena International Airport, Tchad with very little obvious damage except for a curled No.3 propeller. The aircraft is painted all white with no titles.

The aircraft had reportedly been re-registered 5V-TTJ but there is no physical evidence of this on the aircraft.

14 June 2004
Not seen at N'djamena International Airport, Tchad using Google Earth. Possibly scrapped in 2003. Details please to information@vickersviscount.net.

Photo of BEA - British European Airways Viscount G-AOJC

The Vickers Viscount Network is always interested to hear from anyone who has information or photographs to help complete the story of the Viscount. If you can help please contact us at
Information@VickersViscount.net.

Click here for more details about the Vickers Viscount Network

Museum search

Viscount Survivors

59 of the 444 Viscounts built survive as complete airframes or major components. Some are in very good condition and are looked after by museums while others are just wrecks. They can be found in 24 countries.

Viscount history

Discover the history of the Viscount with film, video, contemporary reports from the pages of Flight Magazine, our newsletters, and aircraft operational records and photos from our database.

Share your photos and stories

Our 'Live Magazine' is used by members and non-members to share their Viscount photos and stories with fellow enthusiasts located throughout the world in real time.

You are able to send in your photos, stories and comments by Facebook, Twitter or email and we will post them for all to enjoy.

Contact us

Join the Vickers Viscount Networkfor FREE

Featured pages

Our website contains over 20,000 pages of photos and information that can all be accessed from the menu at the top of every page. Here are a few to get you started.

This website does not use cookies or capture your details

Viscount c/n 162

Operational Record

British European Airways Corporation (BEA)

Transtel

British European Airways Corporation (BEA)

BEA‘Red Square‘ livery

BEA'Flying Union Jack‘ livery

British Airways (BA)

British Airways (BA)‘New‘ livery

Stored atRhoose, Cardiff, Wales

British Air Ferries (BAF)

Air Algerie

British Air Ferries (BAF)

Air Algerie

British Air Ferries (BAF)

British Air Ferries (BAF)‘Yellow and Blue Tail‘ livery

BAF Air Tours

Loganair

British Air Ferries (BAF)

British Air Ferries (BAF)‘BAF‘ livery

Stored at Rochford Airport,Southend, Essex, England

British Air Ferries (BAF)‘British‘ livery

Manx Airlines (Skianyn Vannin)

British Air Ferries (BAF)

British World Airlines (BWA)

British World Airlines (BWA)Parcel Force livery

Airwing 2000 Ltd

Interflight

Transtel

Join the Vickers Viscount Network
for FREE

BEA
‘Red Square‘ livery

BEA
'Flying Union Jack‘ livery

British Airways (BA)
‘New‘ livery

Stored at
Rhoose, Cardiff, Wales

British Air Ferries (BAF)
‘Yellow and Blue Tail‘ livery

British Air Ferries (BAF)
‘BAF‘ livery

Stored at Rochford Airport,
Southend, Essex, England

British Air Ferries (BAF)
‘British‘ livery

British World Airlines (BWA)
Parcel Force livery